Religious Education

The Religious Education curriculum at Marsden Heights aims to inspire students to become theologians and philosophers who can make critical and balanced judgements about questions of meaning and purpose by developing religious literacy in terms of vocabulary and conceptual understanding. This knowledge-rich curriculum enables students to acquire an in-depth understanding of the core vocabulary and theological beliefs of the world religions at KS3. In KS4 they focus on Islam and Christianity to support their GCSE examinations, studying how these beliefs influence religious believers in their daily practice. Comparisons of these faiths allow for frequent retrieval and for knowledge to be embedded, before students explore how these faiths, along with secular views, respond to philosophical issues and how they make ethical decisions. This provides students with the theological, philosophical and ethical knowledge to apply their learning to contemporary issues within modern society in their GCSE and post-16 religious education. 

RE Curriculum at KS3

The purpose of the RE curriculum is for students to know and understand a range of religious and non-religious worldviews and be able to critically engage with those views. Students should gain an appreciation for how these worldviews have impacted the world they live in at a local, national, and global level.

Year 7 students begin with looking at the Origins of Abrahamic Faith, followed by Judaism, Christianity, and Buddhism. The core units of this year are Judaism and Christianity. In Year 8 students go on to study Islam, Hinduism, Atheism and Philosophy of Religion. The core units of this year being Islam and Philosophy of Religion. In Year 9 students study ethical issues with units on Life and Death, Extremism and Equality. The core units of this year being Life and Death and Equality.

In Key Stage 4 pupils will follow the OCR specification and sit examinations for this. This will consist of:

• demonstrate knowledge and understanding of different philosophical and ethical arguments relating to religious and non-religious ideologies
• analyse, evaluate, and discuss the issues raised by the areas of study for Christianity and Islam, communities, and societies
• demonstrate the depth of their understanding of Christianity and Islam by referring to teachings, beliefs, views, attitudes, and values, supported by reference to relevant sources of wisdom and authority, including scripture and/or sacred texts where appropriate consider significant common and divergent views within Christianity and Islam
• refer, where appropriate, to different philosophical, ethical, or religious perspectives in support of explanations or arguments
• consider the issues raised for Christianity and Islam in Great Britain today. The religious traditions of Great Britain are, in the main Christian but they are also diverse, including other religious and non-religious beliefs.

• Parents have the right to withdraw their children from all or part of religious education. 

• For any requests to withdraw your child from religious education, please contact the school to arrange a meeting with the Principal / Headteacher in the first instance.