Religious Studies

General Information

Religious Studies has changed significantly in the past twenty years and it is increasingly important that young people have a more enlightened view of others. In RS we encourage students to be able to understand not only the world around them, but also to be made aware of the 6 major world religions.

Staffing

Staff Member	Role
Mrs S. Jordan	Subject Leader of RS and SMSC Associate Assistant Principal

Key Stage 3

At Key Stage 3, Religious Studies is taught once a week. We study the 6 major world religions over the course of KS3; Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism and Sikhism. All units will be focusing on students’ ability to think about questions of meaning, in order to consider perspectives other than their own and to develop empathy, values and critical thinking.

Key Stage 4

GCSE Religious Studies is an option at KS4. It is taught 3 lessons per week and pupils work towards the GCSE from the AQA exam board. The course consists of two papers. The first focuses on the beliefs, teachings and practices of Christianity and Judaism. The second examines four religious, philosophical and ethical themes namely:

Religion and Life
Religion Peace and Conflict
Religion, Crime and Punishment
Religion, Human rights and Social justice

Students will be challenged with questions about beliefs, values, meaning, purpose and truth, enabling them to develop their own attitudes towards these contemporary issues.

*Exam Board: AQA*
Component 1 Written Exam	50%	Component 1: The study of religions: beliefs, teachings and practices of - Christianity - Judaism 1 hour 45 minutes 96 marks, plus 3 marks for spelling, punctuation and grammar (SPaG) Each religion has a common structure of two five-part questions of 1, 2, 4, 5 and 12 marks. Each religion is marked out of 48
Component 2 Written Exam	50%	Component 2: Thematic studies Religious, philosophical and ethical studies themes: Theme B: Religion and life. Theme D: Religion, peace and conflict. Theme E: Religion, crime and punishment. Theme F: Religion, human rights and social justice. Written exam: 1 hour 45 minutes 96 marks, plus 3 marks for spelling, punctuation and grammar (SPaG) Each theme has a common structure of one five-part question of 1, 2, 4, 5 and 12 marks. Each theme is marked out of 24.
*Content*
Paper 1: Christianity Key Beliefs: Nature of God, Evil and Suffering, The Trinity, Creation, The afterlife including Judgement, Salvation, Incarnation, Sin, Atonement Practices: Forms of Worship, Prayer and its significance, Sacraments, Pilgrimage, Role of the Church, Mission and Evangelism, Reconciliation and Persecution Judaism Key Beliefs: Nature of God, Shekinah, Afterlife, Role of the Messiah, Covenants, Key Moral Principles, Free Will and Mitzvot Practices: Brit Milah, Bar and Bat Mitzvah, Dietary Laws, Festivals including Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Pesach Paper 2: Religious, philosophical and ethical studies themes: Theme B: Religion and life. Theme D: Religion, peace and conflict. Theme E: Religion, crime and punishment. Theme F: Religion, human rights and social justice.
*Revision Resources*
- Topic Revision Clocks (completed in after school sessions) - RS Revision website - Jew FAQ website
*Revision Techniques*
Quotes	Religious quotes are vital to know. Write them out onto post-it notes/posters and put around your room. Repetition is key, continually learn and rewrite them out.
Revision Clocks	All the course material is condensed down into these. Use these to learn from – try fill in a blank one after you feel confident in your revision of that topic.
Past Paper Questions	Practices question is one of the most beneficial things you can do you assess your knowledge and build up your skill on time management. Class examples have been given out to do weekly.
Peer Questioning	Give someone your revision clocks and ask them to quiz you on certain subtopics. This will highlight your strengths and weaknesses and where more effort is needed.