|
About the Book
This book guides students to complete the revised (2023–2027) Victorian Certificate of Education study of Religion and Society Unit 1. Its teaching and learning sequence is developed around the areas of study and outcomes of the Study Design with a focus on three key study areas: the nature and purpose of religion; religion through the ages; religion in Australia.
Students are provided with a wide range of learning activities and assessment tasks through which they may engage critically with the content, and demonstrate key knowledge and skills in the outcomes. As the title suggests, it is intended to introduce students to the diverse world of religions, past and present, and the role religions have played in the development of society. Students will encounter evidence of religions found in archaeological remains, and study religions of prehistory revealing the earliest forms of human spirituality and religious literacy. These site studies include, Gobekli Tepe, Lascaux cave paintings, and Stonehenge. There is an extensive study of the ancient religions of Sumer, Greece and Rome. An examination of the religious expression of Hinduism and Buddhism and the Abrahamic religions of Christianity, Judaism and Islam is thoroughly presented. In addition, the book will inspect the collective identity and personal meaning expressed by the religions of the first Australians through the relevant aspects of religions, as well as a study of the religions that have made Australia a multi-religious nation. Various Government policies that have influenced and impacted the religious composition in Australia will also be explored.
As students use this book it is hoped that they not only successfully complete the unit Religion and Society Unit 1 but they may also grow in their recognition and appreciation of the diversity of religions in their schools, neighbourhood and global societies. It is also hoped that students will appreciate the role of religion in shaping and giving meaning to individuals and communities, and recognise how religions provide answers to questions about the nature and purpose of existence.
Overview of Chapters
Area of Study 1: The nature and purpose of religion
Chapter 1: The nature and purpose of religion and spirituality
This chapter introduces students to the definitions of spirituality and religion, and discusses the nature and purpose of religion and spirituality in general. It explores some experiences and expressions of spirituality through songs, poetry and artwork. Chapter 1 also presents reasons to study religion in society.
Chapter 2: The role of religion in shaping and giving meaning to individuals and communities
This chapter includes content about the role of religion over time. More specifically, the role of religion for communities to: deal with moral egalitarian issues in society; educate the community; provide social infrastructure; provide ethical leadership; dedicate loyalty to the maintenance of the sacred; provide explanations for all phenomena about the origins and life and existence; and pass on sacred narratives of the tradition that explain religious truths of all existence. This chapter also presents content about the role of religion for individuals, including: how adherents take solace in religions during significant times of suffering and rejoicing; the way religion can be personally transforming; and how religion can have a powerful influence on someone’s individual and collective identity.
Chapter 3: Religion essentials - the 9 aspects of religion
Connecting to a group is one of the most important human needs. This chapter provides opportunities for students to reflect on the influence of their primary and secondary groups and understand the importance of group cohesion, formation and maintenance. Students are introduced to the 9 aspects of religion that sociologists claim are common to most religions. The 9 aspects of religion are used as a framework to help understand the past and present for spiritualities and religions and to discuss the interrelationship between the 9 aspects of religion.
Chapter 4: Assessment Task examples for Area of Study 1
Assessment tasks to assist teachers to appraise students’ application and analysis of key knowledge and skills in the outcome for Area of Study 1.
Area of Study 2: Religion through the ages
Chapter 5: Society and religion influencing each other
This chapter explores religion as an integral part of the development of human society. It focuses on archeological evidence of the behaviours the earliest humans exhibited to reveal that they were interacting with their environment to express their beliefs about phenomena beyond human understanding. The concept ‘spiritual literacy’ is used to assist students to understand that the environment has been used since the earliest of times to assist humans to discern answers to the ‘big’ questions about life and death. The chapter also explores the process of socialisation to explain how religions through the ages transmitted sacred knowledge from one generation to the next.
Chapter 6: Earliest developments in society effecting religion and spirituality
This chapter includes content about how religious knowledge was essential to prehistoric peoples survival. The 9 aspects of religion are used to examine how the prehistoric people may have expressed their spiritual and religious ideas through the study of Gobekli Tepe in South Eastern Anatolia, Turkey; Catalhoyuk proto-city settlement in southern Anatolia, Turkey; Salisbury Plain Stonehenge in Wiltshire, England; Newgrange Stonehenge in Boyne Valley, Ireland; Lascaux cave paintings in the Dordogne region of southwestern France; and the site of Ancient Jericho located northwest of the Dead Sea. These prehistoric sites are also explored to examine the role of religion in the prehistoric age and the challenges the prehistoric people had that may have impacted their communities and aspects of religion.
Chapter 7: Protecting collective identity in the ancient world
This chapter includes content about the invention of writing and how writing aided the development of religion. It explores ancient spiritual and religious ideas expressed through Ancient Egypt; Ancient Sumer; Ancient Canaan; Ancient Greece; Ancient Rome; Ancient India; and the Hebrew people of Ancient Middle East. The chapter further investigates evidence of prehistoric spiritual and religious ideas adapted with the religions of the ancient world and the challenges the ancient people had to protect their religious culture.
Chapter 8: The Axial Age and significant historical developments
This chapter introduces the Axial Age and studies the new developments in this time period that affected the role of religion in society and the relevant 9 aspects of religion. Topics include the development of religious beliefs and new philosophical ideas. Key influential people of the Axial Age are studied specifically to explore their role in the development of spiritual and religious ideas expressed through the 9 aspects of religion in Buddhism; Taoism; Confucianism; Jainism; Shinto; Christianity; Sikhism; and Islam.
Chapter 9: Assessment Task examples for Area of Study 2
Assessment tasks to assist teachers appraise students’ application and analysis of key knowledge and skills in the outcome for Area of Study 2.
Area of Study 3: Religion in Australia
Chapter 10: How Australia came to be a multi religious nation
This chapter includes content about Australia’s past and present multi spiritual and religious nation. It presents content about the influences of Australia’s religious composition and the various government policies and the dominance of specific religious groups that challenged the individual and collective identities of a multi-religious Australia. These include a study of the Aboriginal Protection Act (1869); the Christianisation of indigenous Australians; Immigration Restriction Act (1901); Post War Immigration; Aborigines Protection Act (1909-1969); Referendum (1967); Aborigines Act (1969); and the Migration Act (1958). It also explores the Church of England and the first Catholics in Australia and how they expressed their collective identity and personal meaning during the early years of European settlement. It examines the conflicts and tensions in the early years of colonisation that impacted on the collective identity of Australia’s First Nation people. The study of Jewish migration and Muslims in Australia is also presented. Further, the chapter offers some reflection on the role of interfaith and ecumenical initiatives in Australia to promote unity among churches and religions.
Chapter 11: Assessment Task examples for Area of Study 3
Assessment tasks to assist teachers appraise students’ application and analysis of key knowledge and skills in the outcome for Area of Study 3.
About the Author
Marie Bagh (BA.,GradDipEd.,MPhil) is an experienced teacher of Religious Education and English. She has worked extensively on curriculum for Religious Education programs in Melbourne Catholic Secondary Schools. She has a keen interest in prehistoric religious and spiritual ideas, religions of the world, ethical issues, cultural diversity, interfaith dialogue, social justice, Catholic identity, and teacher pedagogy.
Marie’s teaching philosophy is to impress on young people a desire to recognise religion as a means to answer questions about the meaning and purpose of life, and as a means to develop individual and collective identity.
As a Catholic educator Marie strives to enact the Churches mission to recognize the innate dignity of all people, participate fully in a hope filled world, and continue to learn and teach young people about the rich and complex world of religions and spirituality so as to contribute to a peaceful world of acceptance of others and harmonious interactions. Marie currently teaches at Salesian College Rupertswood, Sunbury, and is a Pedagogical Coach.
Note for Teachers
A World of Diversity is the 3rd edition designed to support the new (2023 – 2027) Victorian Certificate of Education study of Religion and Society Unit 1. It has been extensively edited and written to assist senior secondary students to engage critically with the content in order that they understand the complex and diverse role of religion in society, both past and present.
The complex relationship between religions and society has had its challenges and continues to. However, religion also contributes towards hope, justice, joy, identity and meaning to billions of people world wide. It is hoped that this book will enable students to grapple with some of the complexities of religions necessary to understand its magnetic relationship with humanity.
The variety of learning materials are intentional because our classrooms cater for diverse learners. When teachers plan their unit of work using this text, it is important that they have flexibility to choose the focus areas that will engage students within their contexts, and even call on student voices to direct their own learning.
One of the focal strategies for the activities, discussion and research tasks was the deliberate use of thinking protocols and tools to ensure that the learning is student-centred, collaborative and optimises some of the major academic and social skills students require for success in the 21st century. This book also scaffolds and supports deep thinking by providing scores of challenging question prompts, aimed to support and enhance cultures of thinking within the classrooms.
Further, this book was written with the knowledge that many schools either offer this subject over a whole year, or over a semester. If it is taught over a semester, careful planning and auditing of the material will be necessary as many VCE teachers know that time ‘skips away very quickly’ during a semester. Regardless of the teaching duration, teachers need to consider that the two main topic areas of Religion and Society Unit 1 are the application of the roles of religion in society and the nine aspects of religion (and their interrelationship). Familiarity with the roles of religion diagram in Chapter 2, page 34, and the table of the aspects definition Chapter 3, page 76, is therefore crucial for the success of subsequent Outcomes.
It is to be noted that Chapter 2 is, on the whole, new material. In addition, Chapter 5 is mostly new material addressing prehistoric spiritual and religious ideas. Learners must recognise that this period underpinned the development of the ancient religions, and the major religions today. They also need to understand that since the beginning of human history, humanity has been drawn to spirituality and religion, for its very nature aids human desire for the search for meaning. All other chapters have been purposefully edited, updated, and refreshed with appropriate new content, visuals, weblinks and activities, inline with the 2023 – 2027 study design, not included in the previous editions.
Gallery
Click thumbnails for a larger image.
|
A World of Diversity: The role of religion in society
