The RE Podcast

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On 2nd May The RE Council has published its Draft Handbook for the Religion and Worldviews in the Classroom: developing a Worldviews Approach project.
This is an historic day for the RE community.  But, what is the RE Council (REC) and what is this handbook? Who is it for? And how is it different from the National Content Standard?

I discuss all this and more with former NATRE chair, current Deputy Chair for the REC and RE advisor, Ed Pawson, and chair of the REC and educational officer for the free Churches, Sarah Lane Cawte.

After a hard day it was delightful to chat to such wonderful people and appreciated them giving their time to me considering how busy they are.

I also learn something and demonstrate how NOT to do respectful curiosity!

https://religiouseducationcouncil.org.uk/rec/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/REC-Worldviews-Project-double-pages-Revised-cover-v1.2.pdf

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The wonder woman of the RE world! This incredible advocate of RE has worked tierlessly to champion RE, from her own teaching, to leading, training and supporting, advising, inspecting, writing and speaking.
She now teaches and advises about leadership, school improvement and the curriculum on a whole school level, but this interview highlights the passion she still has for RE.
We discuss her extensive career, why she loves RE so much, her proudest moment so far, top tips for teaching RE! 

https://www.marymyatt.com/

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Have you heard of Ed Finch? You may know him from BrewEd or as a Primary Head Teacher?  Well, he now is training to become a Humanist Celebrant.  Following the death of his wife, he was introduced to the wonderful concept of a humanist funeral.  Ed tells us all about the training he is recieving to be able to support others through grief in the way he was.  
You would think that this would make this conversation depressing and heavy, but it is anything but.  It is beautiful and joyful, as is Ed!
We discuss what a humanist funeral is, what happens at them and why there is a need for them. But also we consider beliefs about life after death and the wonderful phrase 'a taste of the sacred'. 

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If you teach GCSE Islam, then you will know how important sources of authority are.  In this episode, Waqar Ahmedi, Zameer Hussain and I discuss sources of authority in Islam.  We explore The Qur'an, The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), the Sunnah and the Hadith as well as other Holy Texts that have authority, and we also consider the role of the Imamate as a source of authority in Shia Islam.  
Some of you maybe aware of Zam's recent work on Ijtihad, This is a new concept for me so we explore that a little bit also.  See links below for more details.
 We look at common mistakes and misunderstandings when teaching sources of authority in Islam. A fascinating chat that will change the way you teach Islam!

https://reformingre.wordpress.com/2021/11/16/teaching-diversity-of-opinion-in-islam/
https://www.reonline.org.uk/research/research-of-the-month/ijtihad/
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13617672.2024.2312337

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It's a few weeks until the first GCSE RE exam and so here is a bitesized episode to help support revision.  I look at different revision methods and some top tips for the exam.  This won't replace the valuable work done in the classroom but might give some helpful tips alongside lessons!
Good luck to all of you out there as you embark on exam season.  You got this!

Link to St Marys Catholic High School and Sixth Form Religious Education position:

https://stmaryschs.org.uk/Teacher-of-Religious-Education/

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On 9th March 2024, millions of Muslims around the world begin a month fasting between the hours of sunlight.
During past Ramadans we have spoken from men and women Muslims, and now it's the children's turn.
I chat to three Muslim year 11 students, Areez, Alisha and Nila, about what it is like to complete Ramadan whilst in a British school.
We look at the challenges and the benefits, as well as what schools can do to support children during Ramadan. A must for any RE teacher and student but please also share with SLT and policy makers!

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Did you know that the people who bring you TRUETUBE also bring you BBC PILGRIMAGE and SONGS OF PRAISE?  CTVC are a media company behind all of these amazing things and was started by ARTHUR RANK!
To celebrate the new BBC Pilgrimage series starting on 29th March 2024, we do a deep dive into the minds of three passionate and talented people involved with the programme;
Alison Green - Head of Digital at CTVC
Bob Ayres - CTVC Education Specialist
Dorcas Wood  - Works across TrueTube and the TV Pilgrimage

We laugh and we cry as we explore why the BBC Pilgrimage series is so unique and so needed in the current global context.
We also look at the state of religious programming generally!

The translation of what the Pope said to Stephen K Amos;
Giving more importance to the adjective rather than the noun, this is not good
We are all human beings and have dignity
It does not matter who you are, or how you live your life, you do not lose your dignity.
There are people that prefer to select or discard people because of the adjective.
These people don't have a human heart.
I feel myself amoung brothers and sisters, and I have not asked any of you what your faith or belief is, because you have a basic faith in humanity.
For those of you who are believers, please pray for me.
For those of you who do not believe, could you wish me a good journey, so I do not let anyone down.
Thank you

Check out what's available on TrueTube by clicking on the link below
https://www.truetube.co.uk/

Holy Cribs series
https://www.truetube.co.uk/search/?_sf_s=holy%20cribs&_sfm_length=0+500+++++&sort_order=date+desc

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What a delightful topic and a delightful guest.  Oli Aston awakens us to how radical Catholic teachings are, particularly in terms of social justice. We look at their link to Jesus, famous catholics who have put them into practice and how to teach them in the classroom.

Here is a link to 'Romero' - the film of Oscar Romero that we mention
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0098219/

If you want to do some further reading;
https://capp-usa.org/catholic-social-teaching-principles/

And here is a link to Oli's article in HWRK magazine on Top Tips for the RE ECT teacher
https://hwrkmagazine.co.uk/tips-for-the-ect-re-teacher-to-thrive/

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In the absence of a National Curriculum, Culham St Gabriel CEO, Kathryn Wright and Deborah Weston have written a National Content Standard.  But what is it? Why do we need it? And, Should there be a National Curriculum for RE?  We discuss all this and more in this delightful chat with two people who are just so passionate about RE!

https://religiouseducationcouncil.org.uk/resource/national-content-standard-1st-edition-2023/#:~:text=The%20RE%20Council's%20National%20Content,what%20content%20schools%20should%20teach.

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I spent so much of my career not knowing about NATRE and I don't want any RE teacher to miss out on what this amazing organisation has to offer.  From training, to support to resources, this organisation is run by RE teachers and for RE teachers. In this episode I talk to the CEO of NATRE, Fiona Moss and the Chair of the NATRE executive Katie Freeman.  We discuss what NATRE is, how and when it started, what it has achieved so far and what it is hoping to achieve in the future.
If you are not currently a member of NATRE, we outline how you can become one and WHY you should become one!
We also hear from members of the exec both out going and in going so you can find out who they are and what they do.

https://www.natre.org.uk/

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