Intent, Implementation and Impact Statement for Religious Education
At Fowey School, RE is planned and taught to encourage pupils to ask questions and discover through finding answers. Each half termly unit starts with a ‘Big Question’, such as ‘Is the Christmas story true?’ and ‘Is it good to fast on special occasions?’ Subsequently, each unit guides pupils through an enquiry- based learning approach.
Lessons are taught using Discovery RE’s four step process. These are:
- Step 1 - Engagement: the pupils’ own lived experiences are explored and act as a bridge from their world (which may or may not include religion) into the world of the religion being studied.
- Step 2 - Investigation: over approximately 3 lessons the teacher will guide the pupils to explore and investigate appropriate subject knowledge relevant to the question of enquiry.
- Step 3 - Evaluation: An assessment activity enables pupils to show their thinking and the depth of critical evaluation.
- Step 4 - Expression: This refers pupils back to the starting point of their own experience and allows them to reflect on whether their findings have influenced their own thinking.
Pupils’ knowledge and skills are revisited continually throughout key stage one and two. By teaching in this way, skills and knowledge are built upon progressively. Pupils make progress in incremental steps and have numerous opportunities to consolidate skills and knowledge they have previously acquired. Each year pupils are taught three Christianity units and three further units on a second world religion. Across the key stages, pupils will learn about Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Islam. The progression map, knowledge organisers and planning ensure skills and knowledge are built upon from the previous year, ensuring previous religions are revisited. Furthermore, a calendar of memorable RE experiences and interactions from varied faiths including visitors or visits to places of worship is adopted to deepen and support understanding as well as to build respect and tolerance of others.
Impact
By the time pupils leave Fowey School, they have a strong understanding of their own views and an awareness of and empathy towards the views of others. They are able to discuss issues, ask questions and know how to answer them. They understand how other people choose to live and understand why they choose to live their life in a chosen way. Pupils develop a religious vocabulary, can reflect on questions posed in relation to world faiths and offer their own thoughtful and informed insights into religious and secular world-views.
Subject Leader monitoring has shown:
o Pupils enjoy learning about each of the world religions;
o Pupils develop religious vocabulary and can interpret religious symbolism;
o Pupils of all abilities feel success and can contribute to each lesson;
o Pupils benefit from revisiting religions that they have learnt about in previous years;
o Pupils talk with passion about their RE lessons and skills they have developed;
o Teachers plan lessons that meet the needs of all learners by using the Discovery RE scheme and adapting planning appropriately including for those with SEND, the more able and disadvantaged;
o Teachers are secure in their subject knowledge.
Impact of RE at Fowey School is carefully tracked and measured by…
o Ongoing assessment and data analysis by the RE lead.
o Weekly teaching and ongoing assessments of RE by class teachers.
o Half termly teacher assessments.
o Pupil conferencing.
o Parent questionnaires.
o Termly monitoring of books.
Fowey School pupils leave Fowey with the knowledge, critical thinking skills and respectful attitudes with which they can investigate the world of religion and beliefs. They are enabled to make their own decisions about what this means to them, whilst empathising with what it means to those who hold them.