It has been a year of losses and gains for the RS department with our Head of Department of the last fifteen years, the Rev Dr Reynaud de la Bat Smit retiring at the end of the year. Fr Reynaud has been a central character of College life for that time and his absence will be felt in the department. At the same time we are welcoming The Rev Dr Adam Dunning as chaplain and part-teacher in the RS department together with the full-time appointment of Mr Andrew Peacock.
The RS department has been growing steadily over the past five years, especially since the introduction of the new GCSE specification in 2009. Our first GCSE results in the AQA Religious Studies B specification delivered 52% of pupils achieving A*. Pupils engaged with these topics in all kinds of ways: from interviewing protesters against abortion outside the Cheltenham General Hospital, to making advertisements for consumer products that either hide or ‘spin’ their Green credentials.
In the Third Form, pupils took part in an inter-disciplinary project between the RS department, ICT and the library. They researched pilgrimage as a year-long project as it features in various religions, from Anglican pilgrimage to Walsingham, to Muslim pilgrimage to Makkah and the great Hindu pilgrimage that brings together the largest single group of people on Earth (60 million people in 2001). Pupils worked in different groups or as individuals and presented their research in a variety of formats such as Mind Maps or Powerpoint presentations.
Our Sixth Form continued to push the boundaries of critical thinking, with one Lower Sixth debate on who, or what, may be classified as a person (a being that deserves protection under the law equal to that of a born human). Some argued persuasively for the inclusion of such beings as dolphins in this category. The Upper Sixes took on innovation with a group document on Google doc while at the same time taking a critical look at the impact of Science and Technology on our moral life.
The department contributed to seven university offers in the study of Theology, Philosophy or Religious Studies. The department also runs a Philosophy Society together with Cheltenham Ladies College that invites speakers once every half-term.
Georgina Jardim, Head of Religious Studies
Annual Religious Studies Trip to Birmingham
Every year the Fourth Form Religious Studies pupils visit places of worship of Judaism and Islam in Birmingham. The trip aims to give pupils direct contact with believers of other faiths so that they can hear about their worldview and life experiences as well as understanding first-hand how they worship.
The visits consist of a guided tour firstly to Birmingham Central Synagogue where pupils listen to, and question, the guide about their Jewish faith. The pupils are shown different features of the synagogue including the Torah scrolls in the ark. One of the scrolls in this ark was saved from destruction on Kristallnacht in Nazi Germany on 9 November 1938 and brought to Britain by a Jewish refugee. Pupils also have a chance to ask questions about traditions and practices that differ from their own experience such as separation between men and women during worship, or not doing any work on a Sabbath.
At Birmingham Central Mosque, girls put on their headscarfs and we all go barefoot on a tour of the worship hall and other facilities. Pupils are shown how Muslims determine the direction in which they have to pray and page through a Qur’an. The mosque visit always coincides with a time of prayer (Salah) so that pupils can observe how Muslims pray together in unity. Once again, the tour guides encourage pupils to ask any question and our pupils do not shy away from in-depth enquiry.
The trip is sealed with an authentic meal at Imran’s that usually requires large amounts of water and the yoghurt drink lassi!