VISION FOR RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
St Joseph’s School shares and promotes the Vision for Religious Education articulated by Brisbane Catholic Education and the wider church. This vision emphasises the two dimensions of formation: religious literacy and personal faith.
The schools and colleges of the Archdiocese of Brisbane aspire to educate and form students who are challenged to live the gospel of Jesus Christ and who are literate in the Catholic and broader Christian tradition so that they might participate critically and authentically in faith contexts and wider society.
Our school motto, In all things glorify God, our school Faith and Spirituality Policy, and our Vision and Mission Statements encapsulate the communal nature that is a key feature of St Joseph’s, as well as the principle that God is central to our lives and present in all our words, thoughts and actions. Our lived mission is shaped by these statements and the spirituality of the Good Samaritans, who gifted us with the Benedictine Charism. The twelve core values of this charism are displayed at the front of our school and are the heart of all we do at St Joseph’s. They are:
- Listening
- Compassion
- Community
- Word of God
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- Prayer
- Balance
- Stewardship
- Healing
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- Hospitality
- Humility
- Partnership
- Peace
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THE CONTEMPORARY CONTEXTS OF RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
At St Joseph’s School, we recognise the four contexts that have been identified as having a significant impact on Religious Education in contemporary and ecumenical schools. Our Religious Education Program is responsive to the diverse needs and backgrounds of our families and students, and strives to deliver high quality Religious Education in faithful and authentically responsive ways. The four contexts and examples of how they are attended to are outlined below.
SOCIETAL CONTEXT
St Joseph’s is aware of the complex and ever-changing nature of today’s world, and as such, strives to engage families in Religious Education in relevant and powerful ways. Our school community is comprised of a wide range of different faiths that are carefully considered in the planning and delivery of our Religious Education Program. At St Joseph’s, Religious Education seeks to reflect a Catholic Christian worldview that integrates faith, life and culture, while being responsive to, and respective of, the diversity of faith journeys in our context.
ECCLESIAL CONTEXT
St Joseph’s acknowledges that some students and their families are less engaged with the formal life of the Church than in the past. Therefore, we seek to provide many ways for families and students to experience the Catholic Christian tradition, and offer opportunities to develop and support the faith journey of all community members. This journey begins from the time parents first visit our community with their children for our Pre-Prep Program, and continues throughout each child’s time at St Joseph’s.
St Joseph’s School is situated adjacent to St Joseph’s Parish, and has forged strong links with the Church. Our school is a place where families encounter the mission and outreach of the Church. This is particularly prevalent in the way families experience pastoral care within a Catholic Christian community, through actions such as providing counselling or financial support to families affected by local natural disasters or hardship.
Through many opportunities and actions, St Joseph’s promotes knowledge, deep understanding and skills about the Catholic and Christian tradition within the broader evangelising mission of the Church.
EDUCATIONAL CONTEXT
At St Joseph’s, we seek to empower all members of the school community to live the Gospel of Jesus in their everyday lives, by transforming each person through an holistic education. We nurture and develop the faith of each community member while being mindful and respectful of their cultural and religious identity. The classroom learning and teaching of religion reflects the philosophy, content, structure, academic rigour and assessment and reporting modes used in other learning areas. The religious life of St Joseph’s forms and skills students to negotiate the tension of maintaining Christian integrity when confronted with the complexities of life in contemporary society.
DIGITAL CONTEXT
St Joseph’s acknowledges the rapid growth in the development and use of technology, and seeks to engage students in the critical, creative and responsible use of digital tools. In doing so, our students are able to express their learning in rich and relevant ways and connect with individuals and communities in a global context.
OUR BELIEFS ABOUT LEARNERS AND LEARNING IN THE CLASSROOM
St Joseph’s supports and promotes the beliefs about learners and learning that are articulated in the Brisbane Catholic Education Learning and Teaching Framework (2012).
Every learner is created in the image and likeness of God and, inspired by the Spirit, responds with passion and creativity to life.
We strive to educate each child holistically and follow the Brisbane Catholic Education vision of Teach, Challenge, Transform. Learning is seen as a lifelong process, and we respect the diversity of each learner and the life experiences they bring to the community. Each member is provided with opportunities to achieve success and is encouraged to find meaning in life and learning in the Catholic Christian tradition. Together, we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to serve others, and seek out meaning in the person and teachings of Jesus, to allow us to grow as pilgrim people.
We believe that all students are entitled to rigorous, relevant and engaging Religious Education programs, drawn from the Brisbane Catholic Education Religion Curriculum P-12, that address their individual learning needs. The interests, religious backgrounds and learning needs of our students are taken into account by teachers and leaders, and planning is informed by data retrieved about our students. Teachers interpret the curriculum flexibly to meet students’ learning needs and provide authentic and relevant learning experiences.
MODEL FOR RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
St. Joseph’s adopts the Model for Religious Education produced by Brisbane Catholic Education, as depicted below.
© Brisbane Catholic Education
The classroom teaching and learning of religion is recognised as both distinct from and complementary to the religious life and Catholic Christian ethos of the school community. Each dimension is intentionally planned for, along with opportunities provided for the two to merge and culminate in a fuller understanding and appreciation of the Catholic faith by our students. The activities and experiences for the classroom learning and teaching of religion and the religious life of the school are responsive to religious diversity, while being faithful to the Catholic Christian identity of the school.
A CATHOLIC VIEW OF LEARNING AND TEACHING
At St Joseph’s, a Catholic view of learning and teaching is reflected in the two dimensions of Religious Education, namely, the classroom learning and teaching of religion, and the religious life and Catholic Christian ethos of the school community. Our school Religious Education Program is developed on a foundation of Catholic theology and philosophy of curriculum, which includes four core themes: anthropology, epistemology, cosmology and the Catholic Christian tradition.
ANTHROPOLOGY
Our school recognises that each person is created in the image and likeness of God, and emphasises Jesus as teacher. We embody the values of inclusion, holistic and relational learning, and action in community.
EPISTEMOLOGY
St Joseph’s orients the curriculum towards rationality, holistic knowing, knowing and living, wisdom as the fruit of knowing and lifelong and life-wide learning. This is encapsulated in our school Vision and Mission Statements and lived out through our actions.
COSMOLOGY
St Joseph’s encourages all community members to respond to the elements of stewardship and sacramentality, particularly through our support of farming and community initiatives, and providing opportunities for students to care for creation.
CATHOLIC CHRISTIAN TRADITION
St Joseph’s acknowledges the centrality of Jesus as teacher, and the transformative process of learning and teaching.
THE RECONCEPTUALIST APPROACH
TO TEACHING AND LEARNING IN RELGIOUS EDUCATION
In alignment with Brisbane Catholic Education’s The Reconceptualist Approach, staff at St. Joseph’s school:
- Avoid the use of presumptive language
- Teach about the Catholic tradition
- Use powerful pedagogies that engage students with the tradition
PROFESSIONAL LEARNING
Regular and ongoing professional learning in Religious Education is timetabled each year at St Joseph’s to ensure that teachers remain current in their knowledge and practice. This includes intraschool and interschool moderation. A minimum of 5 hours’ professional development in Religious Education is provided annually, to ensure teachers continue to maintain their accreditation.
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION CURRICULUM
Teachers and the APRE plan for Religious Education using the line of sight documents, ensuring emphasis on the links between the year level description, content descriptors and achievement standard. A comprehensive scope and sequence document has also been collaboratively developed, which shows the focus areas within terms, across the year and across the school. This document ensures continuity between year levels and balance and integration between all four strands of the Religious Education Curriculum. The scope and sequence document also deliberately plans for links to the religious life of the school, which allows for connectedness between the two areas of Religious Education.
Click on the links below for an outline of Religious Education at each year level.
EFFECTIVE ASSESSMENT
At St Joseph’s, assessment and reporting is the process through which teachers identify, gather and interpret information about student achievement and learning in order to improve, enhance and plan for further learning. Assessment is undertaken for the purpose of:
Assessment for learning: sharing learning intentions, criteria for success and providing feedback
Assessment of learning: gathering information to make professional judgements
Assessment as learning: student self-assessment
Formative and diagnostic assessment is undertaken at the beginning of a unit of work to ascertain what the students already know and assist in planning learning experiences that will take place. This is of particular importance for students at St Joseph’s due to the variety of student religious backgrounds. Teachers ‘check in’ with students throughout the unit using strategically planned tasks to assess the knowledge, skills and deep understandings that have been developed, and allow for reflection during and after the unit.
Teachers use a range and balance of assessment tools in order to cater for all learners’ needs and interests, gain feedback about the impact of their teaching and plan for further teaching and learning experiences.
REPORTING OF STUDENT LEARNING
Student progress is formally reported to parents twice yearly through report cards, using a five-point achievement scale. Parent teacher interviews are also used to discuss student progress and achievement in Religious Education. Teachers make judgements against the Religious Education achievement standard, after students complete tasks that directly relate to the learning and teaching described in the achievement standard.
Informal ways of reporting on student progress and achievement to parents include prayer assemblies, student work samples and Celebration of Learning events.