Confessional and non confessional RE What would be the meaning of the terms today

The truth is that what most scientists seek in our time is to avoid the term catechetical RE, while any use of the term confessional or non-confessional RE, is implicitly thought of as affirmative or negative. So it is very useful to accept that we will use the terms confessional and nonconfessional to determine to whom the organization and teaching of the subject belongs, and we will further identify them as far as possible with the terms of a) monoreligious (especially one religion, but also other religions and worldviews) or multireligious and b) catechetical or noncatechetical when its express intention is to integrate someone into a religious community through teaching and religious practice or not. We believe that this is a more honest and clear definition of RE. Again, it is worth noting that all the above concern RE, that is, the subject of the state school curriculum and not school religious education generally, which is offered at school through other means other than the lesson, such as worship, celebrations etc. That means that RE as a subject may be non-confessional, mono-religious and non-catechetical while school religious education may be confessional, monoreligious and catechetical (e.g. in the case of Greece, after 2016)

Religion and Religious Diversity within Education in a Social Pedagogical Context in Times of Crisis: Can Religious Education Contribute to Community Cohesion?

In this article the author argues that the teaching of religion(s) in education, in a social pedagogical context, can encourage community cohesion especially when, during the current harsh crisis, the need for cohesion seems to be of paramount importance in enabling seemingly insurmountable problems to be overcome. At the same time minorities become vulnerable and diversity, a matter of high priority, comes to the fore. The author reviews evidence of research on the effect of educational intervention within Religious Education on student attitudes toward religious diversity. He proposes that constructivist methodology, using theatre/drama as a means of Religious Education, could give people the choice to be critical religious believers and active members in a society applying the fundamental social pedagogical principle of tolerance to and respect for the ‘other’

Τι μαθαίνει ένα παιδί στη Θρησκευτική Εκπαίδευση στο σχολείο; / What does a child learn in Religious Education at school?

Η εκπαίδευση είναι εκπαίδευση στην αλλαγή.στην αλλαγή. Είναι καλύτερα δραστηριότητα που οδηγεί σε δραστηριότητα. Αυτή είναι η αλλαγή. Και το ερώτημα είναι αν στη ΘΕ η μαθησιακή διαδικασία σκοπεύει στην αλλαγή της πίστης του ανθρώπου στον Θεό, όταν αυτή υπάρχει. Είναι δεδομένο ότι αν αυτή υπάρχει, τότε η αλλαγή, που επιδιώκεται στην Εκπαίδευση, θα επιφέρει καλύτερη γνώση αυτής της πίστης. Αν δεν υπάρχει αυτή η πίστη, φαίνεται ότι η θρησκευτική γνώση λειτουργεί περισσότερο ως χρήσιμη/ωφέλιμη γνώση για τη γνωριμία με τους άλλους και το θρησκευτικό φαινόμενο, με αυτούς που πιστεύουν και τον ρόλο της θρησκείας στη ζωή αυτών των ανθρώπων. Education is education in change. Better an activity that leads to activity. This is the change and leads to the question as to whether in R.E. the learning process aims at a change in human faith in God when it exists. It is assumed that if it exists, then the change sought in Education will bring a better knowledge of this faith. If there is no such faith, it seems that religious knowledge functions more as useful / beneficial knowledge for knowing the others and the religious phenomenon, as well as those who believe and the role of religion in these people’s lives

Teaching Religious Education in Schools and Adolescents’ Social and Emotional Development. An Action Research on the Role of Religious Education and School Community in Adolescents’ Lives

The presentation of the findings of this article is based on an action research focused on the supportive role of the school in adolescents’ lives, whereby Religious Education’s contribution to the social and emotional development of adolescents (11-15) is combined with the evaluation of the potential offered by a constructivist approach to the learning process. The research commenced in 2012 and is now in its third year. The project is based on an intervention at a high school in an impoverished suburb of Athens and researches educational practices through interpretative-ethnographic methods. The researcher has attempted to answer the question of whether the design of the learning environments is effective not only in the learning process, but also on inter-communication and “connectedness” between the members of the learning community. The findings so far indicate a correlation between adolescents’ emotional and social wellbeing and the school’s approach to knowledge and learning methods, specifically in Religious Education classes. It is fair to say, however, that there exist ethnic, social and family components that are negatively related to a sense of “connectedness” within the school although at the same time Religious Education as a subject is, however, found to be positively related to learning community atmosphere

The Socio-Pedagogical Dynamics of Religious Knowledge in Religious Education: A Participatory Action-Research in Greek Secondary Schools on Understanding Diversity

The study examines which type of religious knowledge acquired in Religious Education in Greek Secondary schools can initiate both personal and collective change in understanding and appreciation of different cultures. It is blended research using participatory action-research with ethnographic elements methodology. The research gathered qualitative and quantitative data through questionnaires, focus groups, journals, and the technique of the “Most Significant Change” from four resources/target groups (students, teachers, parents, researcher). It took place during the 2017–2018 school year in a High and an Upper Schools in which the researcher participated in the school communities as a teacher. Statistical analysis (SPSS), content analysis and thematic analysis of the data show that religious knowledge, developed in Education with the aim of religious literacy, as defined in the context of Greek/European context, can operate on a personal and collective level, in cultivation of respect and underacting of cultural diversity. This is achieved when the religious knowledge is understood as experience and is meaningful when applied to the concepts of understanding, reflection and action. The overall finding is that transformative dynamics of religious knowledge facilitate both minor and major changes in the mindset of young people. Concluding, in Religious Education without sacrificing the religious content of the subject, a high degree of cultural recognition and acceptance of religious diversity can be achieved, and to a certain extent enable a change in attitude towards immigrants and refugees, in other words the ‘other’ as well as in communication and acquaintance between team members, recognition of and a greater degree of acceptance of otherness, and the development of relationships which were non-existent before

The “Most Significant Change” Technique: Research on the Evaluation of Theatre in Education (TiE) Programmes

The aim of this paper is to present and suggest the Most Significant Change as an effective evaluation methodology of Theatre in Education (TiE) programmes. It is a given that TiE, as other forms of performative and participatory educational projects, is hard to be assessed and evaluated. It becomes harder due to the lack of adequate research in the field and thus the lack of initiatives, data and experience. This paper presents the “Most Significant Change” (Davies & Dart, 2005) evaluation method as adjusted by the researchers, which was implemented after the TiE programme “Ston Kosmo tou” (In his world) funded by the Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation. This is the first presentation and analysis of a wider study that took place during the school year 2017-2018, where 38 schools, 2185 students and 58 teachers were researched after the application of the programme. This paper argues that narratives and stories may well serve as an internal process of evaluation of TiE and other educational participatory programmes. It attempts to suggest specific steps of using a well-known evaluation tool and launch a new approach on the evaluation and assessment of such educational interventions

Religious Education in Greece - Orthodox Christianity, Islam and Secularism

This study is an attempt to address the issue of religion in the public sphere and secularism. Since the Eastern Orthodox Church has been established by the Greek constitution (1975) as the prevailing religion of Greece, there are elements of legal agreements- which inevitably spawn interactions- between state and Church in different areas. One such area is Religious Education. This article focuses on Religious Education (RE) in Greece which is a compulsory school subject and on two important interventions that highlight the interplay between religion, politics and education: firstly the new Curriculum for RE (2011) and secondly the introduction of an Islamic RE (2014) in a Greek region (Thrace) where Christians and Muslims have lived together for more than four centuries. The researches are based on fieldwork research and they attempt to open the discussion on the role of RE in a secular education system and its potential for coexistence and social cohesion