“Everyone has some kind of philosophy, some general worldview, which to men of other views will seem mythological.” – H. Richard Niebuhr
The role of religious studies is to give language and understanding to our beliefs, thoughts, and ideas. We all approach life with a particular worldview, often we are not aware of this, but religious studies challenges us to consider what we think and why. In realising our starting point, we then recognise that others, similarly, have their starting point, that may be different. This realisation brings understand of other people and hopefully tolerance. We do not have to all think the same, but to understand that others think differently for equally good reasons means we gain respect.
Students studying religious studies will be challenged both in the way they think and about their views. Hopefully they develop the skills that enable them to be critical and questioning about themselves and others.
Religious Studies at Magnus is based on three disciplines, Philosophy, Social Science and Theology. It is also taught through an enquiry question model. Each year has an over-arching enquiry question, each term then has its own question, and each lesson has its own, feeding up through the terms and years.
Key Stage 3
Year 7 EQ: What is Belief?
Year 8 EQ: How do you live a ‘good’ life?
Year 9 EQ: What gives life meaning?
Key Stage 4
At GCSE, students consider the above question specifically from a Secular, Christian and Buddhist worldview. We have recently changed to Buddhism to bring a greater contrast in thinking between religions.
The themes we study at GCSE are religion and relationships, belief in God, religion and matters of life and death, and religion, peace and conflict.
For more information about the way in which the enquiry questions in the lessons builds in each year, please see below.
|Key Stage 3 and |
Key Stage 4
|Threshold Concepts: |
1. Community and Change
2. Words and beyond
3. A good life
4. Making sense of life’s experiences
5. Influence, culture, community and power
6. The big picture
Key Stage 5 (A Level)
At A Level, students study the same questions in greater depth, building on what they have previously studied. The three components to the course are theology (Christianity), philosophy and religious ethics.
Students develop skills that allow them to select and deploy relevant information and to evaluate the strengths of differing arguments about religious figures and sacred texts; ethical theories, religious experience and language.
|Year 7||Year 8||Year 9||Year 10||Year 11|
|Enquiry Question: What is belief?||Enquiry Question: How do you live a good life?||Enquiry Question: What gives life meaning?||Enquiry Questions: What is belief? How do you live a good life? What gives life meaning?||Enquiry Questions: What is belief? How do you live a good life? What gives life meaning?|
|HT1||What are worldviews?||How do we make moral decisions?||Is belief in God reasonable?||How do Christians lead a good life?||How does belief in God differ?|
|HT2||What are the key concepts in a religious worldview?||How should we treat each other?||Can religion without a god give meaning?||How do Buddhists lead a good life?||Is belief in God questionable?|
|HT3||What are the key concepts in a secular worldview?||How should we treat the environment?||Is death the end?||How should we treat each other in relationships?||How do we deal with conflict?|
|HT4||What are people believing?||How should we treat animals?||Should religion and society be separate?||How can we show commitment?||How can we overcome conflict?|
|HT5||What does it mean to be a religious person in this country?||How does a religious person lead a good life?||What do Christians believe?||What is the origin and purpose of life?||Revision|
|HT6||Can belief be expressed through art?||What are the consequences of not living a good life?||What do Buddhists believe?||What is the value of life?||Revision|
|Trips||Holocaust Centre||Galleries of Justice||Buddhist Temple Nottingham|