Religious Education is outdated, unpopular and opens the door to proselytising.
There are many more subjects children and young people need to learn.
It's time to replace RE with something more appropriate for 21st century students.
It is important for children and young people to learn about different religions and beliefs. But we don't think our schools need a dedicated subject to do this – especially a subject as out-of-date and as irrelevant as Religious Education (RE).
Surveys consistently show RE is one of the least popular school subjects, an indication of its increasing irrelevance.
58% of British adults think religious studies is unimportant at secondary schools. And a quarter of England's secondary schools do not offer RE.
Unlike any other compulsory subject, RE is determined at a local level in England. In each local authority the agreed syllabus for RE is determined by committees representing the Church of England and other religion and belief groups, as well as the local authority and teacher's groups.
As a result, schools not only face a local lottery regarding what their RE syllabus will contain; they will have to teach a subject under significant control from religious interest groups. These groups are strongly motivated to ensure their religion is represented in an overwhelmingly positive light. The current arrangements mean the subject lacks objectivity.
Many faith schools don't even need to follow the locally agreed syllabus and can instead teach religion from their own exclusive viewpoint.
A new nationally-determined civics and citizenship subject could encompass teaching about religious and nonreligious worldviews and allow students to consider moral and ethical issues. Religion and belief could also be explored in other relevant areas of the curriculum.
In Wales, RE has recently been replaced with Religions, Values and Ethics (RVE). While we welcome this broader and more inclusive subject, problems remain regarding the influence of religious groups and exceptions allowing faith schools to teach confessional RE.
We need a reformed subject to ensure education about religion and belief is broad, balanced and proportionate.
We've created a series of resources – Exploring Secularism – for anyone wishing to explore issues of religion, belief, ethics, and worldviews in schools. The resources aim to provide teachers with the material they need to engage with secularism in an informed way.
As British society considers how to respond to greater religious diversity and growing irreligiosity, it is become increasingly important for children and young people to develop their understanding of the interaction between religion, society, and politics. The study of secularism explores this interaction, together with questions about how we balance freedom of, and from, religion with other rights.
Take action!
1. Write to your MP
Support our campaign to ensure every pupil has the same entitlement to high quality, non-partisan education about religious and non-religious worldviews.
2. Share your story
Tell us why you support this campaign, and how you are personally affected by the issue. You can also let us know if you would like assistance with a particular issue.
3. Join us
Become a member of the National Secular Society today! Together, we can separate religion and state for greater freedom and fairness.
Latest updates
Give every child a pluralistic education, NSS tells Welsh government
Posted: Tue, 28 Jul 2020 13:58
The National Secular Society has urged the Welsh government to extend planned reforms of religious education so every child is given a pluralistic and balanced syllabus.
The Welsh government plans to replace RE with a new subject, religion, values and ethics (RVE), which will emphasise the diversity of both religious and non-religious worldviews.
Faith schools will be required to offer pluralistic RVE as an option where parents request it, but will otherwise be allowed to continue to teach the subject from a religious perspective.
NSS consultation response
In response to a consultation on the plans, which closes today, the NSS welcomed the government's efforts to make the subject more pluralistic.
But it urged ministers to ensure all children would receive a critically-informed RVE syllabus.
"We deeply regret that by permitting faith schools to continue to use the subject to promote their particular religious outlook through the denominational syllabus, many pupils in Wales will continue to be denied access to genuinely non-partisan and balanced education about the full range of religious and non-religious worldviews.
"This should be the right of every child, irrespective of the type of school they attend."
The NSS's response also said:
- Making pluralistic RVE an option rather than the standard in faith schools would "introduce additional burdens" and "create confusion" while disregarding pupils' independent rights.
- The government should pause plans to remove the parental right to withdraw children from RVE until the new curriculum could be assessed, particularly given concerns around the teaching of RVE in faith schools.
- The delivery of RVE could be subject to a legal challenge where it was not "objective, critical, and pluralistic" if the right to withdraw was removed.
- Schools should not be treated as "homogenous faith communities", particularly given evidence that families largely do not choose faith schools based on their religious character.
NSS comment
NSS head of education Alastair Lichten said the Welsh government's approach was "broadly welcome" but warned that ministers risked "missing a significant opportunity".
"The government's recognition of the need for change is welcome. But its plans still give too much ground to religious interests. This means state-funded schools will continue to be used to push particular religious worldviews on children, at the expense of their right to a broad and balanced education.
"Wales has the chance to lead the way on the teaching of religion and belief across the UK by ensuring every child is taught in a genuinely pluralistic, balanced and critically-informed way. Ministers should take it."
The Welsh government published a bill outlining its plans earlier this month. The NSS has lobbied ministers throughout the process of drafting the legislation.
Catholic leaders' opposition to reform
Last month Catholic school leaders wrote to Wales's first minister to oppose the planned reforms, in a move backed by the Catholic Education Service (CES). The NSS has since urged the minister to reject their "special pleading".
In its consultation response the NSS also noted that the CES's own data had found that just 54% of pupils in maintained Catholic schools and colleges in Wales were Catholic.
You can read more about the NSS's position on the proposals and how you can help us make our case on our dedicated campaign page.
Image: © Lucélia Ribeiro, via Flickr [CC BY-SA 2.0]
Overhaul of RE in Wales begins with new bill
Posted: Thu, 9 Jul 2020 09:02
The Welsh Government has published legislation to replace religious education (RE) with a more pluralistic 'religion, values and ethics' (RVE) subject.
The Curriculum and Assessment (Wales) Bill was introduced to the Senedd by education minister Kirsty Williams on Tuesday, as part of wider education reforms. Under the proposals, all schools in Wales will be required to provide RVE based on locally agreed syllabi, which will themselves be based on a new national curriculum – with an emphasis on the diversity of religious and nonreligious worldviews.
An explanatory note published along with the draft bill reiterates the explicit intention of RVE to ensure learners "explore worldviews that include religions and other beliefs, and the impact these have on them and others in societies" – with "secularism" listed among the core concepts to be covered.
However, many faith schools will only be required to offer pluralistic RVE as an option where requested by parents – and will still be permitted continue to teach the subject from a faith perspective "in accordance with tenets of its religion or denomination."
The Catholic Education Service is lobbying against the requirement for faith schools to offer a pluralistic model of RVE.
The draft bill also removes the longstanding parental right of withdrawal.
The National Secular Society's Head of education, Alastair Lichten, welcomed the publication of the bill:
"This historic legislation could make Wales the UK's leading nation when it comes to inclusive and critical education about worldviews and their impact on society. Regrettably, the government's own ambitions will be undermined by the special exemptions for faith schools, which will mean many pupils will not have full access to pluralistic RVE.
"We will continue to work with ministers and Senedd members to improve the legislation and ensure that this once in a generation opportunity for reform is not undermined by the privileging of religion."
Although supportive of the intentions of the bill, the NSS has been critical of plans to retain the role of SACREs (standing advisory councils on religious education) and ASCs (agreed syllabus conferences) in producing the agreed syllabus for their area. Existing legislation will be amended to permit the appointment of representatives of nonreligious beliefs, but NSS has argued for a nationally agreed syllabus determined by educational experts, rather than special-interest groups.
The NSS has created a dedicated campaign page with a full briefing on the proposals and links for supporters to write to their Senedd members or respond to the consultation directly.
The page also includes a link to a survey of supporters' views on the future of RE reform and on the right to withdraw.
Image by Lesbardd - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia.
