Religious Education – Paradigm for Contemporary Education

International Multidisciplinary Scientific Conference on the Dialogue between Sciences & Arts, Religion & Education, 2017

The students' religious education was and still is a controversial issue in Romania. Although our country is mainly orthodox, having powerful traditions, culture and spirituality, with an applied bi-millenary faith, there are opinions against the necessity to perform religious education in schools, opinions based on unfounded and inconsistent reasoning. Religious education is beneficial, as it helps the child become a responsible, balanced, optimistic adult, having a healthy vision of life, with multiple psychological and spiritual advantages, as well as an open, tolerant and receptive attitude towards the needs of others and willing to help. Religious education shares authentic values, such as kindness, altruism, moderation, love for our fellow human beings, faith, hope, and it takes man closer to our Creator, which, at difficult times is a real landmark, a powerful inner support. The diagnosis of our current society shows the promotion of fake heroes and values, the loss of self, the alienation and isolation of people, the adoption of a selfish and individualistic behavior, and lack of care for our fellow human beings, excessive technology, and defective communication. To help these generations of students develop, it is necessary for them to receive a healthy education, aiming both at their soul and their mind, based on acquiring knowledge, but also on shaping personalities with ethical and moral principles and a kind character. Religious education in schools helps students with parables, models of behavior, authentic axiological landmarks that are absolutely necessary during this period, when characters are shaped. The present study aims at achieving an investigating on the way students perceive religious education and its impact on shaping their character, especially at the beginning of teenage when temptations, immaturity and the changes they go through make them vulnerable and prone to wrong choices, which can sometimes have negative consequences for the rest of their lives.

Bagheri, Khosrow (2000). Religious education and related challenges in the twenty first century. Tarbiate Eslami (3): 69-89.

The twenty first century has started with all its embedded challenges. These challenges have emerged in all fields. They will show their delicate and doubt raising presence in the realm of religious education accordingly. This article contains four sections: in the first part, the fundamental challenge of the twenty first century is analyzed. Then taking the proper encounter with this challenge into account, the concept of religious education will then be investigated. This investigation is done in two separate ways. In one part the issue of the «concept of education» and in the other part the «concept of religion and being religious» are examined separately. Afterwards, we focus on the elementary issues of religion and being religious and finally we propose the fundamental topic of religious education in conformity with the fore mentioned challenge.

Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2013

Discussion and direct observation in schools developed over a significant period of time, a general study of the curriculum for religious education, ideas coming from teachers in different contexts, all related to a press event, were reasons to explicitly trigger our attention on how to make religious education in the schools of Romania. We organized structured observation and discussion in urban and rural schools and we had the opportunity to involve 174 teachers enrolled in an in-service training within a study of religious education approach in the schools of Romania. This investigation was based on a questionnaire-and focus groups. The teachers' sample represented different specialties from different school levels and different ranges of teaching experience. They belonged to three counties in central and southeastern Romania. Conclusions of this study highlight the importance and the ticklish trait of religious education. Religious education appears as important dimension/ component of education with important effects on the moral health of the nation, and as a factor of influence of human wellbeing. The paper presents core ideas revealed by the mentioned study. Selection and peer review under responsibility of Prof. Dr. Ferhan Odabaşı.

2012

This review hopes to present an alternative model to confessional religious education and the kind of role religion can have in teaching and education. It is framed by the conceptualization of education as simultaneously being and becoming (van Manen 1991, 67). This dichotomous description underlines the challenging tension of balancing present realities with future anticipations, a tension which is perhaps the defining feature of education. In theoretical terms this review draws on sociocultural and dialogic educational research, particularly Rupert Wegerif’s notion of “dialogic space” (Wegerif 2007, 4), and a “Global Education: World Religions” -course recently run as part of the Summer School for Human Sciences at the University of Jyväskylä. The review opens by introducing the pedagogic orientation for the course and a simple cultural model developed within the course. Following this, the guidelines for the development of “dialogic space” are introduced with possible implication...

it is about the youth their growth - summary form

American Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences Research e-ISSN: 2378-703x, 2019

The paper reassesses the theories of Goldman's religious development and Piaget's cognitive development that provides a conceptual framework from which Goldman's theory is entrenched. Through a qualitative research approach, the paper examines the influence of religious development in adolescents' comprehension of religious concepts. The anticipation is to make educators more focused on their interaction with learners and reorients them to think about learners' stages of religious concepts development in their teaching. The paper recommends that religious educators should be creative to keep learners' motivation, interest and morale high in the subject.

Rapidly progressing multifaceted secularization processes in Polish society strongly influence the shape of religious education of children and adolescents in the school environment. They determine a number of dimensions of the social and mental activity of young people. Their effects are visible, especially in the attitudes of children and youth to God, the Church, religious lessons, moral norms, and religious practices. This situation raises new challenges for the religious education of the young. Reading this as a "sign of the times," this article revises religious education in Polish schools. The need to reorganize the model of religious education lessons and to introduce changes in the curricular assumptions of religious education teaching, in student textbooks and methodological guides is pointed out. Preevangelization and educational activities, resignation from the mere transfer of religious knowledge, and the development of preconceived skills and attitudes are considered important. The author emphasizes the value of providing opportunities for the construction of knowledge and for the student's own engagement during religious education lessons. In this context, much attention is paid to the role of the religious education teacher, who is to be first and foremost a companion on a journey, an educator and a witness of faith, open to new challenges, able to communicate effectively with students, creative, and tolerant. The right personality traits of the religious education teacher and their multiple competencies (including communicative and interpersonal ones) play a key role in religious education. They guarantee the effectiveness of communication within a group of religious lesson participants. They foster authentic interpersonal relationships and community-building, thus meeting the natural needs of young people. In practice, they require a paradigm shift in the formation of religious education teachers.

IOSR Journal Of Humanities And Social Science (IOSR-JHSS), 2013

ISSN: 2279-0837, ISBN: 2279-0845. Volume 6, Issue 6 (Jan. - Feb. 2013), PP 69-94 "In the contemporary context of studying religious education in a secular society, the process such as individualization makes it harder for children to get the opportunity to learn from religion in an organized way. At school young students can learn in an orderly and beneficial way from religion. However, we hardly know how they are making progress on this subject and what the significance of their participation in this subject really is. Currently, religious education at primary schools in Western Europe has evolved into a subject that seeks to support students to develop their religious identity. From a socio-cultural perspective, religious education aims to support students to develop their religious identity by giving them the opportunity to participate at religious practices. Religious tradition such as Christianity involve religious practices such as praying, gathering, taking care of the fellow men, dealing with life and death, or the interpretation of religious stories. In these practices the reality that surrounds us is related to the transcendent reality of God the only reliable tool that is use in their study is the bible. Here religious people use concepts like God, creation, nature, redemption, or eternity, and strategies as interpretation, symbolization or imagination. From this perspective, progress in religious education refers to participation at religious practices in a more expert way. The aim of this research is to get a clear view on the significance of studying Christian Religious Education (CRE) in primary school by gathering all the available evidence and the influences this education has had on the way they live their lives, communicate with the secular world and to bring to light factors that help to explain this significance. Is there any benefit of religious education in schools? And how does it affect the child? Are the implications positive or negative? What is the progress of these students? To be more precise, what are the learning effects in Christian religious education of these students at the various levels of the primary school regarding their understanding of religion? And secondly, which factors are enhancing and which are diminishing this progress?"

In this paper the author presents research into the role of religion in the modern world and attempts to answer the question why students should know about religion, and particularly why religion should be taught in schools. He also presents research into young people's perspectives on the role of religion in European school systems while at the same time offering a justification for compulsory Religious Education. The arguments are based on international and European legislation, experiences of different countries and the findings of two different researches in Greece published for the first time. Furthermore, the author offers a proposal for compulsory Religious Education which is necessarily based on the constructivist theory according to pedagogical practice in Europe. Finally, the paper stresses the existence of the right to withdraw from Religious Education and the author illustrates the consequences of such a practice.

There are many historical, political, cultural and religious factors that have influenced the life of Latvian people, Latvian culture and society, as well as the development of the Latvian Catholic Church. The progress in science and technology has changed the way people relate to each other, their system of beliefs and values, thus creating new dilemmas also for religious educators. Bringing together theory and praxis in the spirit of the Second Vatican Council, this article will explore how adult religious educators in Latvia are challenged to expand the understanding of religious education taking into account people's needs and life experiences, encouraging them not only to participate actively in the liturgy and appreciate the power of community but also engage in critical thinking and dialogue on faith and social issues. This article is based on wisdom and knowledge of scholars of adult education and adult religious educators such as Mezirow, Brookfield, English, Swidler, McKenzie, Regan, and. Groome as well as the results of two qualitative research studies conducted in 2004 and 2012 in different parishes of Latvia, all contributing to the discussion on how adult religious education can be an effective tool for creating inclusive parish communities to which contemporary people want to belong and participate.