Papers by Olga Schihalejev
The aim of the thesis is to explore the attitudes of 14-16 years old Estonian students Estonia to... more The aim of the thesis is to explore the attitudes of 14-16 years old Estonian students Estonia to religion and religious diversity, to explore their views on the role of the school in promoting dialogue and tolerance among representatives of different worldviews, and to investigate in which ways religious education alters their views on these issues. The research was done in the framework of constructive epistemology using a sequential exploratory strategy and employing a mixed methods’ approach for the empirical studies. Three relevant empirical studies are presented. The qualitative and the quantitative study investigated the views held by students about religion and religious diversity. Studies of classroom interaction of religious education classes in two contrasting schools explored the patterns of interaction used in the classroom situation. A video–ethnographic data collection method was combined with stimulated recall. Incident-analysis stemming from conversational analysis ...
Käesolev õppematerjal puudutab teemasid, mida on oluline käsitleda õpetajakoolituses väärtuskasva... more Käesolev õppematerjal puudutab teemasid, mida on oluline käsitleda õpetajakoolituses väärtuskasvatusega seotult: erinevaid lähenemisi väärtuskasvatusele, õpetaja kutseeetikat, koolikultuuri, väärtuskasvatust ainesisu kaudu. Siit leiab ka ideid, kuidas suunata tudengeid reflekteerima väärtuskasvatuse üle, integreerides sellekohaseid küsimusi koolipraktika mappidesse, ning väljavõtteid väärtuskasvatuse alastest portfooliotest, mille koostasid projektis osalenud tudengid
Estonia has been one of the most secularised countries in Europe according to several researches.... more Estonia has been one of the most secularised countries in Europe according to several researches. Young people affiliate themselves with organised religion even less than older cohorts. My paper looks behind the curtains of secularised mentality. What do young people in Estonia believe? Paper draws on the different researches, such as European Values Study, EUU 2010 (On Life, Faith and Religious Life) and the research project „Religion in Education – A contribution to Dialogue or a factor of Conflict in transforming societies of European Countries“ (REDCo) Funded by the European Commission within the framework of the FP6.The results reveal multi-layered and non-linear relation between young people’s affiliation and their beliefs. How far the views of non-affiliated could be classified as ‘secular’ or young people with Christian affiliation share Christian beliefs? What are the contextual factors what may contribute to such beliefs? The question of how research can take into consideration seemingly hectic and inconsistent religious views will be explored.
Crossings and Crosses, 2015
In religious education we can distinguish between different models what resemble also countries’ ... more In religious education we can distinguish between different models what resemble also countries’ geo-political, religious and educational tradition. Estonia situates in the crossroads of east and w ...
Religion & Education, 2013
This article summarizes research completed under the supervision of Professor Robert Jackson. It ... more This article summarizes research completed under the supervision of Professor Robert Jackson. It describes the methodology used, inspired by the interpretive approach, and the Estonian research findings of the REDCo research project (Religion in Education: A contribution to Dialogue or a factor of Conflict in transforming societies of European Countries?). The study explored the attitudes of 14–16-year-old Estonian students to religious diversity and the role of the school in promoting dialogue and tolerance among representatives of different worldviews. The study reveals that experience of religious education may contribute to more open attitudes among students, both with religious and secular worldviews. Grounded in the findings of the empirical studies, policies for strengthening tolerance are discussed. It argues that, together with knowledge about religions, a reflexive approach, and contacts with representatives of different worldviews and religions are needed for the promotion of tolerance.
Journal of Beliefs & Values, 2012
This is a response to Julia Ipgrave’s contribution on the contextuality of young people’s views o... more This is a response to Julia Ipgrave’s contribution on the contextuality of young people’s views on religion and religious diversity in this collection of essays on ‘Religion in Education’. First I will highlight and reflect on methodological issues raised by Ipgrave’s observations in the light of my own research. The first problem highlighted is the use of the same words while they have different emotional connotations in different regional settings and for different groups. Then I will reflect on the ambivalent results concerning learning about religions from the point of view of implementing the research findings in relation to everyday school practices.
The article discusses how different models of learning religion promote respect for the right to ... more The article discusses how different models of learning religion promote respect for the right to freedom of religion or belief. Three different models of teaching religion are offered in Estonian schools: there are schools with no Religious Education, others have inclusive Religious Education and there are also religiously-oriented schools with a confessional approach to teaching religion. The article draws on data from research done in the framework of the REDCo project (the main project 2006–2009, replicative study in 2012) in Estonia. It studied 14–17-year-old students' views about how they see religion in education. The samples of 1,208 students from 21 schools in 2008 and 573 students from 15 schools in 2012 consist of students from different Estonian regions and with different experiences of learning about religions. Their attitudes towards three questions were studied. First, how do young people evaluate the way schools teach them about religion? Second, how do students differ in their own attitudes about the need to respect a person who is of a different religion? Third, what do young people think about religious freedoms in the school context? The results of the study call for discussion of practising religious freedom in schools and policies about Religious Education and what may best contribute to a tolerant society.
In Estonian schools there are three ways the teaching of religion is organised. Many schools have... more In Estonian schools there are three ways the teaching of religion is organised. Many schools have no specific subject for learning religion; in some schools the subject is nonconfessional and in private schools it is confessional. This article focuses on 14-17 year-old Estonian pupils' views about dealing with religious diversity in the context of school and their attitudes to tolerance. It analyses the results of REDCo studies in Estonia in 2008 and 2012. The questions, which make the biggest distinctions between students with different experiences of religious education, will be examined to assess how students with different experiences of education about religion evaluate their education and how students differ in their views about tolerance and in their ways of dealing with religious plurality. The results are analysed in relation to current research and discussed in relation to recent policy about religious education in Estonia.
Research project "Cultural and religious diversity in primary school" investigates the ... more Research project "Cultural and religious diversity in primary school" investigates the pupil’s experience of cultural and religious diversity in selected schools from Sweden and Estonia, structura ...
The REDCo project's main aim was to establish and compare the potentials and limitations of r... more The REDCo project's main aim was to establish and compare the potentials and limitations of religion in the educational systems of selected European countries. One of the important overall research questions was; What role can religion in education play concerning the way pupils perceive religious diversity? In order to answer the research questions, a mixed method approach was used, including a quantitative questionnaire. An overview of the quantitative study pertaining to the REDCo 1 study is outlined as it provides a context for considering the insights gained from the quantitative follow up study of 2012 (REDCo II). A broad overview of the study as a whole, including methodological issues, and serves as an introduction to the publications on pupils, education and religious diversity in several of the participating countries, which will follow in this and coming issues is the focus of this paper.
The paper uses the tools of sociology of religion and relates its findings to pedagogy. Estonia m... more The paper uses the tools of sociology of religion and relates its findings to pedagogy. Estonia may be called a natural laboratory of RE in a secular context (Neill&Schihalejev 2012). Here one ...
There are borders, sometimes strong, sometimes invisible, and borders may go between countries, r... more There are borders, sometimes strong, sometimes invisible, and borders may go between countries, religions, and people. The borders can give shape, or connect, or they may separate. Often all these functions work simultaneously. Sometimes the borders may be floating, changing and shifting. In spite of all the features of borders, they are often little focused upon. Instead we see what either side is. By drawing attention specifically to borders, we wanted, at the XIII Nordic Conference on Religious Education ‘Shifting borders in Religious Education’, held at the University of Tartu, Estonia, from 15-18 June 2015, to inspire a search for new knowledge.1 This special issue is compiled from papers presented there. The conference hosted religious education researchers, PhD students and practitioners from universities and research centres of twelve countries who contributed to exploring the conference theme. Altogether, four plenary lectures, 34 paper sessions, six open forum sessions and...
The presentation discusses how different models of learning religion promote respect for the righ... more The presentation discusses how different models of learning religion promote respect for the right to freedom of religion or belief. Three different models of learning about religion are offered in ...
Journal of Beliefs & Values
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Papers by Olga Schihalejev