Religious Studies
Why is the subject important?
The religious studies curriculum equips students with a strong command of explicit knowledge surrounding the main faiths around the world. This is important because around 84% of people globally identify with a religious group, therefore we must ensure our students understand the beliefs and practices of all people.
The Year 7 and 8 curriculum will equip students with the key theological understanding of 5 main religions: Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism. Once students have a strong theological understanding of the 5 main religions, they will put this theological understanding into practice. They will examine religious and non-religious perspectives on contemporary issues such as criminal law, medical ethics and animal rights. This will begin to teach them where their own ethical opinions come from, beginning to understand their own views and working around them. The curriculum is designed for students to use their knowledge of RS to build and develop skills such as critical thinking, analysis of evidence and reasoning. We want our students at Trinity Academy Bradford to leave school being able to understand the world around them and being able to articulate their views in an educated manner.
Year 7
What will I be studying?
- Does God Exist?
- How is God portrayed in the Old Testament?
- Why was God needed on Earth?
- What are the main beliefs in Islam?
- How does religion influence people today?
Career Links
Careers – Journalist, Social Worker, Community Development Worker, Muslim Chaplain Officer.
Employability links – Allows students to understand people around them and accept, empathise and understand people with different views, beliefs, cultures and religions.
How will I be assessed?
Students will be assessed using three assessments throughout the year; these will take place in Term 2, Term 4, and Term 6. The assessments will cover the content students learn within the lesson and will be both knowledge and skill based.
Students will also take part in the Masters of Recall assessments which take place at the end of each term to assess the retention of new knowledge covered within the term. This will assess the retention of knowledge from the knowledge organisers.
Knowledge Organisers
- Term 1 – Does God Exist?
- Term 2 – How is God portrayed in the Old Testament?
- Term 3 – Why was God needed on Earth?
- Term 4 – Why was God needed on Earth?
- Term 5 – What are the main beliefs in Islam?
- Term 6 – How does religion influence people today?
Which websites should I use to support my learning?
Year 8
What will I be studying?
- How does the Old Testament influence the Abrahamic Faiths (Genesis – Creation)?
- How does the Old Testament influence the Abrahamic Faiths (Genesis – Abraham)?
- How does the Old Testament influence the Abrahamic Faiths (Exodus – Moses)?
- How do Christians worship God?
- How does reincarnation influence the Dharmic Faiths?
- What are the main beliefs in Sikhism?
Career Links
Careers – Journalist, Festival Coordinator, Environmentalist, Spiritual Advisor, Probation Officer, Police Officer, Food Bank Coordinator.
Employability links – Enables students to consider the challenges of an event coordinator from the point of view of sustainability.
How will I be assessed?
Students will be assessed using three assessments throughout the year; these will take place in Term 2, Term 4, and Term 6. The assessments will cover the content students learn within the lesson and will be both knowledge and skill based.
Students will also take part in the Master of Recall assessments which take place at the end of each term to assess the retention of new knowledge covered within the term. This will assess the retention of knowledge from the knowledge organisers.
Regular knowledge recall will take place at the beginning of every lesson.
Knowledge Organisers
- Term 1 – How does the Old Testament influence the Abrahamic Faiths (Genesis – Creation)?
- Term 2 – How does the Old Testament influence the Abrahamic Faiths (Genesis – Abraham)?
- Term 3 – How does the Old Testament influence the Abrahamic Faiths (Exodus – Moses)?
- Term 4 – How do Christians worship God?
- Term 5 – How does reincarnation influence the Dharmic Faiths?
- Term 6 – What are the main beliefs in Sikhism?
Which websites should I use to support my learning?
Year 9
What will I be studying?
- Does God exist?
- What is ethics?
- How are ethical theories applied?
- Should we decide who lives and who dies?
- What is the Prophecy of the Messiah?
Career Links
Careers – NHS Ethical Advisor, Climate Change Advisor, HR Manager, CEO, military personnel.
Employability links – Enables students to think critically and understand ethics and how this impacts the workplace.
How will I be assessed?
Students will be assessed using three assessments throughout the year; these will take place in November, March and June. The assessments will cover the content students learn within the lesson and will be both knowledge and skill based.
Students will also take part in the Masters of Recall assessments, which take place at the end of each term to assess the retention of new knowledge covered within the term. This will assess the retention of knowledge from the knowledge organisers.
Regular knowledge recall will take place at the beginning of every lesson.
Knowledge Organisers
- Term 1 – Does God exist?
- Term 2 – What is ethics?
- Term 3 – How are ethical theories applied?
- Term 4 – Should we decide who lives & who dies?
- Term 5 – Should we decide who lives & who dies?
- Term 6 – What is the Prophecy of the Messiah?
Which websites should I use to support my learning?
GCSE
What will I be studying?
Short course religious studies students will study:
- Christian Beliefs
- Muslim Beliefs
- Theme A: Relationships and Families
- Theme D: Religion, Peace and Conflict
How will I be assessed?
Short course students will be assessed across one 1 hour 35 minute GCSE paper.