Slipping backwards? State and status of contemporary Scottish religious education (Part 1) Dr Yonah H. Matemba* Faculty of Education, University of the West of Scotland Email:
[email protected]
Abstract This article examines the state (public esteem) and status (extent of provision) of secondary Religious Education (RE) in contemporary Scotland. In particular, what is reported here are problems related to people’s stereotyped perceptions of RE; inadequate provision in schools; ambivalence about its efficacy as a school subject. It concludes that there is need for greater awareness of the problems in contemporary Scottish RE so that appropriate ways can be found to ameliorate the state and status of the subject.
Keywords Religious education, religious education curriculum
Introduction Despite the fact that Scotland (historically a Presbyterian country) has been part of the UK since 1707 (in 2014 Scots will vote in a referendum whether to remain or leave the British union) the country has always retained a measure of independence. As part of this difference, Scottish education has always been locally determined and operates its own separate system of education (Paterson, 1997). One of the key features of Scottish education rarely known is that the country does not have a national curriculum per se. Rather, it has is a suggested curriculum contained in national guidelines which schools are at liberty to use or not, although in practice schools have always used the national guidelines (Hayward, 2007). In addition, since the emergence of the present system of education in 1872, the tradition in Scotland is that the curriculum has always been at various levels of flexibility to allow local input in what individual schools can teach. Another unique feature of Scottish education is that since 1918 (this was when Catholic and Episcopalian Churches agreed to hand over their schools to the state), the country has operated a dual-system of publicly-funded education comprising denominational (in the main Catholic) and non-
denominational (‘secular-liberal’ in orientation) schools (Bryce & Humes, 2008). In 2010, of all the 2,153 primary and 376 secondary schools in Scotland, 377 of them were denominational comprising 56 Catholic secondaries, 317 Catholic primaries, one Jewish primary and one Episcopalian primary (Scottish Government, 2010). For RE (by law a compulsory subject in schools since 1929) Scotland adopts a particularist approach in which different versions of the subject are offered in the two publically funded educational sectors (see Matemba, 2013, p. 367). In non-denominational schools ‘Religious and Moral Education’ (RME), a phenomenological syllabus but with a strong emphasis on ‘protestant’ Christianity, is offered (Scottish Government, 2009) while Catholic schools offer a Church sanctioned catechetical syllabus known by the standard nomenclature ‘RE’ (Bishops’ Conference of Scotland, 2011). All other denominational schools in the country, (i.e. Jewish and Episcopalian primary schools) use the RME syllabus. Unless otherwise stated, for convenience the term ‘RE’ will be used throughout in this article.
Historical state and status of Scottish RE Traditionally, Scottish RE has been a school subject that ‘languished in a state of chronic underdevelopment’ (Darling, 1980, p. 13). Some of the specific issues which contributed to this state of underdevelopment in RE were: absence of an educational rationale; lack of professional recognition by both the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS) (when it was formed in 1965 as first teacher professional body in the world) and the government’s own education department; absence of inspection, assessment and national examinations; lack of professionally trained teachers; uninspiring teaching mostly by those whose professional specialism was in a different subject but asked to teach RE because either they were ‘good’ Christians or were willing to teach it (see Stiven, 1982).
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Between 1972 and 1982 three key reports, in particular, made a number of recommendations which charted a new direction for the subject. These reports, which remain hegemonic in the discourse of Scottish RE, included the 1972 Millar Report (to date the most comprehensive government report on RE) and two professional reports—A Curricular Approach to Religious Education (1978) and Curriculum Guidelines for Religious Education (1981)—produced by the Scottish Central Committee on RE (SCCORE), an independent RE professional body set up in 1974 (Scottish Office, 1972, 1978, 1981). Following on the recommendations made in these reports government funding was now made available to support the training of RE teachers. The government also provided financial resources that facilitated the appointment of RE advisors. These advisors provided in-service training for teachers and gave expert advice to schools in the preparation of new curriculum materials. Another notable development was the recognition of RE as a professional teaching subject by both the GTCS and Scottish Education Department. A further development was the introduction of an RE teaching qualification in the country’s Colleges of Education in December 1974 (Scottish Office, 1972, 1978, 1981). The final major hurdle for RE was overcome in 1982 when the government amended the original Scottish law (1872 Act) to allow, for the first time, government education officials to inspect RE (see UK Parliament, 1982). This development also opened RE for assessment by means of a national examination beginning in 1984 (Grant & Matemba, 2013). Taken together these unprecedented developments established RE as an educationally respectable subject and thus transformed the subject officially from ‘Religious Instruction’ to RE ‘proper’. Following recent general reforms in Scottish education, RE has undergone further curriculum and structural reforms: first in 1992 in-line with the ‘5-14’ curriculum and lately in 2009 as part of Curriculum for Excellence (CfE), a new programme which has replaced the 5-14 curriculum (McKinney, 2012).
Theoretical perspectives Much of the burgeoning literature on contemporary RE explores how the subject has evolved from the ‘confessional’ confines of the past to the ‘educationalisation’ agenda of the present (see Barnes, 2007; Parker & Freathy, 2011). In a lot of ways the hegemonic discourse of contemporary RE, particularly in liberal western countries, characterises a subject whose aims, material content and underpinning pedagogy are in keeping not only with demographic and cultural trends in society (i.e. post-secular trends) but also developments in general education to address effectively the needs and concerns of the modern child (Boeve, 2012; Jackson, 2004). One of the key shifts in RE is that increasingly the subject is integrated or offered through interdisciplinary approaches with disciplines that have natural links such as ethics, philosophy, multicultural education and citizenship (see Thomson, 2006). 30
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It is a paradigm shift which has engendered intense debate in the discourse of RE. On the one hand are scholars who stress that the future of RE lies in interdisciplinary enquiry (see Kay & Francis, 1985). Their argument is that as a historically marginalised school subject, interdisciplinarity is beneficial to RE because it enhances its currency in a neoliberal schooling environment (Erricker, 2010; Hannam, 2006). In his critical appraisal of contemporary English RE, David Aldrige sees religions merely as the texts rather than the subject matter of RE, and as such this provides a window of opportunity to interpret religious knowledge from wide strata of reality (Aldridge, 2011). In Scotland, Graeme Nixon posits that embedding philosophy in RE, for example, has enhanced the status of the subject. He claims that RE has become an attractive subject in schools to the extent that there is a noticeable increase in the number of students writing national examinations in the subject apparently because philosophy is embedded in RE (Nixon, 2009). Conversely, on the other hand are scholars who express the view that the disadvantages of interdisciplinary approaches outweigh the supposed benefits for RE. Suzanne Owen, for instance, argues that the embedding of other disciplines dilute RE, and as such compromises the subject’s ability to provide adequate coverage in the ‘proper’ study of religion in schools (Owen, 2011). As far back as the early 1970s John Hull, an eminent RE scholar, showed that an integrated curriculum endangers the authority RE as a distinct area of knowledge in the school curriculum (Hull, 1972). Extending from Hull’s argument is the point that Philip Barnes makes that since RE is different (i.e. deals with the sensitive and controversial matter of religion) an interdisciplinary curriculum has neither the space nor the patience to deal with the delicate nature of its reality (Barnes, 2011).
The present study Data that informs this article was collected during 20082010 period for a large phenomenological study which examined the development of Scottish secondary RE, from 1972 to 2010. Given the fact that the study was completed during a time of transition in Scottish education from ‘514’ to CfE, the findings reflect insights about RE related to these two national programmes. The study adopted the phenomenological approach to gain the ‘whole’ experience and understanding of RE (a contested school subject) from multiple sources (triangulation) and sources of interpretation (hermeneutics) (see Moustakas, 1994). In-depth interviews, unpublished documents and school survey were the main sources of data for this study. Interviews involved a purposive sample of 26 key stakeholders (see table 1). To preserve the participants’ anonymity unidentifiable codes were used throughout the study and in cases where it was difficult to maintain complete anonymity, the principle of limited anonymity (with consent) was applied (DiCicco-Bloom & Crabtree,
2006). Documents used included government and professional reports, policy papers, curriculum guidelines and teachers’ planners. These materials were useful because they supplemented data in areas where interviews left gaps. Data from the survey was obtained from information on school websites. These websites were accessed through the official government website: http://www.educationscotland. gov.uk/scottishschoolsonline/index.asp. The survey data contained information about RE in areas such as time allocation, staff complement, pedagogical approach and nomenclature of RE. Useful materials were found on 287 school websites, representing a 76.3% response rate. Table 1: Interview participants Role Education officials Religious leaders
Organisation/Participants 2 Muslim (1) Catholic (1) Church of Scotland (1) Jewish (1)
RE teachers
Non-denominational school (4) Catholic school (3)
Headteachers
Non-denominational school (2) Independent school (1) Catholic school (1)
RE lecturers
6
Leaders of professional bodies
1
Chairperson, parent council Total
Catholic school (1) Non-denominational school (1) 26
To ensure data trustworthiness and reliability, the study employed a number of techniques including triangulation (use of multiple data sources and a range of stakeholders offering different perspectives). An inductive analysis of the data involving several heuristic stages in phenomenological research was conducted (see Ryan & Bernard, 2003). To understand the data and ascertain its quality, I read and re-read the interview transcripts, relevant documents and examined materials from school websites. I then reflected on the quality of these materials and thus was able to identify common issues and trends emerging in the data. From this process I was able to recognise patterns and relationships in the issues that emerged in the data. I then identified and coded a number of distinct themes. The selection of these themes was entirely at my discretion although my decisions were influenced to a large extent by my prior knowledge of RE through previous published work, professional role as a secondary school teacher and my current role as university lecturer responsible for RE. Despite my familiarity with the research area I assumed the ‘phenomenological attitude’, first by ‘bracketing’ my
prior assumptions through critical reflection on my own bias, opinions and cultural-religious background so that I could properly consider the findings emerging from the heuristic process used in data analysis (see Polkinghorne, 1989). The following research questions provided a useful guide for this article: (a) How do stakeholders perceive RE as a schools subject? (b) What is the nature and extent of RE provision? (c) How can the ambivalence regarding the efficacy of RE be explained?
Findings Public perception of RE One of the challenges facing contemporary Scottish RE is negative media publicity about the subject. Respondents in the study reiterated the fact that in modern society, religion (and by association RE) is a soft target for the media whose tendency is to concentrate on negative stories about religion (Fritz & Smit, 2008). They said that such negative messages merely add damage to an already vulnerable subject, in terms of its history as a subject usually at the bottom of the school curriculum (see also Barnes, 2009). Participants also explained that even in cases where the subject performs well, the media tends not to find such stories ‘worth’ reporting. Related literature suggests that negative reporting about RE is exacerbated by the fact that the media is ‘blind’ to the importance of religion in modern society (Hermans, 2003). As such, the media usually portrays religion in a bad light because some journalists have secular and anti-religion worldviews (Marshall, Gilbert, & Green-Ahmanson, 2009). Controversially, a number of respondents (n10) in the study were of the view that the media is dominated by ‘secularists’ which for them is the reason reports about religion are perceived to be negative. Such anti-religious reporting, they claimed, is doing damage to the credibility of the subject in the minds of young people. Related to the new CfE guidelines which give space to viewpoints independent of religious beliefs (Scottish Government, 2009), respondents connected with the Catholic Church (n5), in particular, worried that schools are being asked to do more things to accommodate the interests of those whose views are antithetical to religion, and yet no similar attention is being given to core RE (i.e. religion as the central issue of study). The negative effect of the secular influence on the vibrancy of Scottish RE was an issue which was intensely discussed by most of the respondents (n21). Respondents worried that increasingly many non-denominational schools are displacing religion as core business in RE by overemphasising non-religious and peripheral issues. An examination of teachers’ planners revealed that in a number of non-denominational schools (n16) the common topics taught in RE included Humanism, festivals of the dead, Australian Aborigines and Ancient Egypt. While it can be argued the teaching of non-belief falls within the new CfE guidelines in addressing the strand ‘development of beliefs REJA \ VOLUME 29 \ NUMBER 02 \ 2013
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and values’ (Scottish Government, 2009, p. 9), the concern here is that increasingly Scottish schools are becoming unconformable teaching religion ‘proper’ in RE. Similar to the situation in England (OfSTED, 2010), the findings in this study indicate that in Scotland, schools are givimg less attention to the systematic and progressive study of religion, particularly core beliefs in Christianity (a religion primus inter pares in RE) (Scottish Government, 2009). Perhaps in an effort to connect with a generation of young people generally apathetic to religion (Hobson & Edwards, 1991), teachers are inclined to concentrate on populist or ‘New Age’ spiritualties which appear ‘exotic’ and interesting (see also Modood, 2010). However, for stakeholders in Scotland who continue to see the value of RE in helping children, inter alia, ‘explore and develop knowledge and understanding of religions, recognising the place of Christianity in the Scottish context’ (Scottish Government, 2009, p. 1), the negative influence of a secular culture on RE is a worrying trend. The reason is that secularists do not hide their disdain for organised religion and, as such, would not be terribly disappointed if RE were to disappear from schools altogether (see also Evans, 2008).
Nature and extent of RE provision Despite the fact by law RE is a compulsory school subject, the study found that a number of Scottish nondenominational schools do not offer RE at all (n18) or that they offer it only up to S2 (Form 2) (n5). Teachers in the study (n7) explained that the lack of uptake in RE beyond S2 is caused by insufficient pupil interest in the subject. Even in those schools where RE is offered, the results of the survey in this study revealed that in 4.1% (n12) of the cases, the subject was offered through proxies. In one school which had no discrete RE elements, the subject was offered through ‘Citizenship Education’ by the use of a ‘conference’ or ‘seminar’ system. This involved pupils being taken off from the ‘regular’ timetable to attend a purposively organised ‘conference’ in the school where youth workers, Church ministers and others would talk about their work and their faith. In another non-denominational school ‘Charity Work’ Education was a popular trajectory for RE because this was seen as something of relevance to the wider experience of pupils. The RE teacher in that school explained that as part of such a programme pupils are engaged in various ‘in school’ and ‘out of school’ voluntary activities to raise money which is then donated to charities in developing countries. In most Scottish schools (n106), all of them in the nondenominational sector, the survey further indicated that philosophy was a popular trajectory for RE. In those schools the official nomenclature of the subject (i.e. ‘RME’) was replaced by names such as ‘Religious, Moral and Philosophical Education’ (RMPE), ‘Religion and Philosophy’ or ‘Religious, Moral, Philosophical Studies’ (RMPS). Non-denominational teachers in the study (n4)
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justified that philosophy has ‘rid old stigmas about the subject’, ‘injected a new and positive image for the subject’ and ‘showed pupils that this is a vibrant, modern and a good subject’. Relevant literature also suggests RE has taken off in schools in a big way apparently because philosophy is embedded in RE (see Blaylock, 2008). In Scotland, Graeme Nixon, an ardent exponent of philosophical RE, lauds this development because it is in tune with a society that has become more secular and where for most people religion is no longer the basis of their moral and spiritual life (Nixon, 2009). However, it is worth observing that despite the preponderance of philosophy in Scottish RE, philosophy as an issue of study appears only once out of 85 individual strands in the new RE CfE guidelines for nondenominational schools (Scottish Government, 2009, p. 9). While there is no disputing the fact that in a neo-liberal school environment philosophy makes RE appear ‘sexy’ and develops critical thinking skills in children (Nixon, 2012, pp. 3ff), my view is that interdisciplinary areas such as philosophy should contribute to but not subsume RE as is currently the case in many Scottish schools. Respondents (n9) in the study such as lecturers, parents, staff in Catholic schools and representatives of religious bodies worried that the use of proxies is endangering the distinctiveness of RE as a curriculum subject. They explained that by aligning RE with something else schools are sending the wrong message that on its own RE is not good enough. In his comments on the issue of philosophy as a discrete feature in RE, representative of the Catholic Church in the study explained: The Church does not give any credence at all to philosophy as a discrete entity of RE. Our broader approach is that RE is philosophical in itself in the sense of inquiry, rationalistic and so on but nonetheless we don’t see philosophy as a discrete feature of RE. (Director, Catholic education) In a country where religion in public education has become unattractive to many people (Field, 2001), it seems to me that many Scottish schools have chosen what Andrew Wright sees as the ‘broad straight road’ form of RE, which only ‘offers the certainty of immediate gratification and safety’ as opposed to choosing a ‘narrow winding lane’ form of RE, which has the ‘possibility of long term fulfilment, but at the risk of confusion and consternation’ (Wright, 1993, p. 11). In a recent critique of Australian Catholic RE, Brendan Hyde argues that while RE makes a valuable and unique contribution to the curriculum, particularly in a cross-curricular setting, treating RE the same as other areas of the curriculum, for example, applying learning outcomes based on philosophy, is ‘a category mistake’ (Hyde, 2013, pp. 36, 41). Similarly, my view is that a ‘category’ mistake is occurring in Scottish RE because philosophy, a discipline with different learning intentions, has subsumed RE in many schools to the extent that even the nomenclature of
RE been changed to reflect that usurpation.
Doubts about the efficacy of RE The findings in this study also suggest that Scottish RE continues to experience a credibility problem. In fact in many schools RE has declined into something pupils have to do because it is a compulsory subject. This has made children to develop an apathetic attitude towards the subject, as evidenced by the repetition of the question ‘why do we have to do this, sir?’ Although over the decades great effort has been made to improve teaching and learning by the processes of pedagogical reform, the unflattering phrase ‘a boring subject’ continues to characterise how children engage with RE (Barnes, 2009). Evidently, uninspiring teaching remains prevalent in RE. In such situations it has become difficult to motivate children who are already resigned to the fact that RE is unimportant to them or to their future careers. One of the contributory factors to the way children also perceive RE is to do with the endurance of parents’ stereotyped perceptions of the subject, which are then passed on to their children. Parents in this study (n2) were of the view that RE has not proven itself as a bona fide subject. One participant in the study explained:
which clearly stipulated two hours per week to be spent on RE in secondary schools (Scottish Office, 1991). Although the long-term implication of the new policy is difficult to ascertain, it is likely that individual schools will justify that giving reduced teaching time to RE is well within the schools’ prerogative to decide how much space to give RE. However, the situation in Catholic schools is quite different within the new RE policy. The reason is that at the insistence of the Church hierarchy the new RE policy has stipulated mandatory amount of time Catholic schools are expected to spend on RE, which are a minimum of two and half hours and two hours per week for primary and secondary schools, respectively (Scottish Government, 2011, p. 4). Having a minimum time allocation for RE embedded in policy has removed any ambiguity Catholic schools may have on a subject that embodies the essence of Catholic schooling. On the other hand, regrettably non-denominational school do not have this safeguard within the current national policy.
Discussion and conclusion
Relevant literature has noted that in most cases schools do not adequately explain the benefits of ‘doing’ RE. This leaves the impression that RE is irrelevant or unimportant to children’s lives and their future careers (see Horne & Logie, 1999). In addition, teachers in the study (n5) explained that schools assume too much that children will understand the abstract concepts that are explored in RE when clearly many of these concepts are beyond children’s comprehension.
The purpose of this article has been to analyse the state and status of contemporary Scottish RE. To that extent it has highlighted a number of issues related to negative public perception, inadequate provision and deficiencies in the efficacy of RE. A number of worrying trends are evident for Scottish RE, particularly in non-denominational schools. Although comparatively small in number, the fact that there are schools that do not teach RE at all or only offer it for the first two years of secondary education is one of such trend. This situation is actually in violation of the law which, as it still stands, mandates that unless individual parents object (‘Opt Out’ clause), RE must be offered to all children in public education (UK Parliament, 1980). The issue of some schools not offering RE at all is an uncomfortable déjà vu for the subject because one would have thought that by now Scottish RE has moved on from the problems of the 1960s and 70s where as much as 32% of secondary schools did not teach RE at all (Scottish Office, 1972, p. 17).
Teachers in non-denominational schools (n4) in this study noted that insufficient time allocation is a big factor that compromises the efficacy of RE in schools. Most of the schools (n158 or 68.4%) surveyed in this study allotted only one period of RE a week (a situation mirroring the early 1970s when 86% of schools had one period of RE per week (see Scottish Office, 1972, p. 17)), which is insufficient for a compulsory subject. The reduction of teaching time in RE is in fact a worldwide problem for the subject. In 2003 a study of RE timetables throughout the world showed a marked decline of average proportion time from 5.2% in 1945-1969 period to 4.2% in 1970-1986 period (Rivard & Amadio, 2003). In Scotland, the added difficulty is that the new national CfE policy for RE has not indicated how much time to be spent on RE (Scottish Government, 2011). This is in sharp contrast to the previous policy (i.e. Circular 6/91)
Another issue which emerged sharply in this article concerns schools’ increasing use of proxies for RE. While it is recognised that in an interdisciplinary curriculum other subject areas enrich RE and vice-versa, in many cases Scottish schools are focusing too much on these proxies rather than on the core business of RE as stipulated in national guidelines. Legislative RE policy is clear that ‘schools should plan and deliver [RE] as both a specific subject and one which contributes to high quality interdisciplinary learning, as they do with each of the eight curriculum areas’ (Scottish Government, 2011, p.3). My argument is that while RE should embed aspects of other subjects as part of wider interdisciplinary learning, it is important for schools to recognise the distinct but also delicate nature of RE existing in neo-liberal school context. First and foremost RE (as traditionally understood) is about the teaching of religion and how religious belief informs
It is up to RE to prove its worth as to why it should be taught and why children should be bothered with it. Let it be as competitive like any other subject. It is not for anyone else to determine that for RE. It is for those teaching the subject to show why it is important. (Chairperson, nondenominational school parent council)
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and gives meaning to our present ways of life, not only in the historical and theological sense but spiritually as well (see Conroy, Lundie, & Baumfield, 2012). Given the low esteem in which RE is generally held in national educational systems (see Hay, 1985), if less caution is exercised and no proper balance maintained there is a high likelihood that the ‘proper’ study of RE will be in serious jeopardy. My point is that schools may lose sight of policy dictates and national guidelines which stipulates that, inter alia, RE should focus on beliefs, values and practices in Christianity, other religions and non-religious systems (Scottish Government, 2011). Reflecting on the issues described in this article more widely, does Scottish RE have a future? The answer to this question is not a straightforward yes or no. A careful analysis of the research findings points to possible areas which, if better exploited, might produce some positive changes to RE. While there is no disputing the fact that secularisation is now a part of Scottish life (and the multiple implications of this for RE (see Field, 2001)), a closer look at Scottish society indicates that there remain pockets of vibrant religious communities across the nation which place value on the role of religion in education and public life (BBC, 2012; Robson, 1996). Finally, it is plausible to suggest that the legality of Scottish RE has been central to sustaining the subject in public education. The uncomfortable reality is that without its various legal protections Scottish RE could easily face collapse, particularly in non-denominational schools. However, while proponents of RE celebrate its legal protection they should make the subject attractive and advocate its need in modern education much more persuasively. At a time when its compulsory status is being questioned in other parts of the UK such as England (see White, 2004), supporters in Scotland should equally be mindful of the limits of relying on legal protection because laws can change as society’s priorities also change.
Notes of Contributor Yonah H. Matemba is lecturer in education at the University of the West of Scotland (UWS), UK, where he is responsible for Religious Education and Health & Wellbeing. He obtained Cert. Ed. (Solusi, Zimbabwe), BA+QTS (Andrews, USA), MA (Botswana), MTh (Malawi) and PhD (Glasgow, UK). His research intersects the areas of morality, religion and education.
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