Religious Studies Site

Our Aims in Religious Studies at Our Lady's

At the heart of our efforts is the aspiration to create an environment where achievement and excellence are highly valued, alongside a curisity and enthusiasm for Religious studies. We work hard to provide a challenging and academically rigorous curriculum which ensure pupils develop a strong understanding of the depth and breadth of relgiious beliefs and practices, whilst honing their analytical ability and their independence in learning.

The staff's goal is to cultivate a comprehensive understanding of Catholic faith and life, while also instilling in students an appreciation and respect for diverse beliefs and perspectives. We strive to nurture in pupils the Catholic values central to the School - respect for others, respect for oneself, and a positive approach to dialogue with others, particularly within our multi-cultural, multi-faith city.

What should we know and remember by the end of KS3?

Here is our current KS3 Learning Journey, showing you what topics we teach at years 7, 8 and 9.

Assessment at KS3

Assessment is a key aspect of the teaching and learning process and is recognised by the department as an important formative and summative tool. As a department, our means of assessment and subsequent feedback gives pupils the opportunity to build and develop their skills, encouraging their future study and effort. This allows for staff to clearly see what pupils know and remember and ensure that misconceptions are addressed.

Pupils should complete two formative pieces and one summative piece each half-term. Their formative assessments will be extended writing tasks which utilise the WURD structure, ensuring all elements of strong Religious knowledge are included. Summative assessment is through a more formal, end of unit assessment. This consists of 5 questions, with subsequent questions requiring deeper knowledge and broader skill to be displayed, culminating in the final question where pupils can demonstrate their understanding of the unit as a whole and demonstrate their skills by presenting beliefs, sources, and practices, as well as analysing all these.

All assessment, whether formative or summative, involves feedback which identifies the strengths and areas of improvement of a piece of work, along with tasks for pupils to complete dependent on their individual areas of improvement. This approach aims at embedding strong practice, whilst practicing less strong areas to ensure full understanding and deeper skill.

The WURD Structure

The WURD structure is used for paragraphs in KS3 RE. Paragraphs should consist of Word (
Sources of Wisdom & authority within the religion, e.g. the Bible or Qur'an), Understanding (a strong grasp of the facts of the religion required for the question), Respond (Assess the impact this topic, belief or practice has on members of the religion), and Discern (evaluate the positions and views discussed).