Welcome to this issue of the REC newsletter. If you have
information about projects, conferences, reports or developments you'd like
included in the next one please email it to me by 21st November. It should be in the format of a heading, two or three sentences
giving the basics and a website or email address where readers can obtain
fuller details.
Best wishes,
Sarah Smalley,
Executive Support Officer, RE Council of England and Wales
CELEBRATING RE All over England and Wales plans are taking shape
in schools, faith and belief communities, SACREs, libraries and museums for the
month long national celebration of RE in March 2011. Information about the latest developments is
available in the monthly newsletter, for which anyone can sign up via the
website at www.celebratingre.org where an online calendar lists
events. There are new website articles this month on Celebrating RE with the local community (libraries, museums,
businesses, councils etc), Celebrating RE
in schools of a religious character, Learning
Outside the Classroom and Celebrating RE and Publicising your events and activities; there will be many further
additions over the next couple of months.
RE-SILIENCE The REsilience project, designed to build secondary teachers'confidence to handle contentious
issues in RE, has now been given the green light by the new government. This means the project will be available for
secondary schools in England and Wales from 1st November. Schools are invited to register interest in
taking part by signing up on the website at www.re-silience.org.uk Those interested in following
the development of the project can also sign up for the newsletter via the
website.
INTER
FAITH WEEK 2010 The
second national Inter Faith Week in England and Wales is taking place from
Sunday 21 to Saturday 27 November 2010.
The aims of the Week are: to strengthen good
inter faith relations at all levels; to increase awareness of the different and
distinct faith communities in the UK, in particular celebrating and building on
the contribution which their members make to their neighbourhoods and to wider
society; and to increase understanding between people of religious and
non-religious belief. Full details can be found at www.interfaithweek.org.uk. For any general enquiries about Inter Faith
Week in England, please email:
. For enquiries about Inter Faith Week in Wales,
please email:
.
Organisations can apply for support for local Inter Faith Week events
under the Faiths in Action programme.
INTER FAITH YOUTH TRUST GRANTS
FOR INTER FAITH WEEK 2010 The deadline for grant applications has been extended to 8 October 2010.
IFYT can provide small grants up to £500 to organisations running
events/activities for young people (11-25 years old) in and around Inter Faith
Week (21-27 November 2010).
For
details please see: www.ifyouthtrust.org.uk
COURSES FROM RE TODAY RE Today is running a number of
professional development opportunities during this academic year for primary
and secondary teachers of RE. Most courses have a choice of two dates, in
different locations. The course fee is discounted for RE Today and NATRE subscribers
For details see their website: www.retoday.org.uk/courses
TEACHING ABOUT HINDUISM? If you are teaching Hinduism and looking for new ideas to engage and
challenge learners then two new publications from RE Today will provide the
inspiration you need: Opening Up Hinduism (primary) and Questions:
Hinduism (secondary). They are available from http://shop.retoday.org.uk at £8.50 and £9.50 respectively. Opening Up: Islam and Questions:
Islam in the same series are also available.
CHOOSING RESOURCES ON WORLD RELIGIONS The latest addition to NATRE's website
is user-friendly, online guidance on choosing high quality resources for
teaching world religions in RE. Drawing on the findings and recommendation of Materials
used to Teach about World Religions in Schools in England, carried out by
the University of Warwick, 2010, this guidance provides: a brief summary of the
Warwick Report's findings, key questions for teachers, stimulus materials to
support discussion and decision-making for teachers working individually or
with colleagues. An ideal stimulus to review the resources you currently
use, and to guide the selection of new ones. See: www.natre.org.uk/rg
RESOURCES FOR TEACHING WORLD RELIGIONS IN SCHOOLS IN ENGLAND The audit of
resources undertaken for the above project by Paul Hopkins and Mary Hayward
became available on the DCSF(now DfE) publications website over the summer.
It can be accessed by using the following address
http://publications.education.gov.uk/default.aspx?PageFunction=productdetails&PageMode=publications&ProductId=DFE-00488-2010
The Audit provides a useful descriptive listing of books, websites and
other media on world religions for primary and secondary schools and details of
publishers and producers of materials. It should provide a very helpful first
stop for teachers and others who want quick access to information about
resources for RE.
RE CPD E-HANDBOOK The CPD E-Handbook is now live
following peer reviews. The Handbook is actively
supported by a number of leading professional RE organisations, and edited by
Professor Liam Gearon. In addition to guidance on teaching, learning and
assessment in religious education, the Handbook provides up-to-date information
on important initiatives such as community cohesion, with contributions from
faith communities, academics, advisers and teachers. www.re-handbook.org.uk
JAINPEDIA (www.jainpedia.org) JAINpedia, which has never been exhibited before, opened at the V&A
Museum in May 2010 and will be displayed in the Nehru Gallery of Indian Art
till December 2012. To celebrate this there will be a family
weekend on 13-14th November 2010 at the Museum, including a Jain
Diwali Rangoli, Jain Storytelling with dance and a Jain Digital Diwali Treasure
Hunt. All events are free and drop in and all members of the public are
welcome to attend from 10-5 .30pm on both days. Also the Institute of
Jainology has recently published Jain Tales by Colin Hynson this publication is
a collection of popular Jain stories and fables such as the 14 Dreams of Queen
Trishala Lord Mahavirs mother. For further information contact
or log on to www.jainpedia.org
INTELLIGENCE SQUARED DEBATE Intelligence², the London-based
global forum for live debate, will be putting forward the motion: ‘Stop Bashing
Christians: Britain has become an anti-Christian country'. Speakers for the
motion are the former Archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey, the novelist and
journalist, Howard Jacobson, and Peter Hitchens. Opposing the motion will be
Dom Antony Sutch, a Benedictine monk, Claire Rayner, the well-known agony aunt,
and Matthew Paris, columnist for The Times and The Spectator. The debate will
take place on the 3rd of November, at the Royal Geographical Society in London.
Further details available at www.intelligencesquared.com
SOUTHWARK CATHEDRAL POST-16
CONFERENCE The event is a Post-16 Conference to be held on 30th November
from 10.00-12.30 in the Cathedral and is based on the BBC's Question
Time. Students will be able to ask their own questions on a wide range of
topics to the panel of speakers: Shami Chakrabarti, Director of Liberty ; Richard Ottoway, MP for Croydon South; Dr Adam Rutherford, Editor of the
science journal Nature and presenter of BBC4's The Cell and The
Right Revd Richard Cheetham, Bishop Commissary in the Diocese of Southwark. The
cost is £1.00 per student plus £15 booking fee; please book by phoning 020 7367
6715 or emailing
REONLINE SUBJECT KNOWLEDGE
BOOSTER COURSE Now entering its third year, the
REonline Booster Course is proving to be a great success. Aimed at graduates
who want to become RE teachers but who do not have a specialist degree, the
course provides an opportunity to become conversant with the main belief
traditions of the UK. It is tutored by PGCE trained tutors and enables
graduates to enhance their skills and chances of gaining a PGCE place.
Costing just £195 the course is exceptionally good value for money. For more
information contact Deborah Elwine at the Culham Institute -
FAITH MATTERS
BOOKLET: OUR SHARED FUTURES This new online booklet has been developed through discussions with
faith, organisational and community leaders in the City of Derby and is a local
narrative which promotes (i) the respect of diversity (ii) the protection of
life and (iii) scriptural narratives against those who promote hate and
division between communities in the area. The booklet has also been developed with young
people in Derby and is a useful resource for schools, educational institutions
and community organisations who may want to work with young people on projects
which promote cohesion and which may also support the development of the Big
Society. The booklet also supports preventing extremist narratives. It is downloadable from www.faith-matters.org
FORUM ON RELIGION AND PUBLIC LIFE An interesting new report gives
findings from a US survey comparing the knowledge of other religions
as held by people from different religious and belief backgrounds. It
found that atheists and agnostics were the most knowledgeable. What would a similar survey reveal if
carried out in the UK? http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/13213 |