We promote the teachings of Christianity through direct teaching and learning during RE lessons, collective acts of worship and through the general ethos of the school.  The content of the RE curriculum is based on the 2023-2028 Surrey Agreed Syllabus. This is taught over a two year rolling programme, with the exception of Year R, who incorporate an annual programme of study for RE within their EYFS curriculum. 

Intent

At St Mark’s CE Primary School we follow the Surrey Agreed Syllabus for RE 2023-2028.

Religious Education at St Marks CE Primary School contributes dynamically to pupils’ education by provoking challenging questions about meaning and purpose in life, beliefs (religious and non-religious), issues of right and wrong and what it means to be human. In RE the children learn about and from worldviews, including Christianity and other principal religions and beliefs (including non-religious perspectives such as Humanism) in local, national and global contexts, to discover, explore and consider different answers to these questions.

Our children learn to weigh up the value of wisdom from different sources, to develop and express their insights in response, and to agree or disagree respectfully. Teaching equips children with systematic knowledge and understanding of a range of worldviews, beliefs, concepts and practices, enabling them to develop their ideas, values and identities (personal knowledge).

Religious Education also develops in pupils’ an aptitude for dialogue so that they can participate positively in our society with its diversity of beliefs. The children learn to articulate clearly and coherently their personal beliefs, ideas, values and experiences, whilst respecting the right of others to differ. Religious Education at St Mark’s supports pupils in developing their sense of identity and belonging, enabling them to flourish individually within their communities, and as citizens in a diverse world.

The Surrey Agreed Syllabus 2023-2028 takes into account:

• legal requirements

• local and national factors

• the age, aptitude, ability and experience of pupils

• the views of the local community, including parents

• educational rigour and challenge

The syllabus aims to enable pupils to:

• demonstrate an appreciation of the nature of worldviews and the important contribution of religion and belief, spiritual insights and values to the individual’s search for meaning in life;

• recognise that someone’s worldview, including their own, can be influenced by many factors and is an intrinsic part of how they view the world;

• develop knowledge and understanding of Christianity, and of the other principal religions and beliefs represented in Great Britain, through their history, contemporary diverse expressions and encountering peoples’ lived experience;

• develop interest in and enthusiasm for the study of worldviews and enhance their own spiritual, moral, social and cultural development;

• develop the ability to make reasoned, informed and creative responses to religious and moral issues;

• recognise the influence of beliefs, values and traditions on the individual, on culture and on communities throughout the world.

Implementation

At St Mark’s, RE is allocated the expected timetabled allocation set out in the agreed syllabus,  36 hours per year for Key Stage 1 (or 72 hours over the Key Stage) and 45 hours per year for Key Stage 2 (or 180 hours over the Key Stage). There is no set time allocation for the Early Years’; however, planning ensures that the statutory content is given appropriate coverage through our EYFS provision. RE is given a high priority across the school and is taught by class teachers. This enables teachers to draw links to the local context of the class and school community, as well as the wider curriculum.

The “ways of knowing” in RE, are identified as three Golden Threads: God, relating to theological approaches, Identity, relating to more philosophical approaches & Community, sociological approaches. These Golden Threads are threaded throughout the units of work as part of the syllabus progression model in the way that they develop children’s knowledge, understanding and skills, always in age-appropriate ways.

The inclusion of well-crafted questions reflects both multi-disciplinary approaches and the development of pupils’ personal knowledge. These key questions are designed to help draw out the Golden Threads in ways that connect with the substantive content of the unit. As part of the development of their personal knowledge, pupils’ own perspectives form an important part of the children’s learning within the agreed syllabus; these are consistently reflected in the key questions that support the statutory content, as well as throughout the non-statutory support materials.

During each key stage, teachers draw from other worldviews, as appropriate, to recognise and celebrate the diversity of the school community, especially those represented in their own classes. Whilst the focus on worldviews means that pupils will better understand difference and diversity within and across religions, it is important that mainstream views and practices are reflected in the units studied.

In the Early Years, thematic – key questions are based upon children’s own lives and experiences, and introduce pupils to Christianity, and other worldviews represented within their own class and school. These are designed to be used as part of our continuous provision and are assessed through the Early Learning Goals.

In Key Stage 1, the children are introduced to the study of and selected key concepts within Christianity, Judaism and Islam, incorporating appropriate elements of non-religious worldviews. In addition, thematic units are taught which are designed to draw together learning across a year group & help to build pupils’ schemata.

Units of work in Key Stage 2 are specified for either lower KS2 or upper KS2 to ensure progression.

These units develop the study of and build on key concepts within Christianity, Judaism and Islam, and introduce aspects of Hindu (Sanatana) Dharma, Sikhism, Buddhism and Humanism, as a structured non-religious worldview. In addition, thematic units are taught which are designed to draw together learning across a year group & help to build pupils’ schemata.

The theological, sociological & philosophical approaches to learning, reflected in end of key stage expectations and within units of work are:

Skills development in RE

Reflection
• Reflecting on feelings, relationships, experience, ultimate questions, worldviews, beliefs and practices

Empathy

• Considering the thoughts, feelings, experiences, attitudes, beliefs and values of others

• Developing the ability to identify feelings such as love, wonder, forgiveness and sorrow

• Seeing the world through the eyes of others, and seeing issues from their point of view (worldview perspective)

Investigation

• Asking relevant questions

• Knowing how to gather information from a variety of sources

• Knowing what may constitute evidence for justifying beliefs in religion

Interpretation

• Drawing meaning from artefacts, works of art, music, poetry and symbolism

• Interpreting religious language and technical vocabulary

• Suggesting meanings of religious texts

Evaluation

• Debating issues of religious significance with reference to evidence and argument

Analysis

• Distinguishing between opinion and fact

• Distinguishing between the features of different worldviews

Synthesis

• Linking significant features of worldviews, religion and belief together in a coherent pattern

• Connecting different aspects of life into a meaningful whole

Application

• Making the association between religion / belief and individual, community, national and international life

Expression

• Explaining concepts, rituals and practices

• Expressing personal knowledge / views, and responding to questions of religion and belief through a variety of media

Attitudes in RE

Religious Education at St Mark’s encourages pupils to develop positive attitudes to their learning and to the beliefs and values of others. We believe the following four attitudes are essential for good learning in RE:

Self-awareness in Religious Education includes pupils:

• feeling confident about their own worldviews, beliefs and identity and sharing them without fear of embarrassment or ridicule;

• developing a realistic and positive sense of their own worldviews, beliefs, morals and spiritual ideas;

• recognising their own uniqueness as human beings and affirming their self-worth;

• becoming increasingly sensitive to the impact of their ideas and behaviour on other people.

Respect for all in Religious Education includes pupils:

• developing skills of listening and a willingness to learn from others, even when others’ views are different from their own (personal knowledge);

• being ready to value difference and diversity for the common good;

• appreciating that some beliefs are not inclusive and considering the issues that this raises for individuals and society;

• being prepared to recognise and acknowledge their own bias (personal knowledge);

• being sensitive to the feelings and ideas of others.

Open-mindedness in Religious Education includes pupils:

• being willing to learn and gain new understanding, including within their own personal knowledge;

• engaging in argument or disagreeing reasonably and respectfully (without belittling or abusing others) about questions relating to worldviews, beliefs, (whether religious or non-religious), morals and spiritual ideas;

• being willing to go beyond surface impressions;

• distinguishing between opinions, viewpoints and beliefs in connection with issues of conviction and faith.

Appreciation and wonder in Religious Education includes pupils:

• developing their imagination and curiosity;

• recognising that knowledge is bounded by mystery;

• appreciating the sense of wonder at the world in which they live;

• developing their capacity to respond to questions of meaning and purpose.

Daily acts of worship are very important in our Church school, however, we recognise the legal right of parents to withdraw their child from their daily worship.

See here for details of our most recent Pause Day.

SIAMS

A SIAMS (Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools) inspection takes place every five years. The inspection process sets out to evaluate the distinctiveness and effectiveness of the school as a church school. The inspection outcome grading system is similar to Ofsted: Outstanding, Good, Satisfactory or Inadequate  They have a clear emphasis on meeting the needs of all learners. Our last inspection was on 11th November 2016 where were proud to be graded Outstanding in all areas. A copy of the report can be found by clicking here.