An Exploration into the use of the Bible in the classroom and its relationship with Religious thinking.

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Charlotte Gould                                Subject Application                      December 2001

An Exploration into the use of the Bible in the classroom and its relationship with Religious thinking.

   Lots of children are given Bibles, sometimes by relatives who don’t even bother to check whether the text is in modern English or whether there are illustrations and what type they might be. Some children read and enjoy the Bible but others find it puzzling and boring. This is not surprising as it is a book that was written thousands of years ago and it had a very definite purpose with adults in mind. Because of this using the Bible in the classroom has caused much debate and many issues surround it, the main thing to remember is that it is not impossible for children to understand and learn from the Bible, with the right adult help they should be able to gain pleasure and enjoyment from it.

   The Christian Bible has always played a significant part in Religious Education in this country. It has also an important part to play in helping children to understand something of the cultural background of England. It is alluded to and quoted in many of the classics of English Literature, both past and present and it has a major influence on the English language. Without some knowledge of the Bible it is difficult to understand fully many events in British History. However, it is not the sole purpose of Religious Education to enable the teaching of the English literature or of British History. Within Religious education it is important for pupils to know what the Bible is, to understand the role it plays within Christianity and its links with other major world faiths. There are two aspects to teaching the Bible in Religious Education and these concern its nature and its contents. These apply throughout all stages of education, both primary and secondary. These two aspects are reflected in the Christian working group suggestions for the SCAA model syllabuses.

   As well as its role in Christianity any Religious Education course would need to take its writings into account to be able to appreciate and understand the Bible fully. In the classroom this means that there are a number of aspects, which can be studied:

  • The history of the Bible, the transmission throughout history and its translations
  • Its use in public and private worship
  • The notion of revelation through history, the Jews and the Christian church
  • The difference between inspiration and revelation and how this effects the way the Bible is treated by different Christian churches
  • The saints and scholars which have been involved in the process of its transmissions
  • The nature of the Literature within the Bible and its links with modern scholarship

Alongside the nature of the Bible, pupils will be introduced to what the Bible contains. They will need to be able to find their way around the book itself, knowing the division into Old and New Testament, the different books and the division between chapter and verse. Pupils will hear stories from the Bible, probably at an early age, often used in collective worship. The origins of these stories should be acknowledged. Together with these well-known stories pupils should be introduced to those stories, which are important to the Christian faith. The Board of education recently issued the following guidance for what should be taught at each Key stage in relation to the Bible.

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Key stage 1 pupils should be able to:

  1. Identify some stories from the Bible
  2. Recognise Christmas and Easter stories
  3. Demonstrate awareness that the Bible is a special book for Christians
  4. Know why Christians listen to and read the Bible
  5. Respond imaginatively to Bible stories

Key stage 2 pupils should be able to:

  1. Demonstrate some awareness of how the Bible grew
  2. Look up references in the Bible
  3. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of some key materials from the old and new testament
  4. Demonstrate a knowledge of some ways in which Christians use the Bible ...

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