Religion

Today's lecture raised a lot of important points about teaching religion in schools. One of my classmates made a good point, to which I think there is no easy answer:

"How do we teach students about religious beliefs which clash with Canadian law and school rules? Acknowledging these beliefs (such as perhaps homophobia) might undercut an overall message of universal acceptance."

Personally, I would be tempted to emphasize the major tenets of a particular religion rather than delve into elements which might be problematic. Specific beliefs could be returned to for closer examination in an ethical debate, stressing that people with a particular religious belief may believe something, but that our school rules state that a particular form of discrimination is not allowed.

I particularly liked a few points from today's reading, "Education About Religion in Ontario Public Elementary Schools" (see the citation at the bottom of this entry). I always forget that it is possible to teach about religion without being biased towards one particular religion. I need to aim to teach about various religions without teaching that one is superior, or that various religions "compete" with each other.

Fortunately, I do have a guide for this. In ninth grade, my brilliant history teacher, Ms. M., taught a unit on a few (not all) of the world's major religions. We learnt about Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, and Judaism. Ms. M. did not privilege any particular religion, and explained the major tenets of each in such a way that we did not need any prior knowledge about any of the religions she taught about in order to understand the subject.

Not only do I now know about these religions, but I was able to think critically about each and form my own opinions. Most of all, Ms. M.'s class helped me to be more respectful about religions that I was not as familiar with.

I had a look at what I might be able to use as a teaching resource for religion, and I found this wonderful link: http://www.mrdonn.org/religions.html. What I love about this website is that it has lesson plans for religions I am less familiar with, such as Taoism and Confucianism. I think it is important to ensure that students learn not just about "major" religions which have millions of followers, but also religions which are less well-known. Part of religious education, I think, may be to help students to understand that religions come in many types and forms, not simply monotheistic religions such as Christianity, Islam, and Judaism.

Works Cited:
Ontario. Ontario Ministry of Education. "Education About Religion in Ontario Public Elementary Schools." Teachers. Toronto: Ontario Ministry of Education, 1994. 23 Feb. 2013
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/document/curricul/religion/religioe.html