Teaching and Training – Farmington Institute

TT417: No Time for Global Learning

Author: Naomi Anstice
Date: 2017-18
Location: Liverpool John Moores University
Key Stage: Key stages 1 - 2
Topic: Embedding global learning into the curriculum by adapting what we already do, and using the resources I have created
Length: 3 Pages
Category: Teaching and Training

Inspired through an 18 month period leading a Global Learning Expert Centre, I was able to mould an idea for this project. Whilst so many schools placed value on global learning, it was an area that they struggled to embed in an already busy curriculum so I set out to show how you can adapt what you already do in the classroom and across the whole school to allow more quality opportunities for the skills and themes of Global Learning. My research has been split three ways: Researching appropriate pedagogy and the provision of Global Learning within the school assessment […]

TT416: WJEC/EDUQAS As Religion and Ethics Resources

Author: Sarah Williams
Date: 2017-18
Location: University of Wales
Key Stage: 5
Topic: Differentiated and engaging resources for two of the four themes on the WJEC/Eduquas AS Religion and Ethics unit, specifically Situation Ethics and Utilitarianism
Length: 47 Pages
Category: Teaching and Training

I have produced 24 lessons for the Situation Ethics and Utilitarianism themes of the AS Ethics unit. I focused on making the content accessible through such means as YouTube videos like Crash Course Philosophy, flipped leaning homework activities and mini application tasks. I also prioritised getting the pupils familiar with the command words and understanding the demands of exam questions, rather than just seeing a key word and regurgitating everything they know on that topic as they had done previously. I created a philosophical and evaluative language wall in my classroom which I direct students to use to improve the standard […]

TT415: The effective delivery of Religious Studies to able students

Author: Helen Wedge
Date: 2017-18
Location: Farmington Tutor
Key Stage: 4
Topic: Developing religious literacy and higher order thinking skills for GCSE in response to changes in curriculum
Length: 9 Pages
Category: Teaching and Training

The motivation for this report arose due to the significant changes that the RS GCSE curriculum has undergone. It is evident that the new specifications demand a more rigorous approach to the subject and a review into the pedagogy previously employed. The substantial increase in religious content, together with assessment criteria that requires students to demonstrate well-informed and well-argued responses, has necessitated teaching and learning strategies that develop both students’ religious literacy and their higher order thinking skills.

TT406: “I Can Read Too!”

Author: Chloe Abraham
Date: 2017-18
Location: Stranmillis University College, Belfast
Key Stage: foundation - 5
Topic: Linking RE and literacy to teach children with special needs.
Length: 17 Pages
Category: Teaching and Training

Having trained as a Post-Primary Religious Studies teacher, yet now teaching in a special school, RE remains a subject close to my heart. Our school caters for children aged 3 to 19, all of whom have a statement of educational needs. Our children present with severe learning difficulties, developmental delays, social emotional behavioural difficulties and complex medical needs. RE is a subject which is delivered inconsistently across the school. Staff find content difficult to adapt, suitable resources hard to source and consistent time in an already packed schedule hard to find. Yet RE has a valuable part to play in […]

TT405: How Do Teachers Develop Subject Knowledge?

Author: Claire Schnellmann
Date: 2018-19
Location: Homerton College, Cambridge
Key Stage: 4
Topic: An enquiry into the method teachers have used to develop their subject knowledge of religious traditions in response to the GCSE reforms
Length: 20 Pages
Category: Teaching and Training

Teacher subject knowledge is crucial in any subject, and formally acknowledged to be so through its inclusion in the ‘Teacher Standards’ in the UK. The 2014 revised National Curriculum and the reformed national examinations assessed from 2017 onward have been introduced with both political and academic references to the importance of knowledge and curriculum within schools. (Department for Education, 2014) The study is an investigation into the methods which teachers used to develop their subject knowledge in response to the reformed GCSE Religious Studies qualification and requirement for students to be examined on two religions. It was compiled by surveys completed […]

TT404: A Triad of Possibilities

Author: Julie Easton
Date: 2017-18
Location: Harris Manchester College, Oxford
Key Stage: Key stages 1 - 2
Topic: The impact of Theory of Mind on Children, RE and Autism
Length: 75 Pages
Category: Science and Religion, Teaching and Training

In England, around one person in every hundred is on the autism spectrum. Autism is the primary need for 27% of pupils with an Education and Health Care Plan (EHCP) and more than 70% of children on the autism spectrum in England attend mainsteam schools. One subject where I have noticed these children have more difficulty than others is RE. The concepts are often abstract and they are asked to think about other people’s points of view and emotions, neither of which are skills that come easily to them. Through this scholarship I wanted to investigate two things: How does […]

TT403: An enquiry-based RE scheme of work for primary schools based on developing an understanding of the Trinity

Author: Ruth Lawrence
Date: 2017-18
Location: School-based Farmington Scholarship
Key Stage: Key stages 1 - 2
Topic: Lesson plans for years 1 - 6 based on key concepts of the Trinity
Length: 17 Pages
Category: Teaching and Training

The origin of this project was in response to the OFSTED report ‘RE -Realising the Potential (2013). This document spoke of inadequacies of subject knowledge and few opportunities for pupils to develop the skills of enquiry into religion. In particular, the teaching of Christianity was considered one of the weakest aspects of RE provision. Reflecting upon my own practice, this resonated with me. My diligence in researching other religions less familiar to me had, perhaps, affected the rigour with which Christianity was taught. I believe that the teaching of RE has embraced new methods of enquiry in recent years and […]

TT402: Exploring the Gap between Key-Stage 2 and Key-Stage 3 RE

Author: Chris Cooney
Date: 2017-18
Location: Liverpool John Moores University
Key Stage: 2 - 3
Topic: What role can a secondary teacher have within feeder primary schools?
Length: 16 Pages
Category: Teaching and Training

The transition from Primary to Secondary school is a significant event for both pupils and teachers. This event naturally has an impact, most reportedly on progression and attainment This is true across most subjects, and in particular Religious Education This project aims to investigate where issues in RE transition may come from, and offer some possible strategies to help alleviate the problems. Although transition is an issue, and has been for some time, there is very little published research available on the problem, thus this investigation took a practical approach, spending time in primary schools, planning lessons and teaching lessons. […]

TT401: How can we raise the performance of pupil premium children within RE such that they achieve as well as other pupils nationally?

Author: Amanda McKenzie
Date: 2017-18
Location: Harris Manchester College, Oxford
Key Stage: 3 and 4
Topic: Raising the performance of pupil premium children within RE. Can these findings have a positive effect on the performance of pupil premium children in core subjects?
Length: 22 Pages
Category: Teaching and Training

I have a passion, as do countless people who belong to the human race, for equality. Why should a child be destined to a predetermined future based on where they were born, the environment they live in and the other circumstances they find themselves under? Unfortunately, evidence is rife in this area that there is an achievement gap at each key stage between disadvantaged pupils and their peers nationally. This research project intends to explore the relationship between Religious Education (RE) and the achievement gap. I will be focusing on the achievement gap in RE. My aim is to understand […]

TT 400: The Impact of Understanding Christianity

Author: Sally-Anne Brooman
Date: 2017-18
Location: Lincoln University
Key Stage: Foundation to key stage 2
Topic: The importance of enabling children to develop Religious Literacy by empowering teachers to deliver clear, focused RE lessons
Length: 45 Pages
Category: Teaching and Training

In school, we learn History and, should we wish, we transfer to History A Level and perhaps a degree in History. If Geography is what really floats your boat, then a Geography degree could be in your future. Pick an element of Science – physics, biology or chemistry – and you can find numerous degrees focused on a particular strand of that science. If you enjoy RE at school however, what degree subjects are available to you? The majority of them include the word theology or even philosophy. RE is perhaps the only multidisciplinary subject striving to seek a balance […]