FEATURES OF HIGH-QUALITY RELIGIOUS EDUCATION capabilities and cross-curriculum Australian Catholic school students are priorities. entitled to the highest quality Religious Education serving the aim and approaches outlined in this paper. These are articulated Effective pedagogy engages and in greater detail in local diocesan Religious empowers the learner and opens up a sense of mystery, wonder and meaning Education curricula. At both diocesan curriculum level and in planning at the for students. It provides freedom to school level, there is high-quality Religious investigate, inquire and use religious Education learning and teaching when the imagination to engage in critical features set out below are evident. reflection and empathetic dialogue with the Catholic tradition, culture and their Leaders give priority to Religious experience. Education. A dialogical interplay between the Scripture is central to learning and experiences and perspectives of students, teaching. It is presented as texts of faith the Catholic Tradition and other religious studied in their contexts, is related to worldviews imbues the pedagogy and students’ experiences and is offered for learning. prayerful reading and as a resource for living. Learning and teaching engage explicitly and comprehensively with the elements of The principles and practices that the Catholic tradition in ways that do not inform learning and teaching in reduce the tradition to values not clearly learning areas are expected and evident anchored within it. in the Religious Education classroom. Student learning interacts Learners, teachers and parents appropriately and regularly with perceive Religious Education as a complementary aspects of the religious learning area. Therefore, it is desirable life of the school and parish, including that its structure be associated with the liturgy, social outreach and youth local state/ territory expression of the ministry. Australian Curriculum, with content There are planned collaborative elaborations and achievement standards processes that enable the engagement of in a format similar to other learning areas, along with assessment and parents and families with their child’s learning. reporting requirements and representations of the general 18
FEATURES OF HIGH-QUALITY RELIGIOUS EDUCATION Australian Catholic school students are entitled to the highest quality Religious Education serving the aim and approaches outlined in this paper. These are articulated in greater detail in local diocesan Religious Education curricula. At both diocesan curriculum level and in planning at the school level, there is high-quality Religious Education learning and teaching when the features set out below are evident. Leaders give priority to Religious Education. Scripture is central to learning and teaching. It is presented as texts of faith studied in their contexts, is related to students’ experiences and is offered for prayerful reading and as a resource for living. The principles and practices that inform learning and teaching in learning areas are expected and evident in the Religious Education classroom. Learners, teachers and parents perceive Religious Education as a learning area. Therefore, it is desirable that its structure be associated with the local state/ territory expression of the Australian Curriculum, with content elaborations and achievement standards in a format similar to other learning areas, along with assessment and reporting requirements and representations of the general capabilities and cross-curriculum priorities. Effective pedagogy engages and empowers the learner and opens up a sense of mystery, wonder and meaning for students. It provides freedom to investigate, inquire and use religious imagination to engage in critical reflection and empathetic dialogue with the Catholic tradition, culture and their experience. A dialogical interplay between the experiences and perspectives of students, the Catholic Tradition and other religious worldviews imbues the pedagogy and learning. Learning and teaching engage explicitly and comprehensively with the elements of the Catholic tradition in ways that do not reduce the tradition to values not clearly anchored within it. Student learning interacts appropriately and regularly with complementary aspects of the religious life of the school and parish, including liturgy, social outreach and youth ministry. There are planned collaborative processes that enable the engagement of parents and families with their child’s learning. 18
NCEC_RE_Framing_Paper.docx