The Oslo Coalition on Freedom of Religion or
Belief
Teaching for
Tolerance, and Freedom of Religion or Belief:
Register of
curriculum projects and pedagogical approaches
TITLE OF THE PROJECT
South African National Policy on Religion and
Education
PEDAGOGICAL CONTEXT
Religion Education: Teaching and Learning about
Religion, Religions, and Religious Diversity.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN
South Africa.
CONTACT PERSON WITH ADDRESS AND EMAIL
Department of Education (http://doe.gov.za)
LANGUAGE(S) OF PUBLICATIONS
English.
KEY ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES USED
Religious Studies.
RELIGIOUS OR LIFE-STANCE PERSPECTIVE
Religion Education as part of Life Orientation
KEY PUBLICATIONS EXPLAINING THE APPROACH
Department of Education, National Policy on
Religion and Education, Pretoria: Department of Education, 2003.
Department of Education, Manifesto on Values,
Education, and Democracy, Pretoria: Department of Education, 2001.
EXAMPLES OF PUBLISHED CURRICULUM
MATERIALS
Curriculum materials are currently under development.
SUMMARY EXPLANATION OF THE APPROACH
Foreword to the National Policy on Religion and
Education by Professor Kader Asmal, MP, Minister of Education:
I have great pleasure in publishing this Policy on
Religion and Education, as approved by the Council of Education Ministers on 4th
August 2003. The Policy is necessary and overdue to give full expression to the
invocation of religion in our Constitution and the principles governing
religious freedom.
As a democratic society with a diverse population of
different cultures, languages and religions we are duty bound to ensure that
through our diversity we develop a unity of purpose and spirit that recognises
and celebrates our diversity. This should be particularly evident in our public
schools where no particular religious ethos should be dominant over and
suppress others. Just as we must ensure and protect the equal rights of all
students to be at school, we must also appreciate their right to have their
religious views recognised and respected.
We do not have a state religion. But our country is
not a secular state where there is a very strict separation between religion
and the state.
The Policy recognises the rich and diverse religious
heritage of our country and adopts a co-operative model that accepts our rich
heritage and the possibility of creative inter-action between schools and faith
whilst, protecting our young people from religious discrimination or coercion.
What we are doing through this Policy is to extend the
concept of equity to the relationship between religion and education, in a way
that recognises the rich religious diversity of our land. In the Policy, we do
not impose any narrow prescriptions or ideological views regarding the
relationship between religion and education. Following the lead of the
Constitution and the South African Schools Act, we provide a broad framework
within which people of goodwill will work out their own approaches.
The Policy is neither negative nor hostile towards any
religion or faith and does not discriminate against anyone. Rather it displays
a profound respect towards religious faith and affirms the importance of the
study of religion and religious observances.
Professor Kader Asmal
Minister of Education
MORE ELABORATE DESCRIPTION OF KEY
PEDAGOGICAL PRINCIPLES OR RELATED DISCUSSIONS
Introduction
to the Policy on Religion and Education
1.
In this document we set out the policy on the
relationship between religion and education that we believe will best serve the
interests of our democratic society. The objective is to influence and shape
this relationship, in a manner that is in accordance with the values of our
South African Constitution[1]. In recognising the particular value of the
rich and diverse religious heritage of our country, we identify the distinctive
contribution that religion can make to education, and that education can make
to teaching and learning about religion, and we therefore promote the role of
religion in education. In doing so we work from the premise that the public
school has an educational responsibility for teaching and learning about
religion and religions, and for promoting these, but that it should do so in
ways that are different from the religious instruction and religious nurture
provided by the home, family, and religious community.
2.
We do so also in the recognition that there have been
instances in which public education institutions have discriminated on the
grounds of religious belief, such that greater definition is required. In many
cases pupils of one religion are subjected to religious observances in another,
without any real choice in the matter. The policy is not prescriptive, but
provides a framework for schools to determine policies, and for parents and
communities to be better informed of their rights and responsibilities in
regard to religion and education. The policy genuinely advances the interests
of religion, by advocating a broad based range of religious activities in the
school.
3. In clarifying the relationship between religion and education, we might consider four possible models for structuring the relationship between religion and the state:
A theocratic model identifies the state
with one particular religion or religious grouping. In some cases, this model
has resulted in a situation in which the state and religion become
indistinguishable. In a religiously diverse society such as South Africa, this
model clearly would be inappropriate.
At the other
extreme, a repressionist model is
based on the premise that the state should act to suppress religion. In such a
model, the state would operate to marginalise or eliminate religion from public
life. In a religiously active society such as South Africa, any constitutional
model based on state hostility towards religion would be unthinkable. We reject
both the theocratic model of the religious state, such as the
‘Christian-National’ state in our own history that tried to impose religion in
public institutions, as well as any repressionist model that would adopt a
hostile stance towards religion.
A modern secular
state, which is neither religious nor anti-religious, in principle adopts a
position of impartiality towards all religions and other worldviews. A separationist model for the secular
state represents an attempt to completely divorce the religious and secular
spheres of a society, such as in France or the United States. Drawing strict
separation between religion and the secular state is extremely difficult to
implement in practice, since there is considerable interchange between religion
and public life. Furthermore, a strict separation between the two spheres of
religion and state is not desirable, since without the commitment and
engagement of religious bodies it is difficult to see us improving the quality
of life of all our people.
In a co-operative model, both the principle
of legal separation and the possibility of creative interaction are affirmed.
Separate spheres for religion and the state are established by the
Constitution, but there is scope for interaction between the two. While
ensuring the protection of citizens from religious discrimination or coercion,
this model encourages an ongoing dialogue between religious groups and the
state in areas of common interest and concern. Even in such exchanges, however,
religious individuals and groups must be assured of their freedom from any
state interference with regard to freedom of conscience, religion, thought,
belief, and opinion.
4.
In regard to the relationship between religion and
public education, we propose that the cooperative model which combines
constitutional separation and mutual recognition, provides a framework that is
best for religion and best for education in a democratic South Africa.
5.
Under the constitutional guarantee of freedom of
religion, the state, neither advancing nor inhibiting religion, must assume a
position of fairness, informed by a parity of esteem for all religions, and
worldviews. This positive impartiality carries a profound appreciation of
spirituality and religion in its many manifestations, as reflected by the
deference to God in the preamble to our Constitution, but does not impose
these. .
Background to the
policy on Religion and Education
6.
This Policy for Religion and Education is the result
of many years of research and consultation. This commenced with the National
Education Policy Investigation of the early 1990s, was taken further in the
National Education and Training Forum during the transitional period of
1993-1994, and in the extensive consultations around the South African Schools
Act, prior to 1996. It was further developed by the Ministerial Committee on
Religious Education in 1999, and the Standing Advisory Committee on Religion
and Education, established for this purpose in 2000. Reviewing the progress
made in all of this work, we see an emerging consensus about the relationship
between religion and education.
7.
This policy links religion and education with new
initiatives in cultural rebirth (the African Renaissance), moral regeneration,
and the promotion of values in our schools. Religion can play a significant
role in preserving our heritage, respecting our diversity, and building a
future based on progressive values.
8.
To achieve these goals, the relationship between
religion and education must be guided by the following principles:
·
In all aspects of the relationship between religion
and education, the practice must flow directly from the constitutional values
of citizenship, human rights, equality, freedom from discrimination, and
freedom of conscience, religion, thought, belief, and opinion.
·
Public institutions have a responsibility to teach
about religion and religions in ways that reflect a profound appreciation of
the spiritual, non-material aspects of life, but which are different from the
religious education, religious instruction, or religious nurture provided by
the home, family, and religious community.
·
Religion Education should contribute to creating an
integrated and informed community that affirms unity in diversity.
·
Teaching about religion, religions, and religious
diversity needs to be facilitated by trained professionals, and programmes in
Religion Education must be supported by appropriate and credible teaching and
learning materials, and objective assessment criteria.
The Context
9.
South Africa is a multi-religious country. Over 60 per
cent of our people claim allegiance to Christianity, but South Africa is home
to a wide variety of religious traditions. With a deep and enduring indigenous
religious heritage, South Africa is a country that also embraces the major
religions of the world. Each of these religions is itself a diverse category,
encompassing many different understandings and practices. At the same time,
many South Africans draw their understanding of the world, ethical principles,
and human values from sources independent of religious institutions. In the
most profound matters of life orientation, therefore, diversity is a fact of
our national life.
10.
Our diversity of language, culture and religion is a
wonderful national asset. We therefore celebrate diversity as a unifying
national resource, as captured in our Coat of Arms: !Ke E:/Xarra //ke
(Unity in Diversity). This policy for the role of religion in education is
driven by the dual mandate of celebrating diversity and building national
unity.
Values
11.
This policy for the role of religion in education
flows directly from the Constitutional values of citizenship, human rights,
equality, freedom from discrimination, and freedom for conscience, religion,
thought, belief, and opinion. By enshrining these basic values, the
Constitution provides the framework for determining the relationship between
religion and education in a democratic society
12.
Our Constitution has worked out a careful balance
between freedom for religious belief and expression and freedom from religious
coercion and discrimination. On the one hand, by ensuring that “Everyone has
the right to freedom of conscience, religion, thought, belief, and opinion”,
the Constitution[2] guarantees
freedom of and for religion, and citizens are free to exercise their basic
right to religious conviction, expression, and association. On the other hand,
by ensuring equality in the enjoyment of all the rights, privileges, and
benefits of citizenship, the Constitution explicitly prohibits unfair
discrimination on grounds that include religion, belief, and conscience.
Protected from any discriminatory practices based on religion, citizens are
thereby also free from any religious coercion that might be implied by the
state.
13.
The South African Schools Act (Act 94 of 1996) upholds
the constitutional rights of all citizens to freedom of conscience, religion,
thought, belief and opinion, and freedom from unfair discrimination on any
grounds whatsoever, including religion, in public education institutions.
14.
Within this constitutional framework, public schools
have a calling to promote the core values of a democratic society, through the
curriculum, through extra-curricular activities, and in the way that they
approach religious festivals, school uniforms and even diets. As identified in
the report of the ministerial committee on values in education, these core
values include equity, tolerance, multilingualism, openness, accountability,
and social honour. Our policy on religion in education must be consistent with
these values, and the practices of schools may be tested against the following
national priorities:
Equity: The education process in general, and this policy, must aim at the development of a national democratic culture with respect for the value of all of our people’s diverse cultural, religious and linguistic traditions.
Tolerance: Religion in education must contribute to the
advancement of inter-religious toleration and interpersonal respect among
adherents of different religious or secular worldviews in a shared civil
society.
Diversity: In the interest of advancing informed
respect for diversity, educational institutions have a responsibility for
promoting multi-religious knowledge, understanding, and appreciation of
religions in South Africa and the world.
Openness: Schools, together with the broader society,
play a role in cultural formation and transmission, and educational
institutions must promote a spirit of openness in which there shall be no overt
or covert attempt to indoctrinate pupils into any particular belief or
religion.
Accountability: As
systems of human accountability, religions cultivate moral values and ethical
commitments that can be recognised as resources for learning and as vital
contributions to nation building.
Social Honour: While
honouring the linguistic, cultural, religious or secular backgrounds of all
pupils, educational institutions cannot allow the overt or covert denigration
of any religion or secular world-view.
THE POLICY
Application
15.
The policy covers the different aspects of Religion
Education, Religious Instruction and Religious Observances, and is applicable
in all public schools. The spirit of the policy, which is to embrace the
religious diversity of South Africa, must also be applied at other levels of
the education system, including District, Provincial and National level
gatherings.
16.
Citizens do have the right, at their own expense, to
establish independent schools, including religious schools, as long as they
avoid racial discrimination, register with the state, and maintain standards
that are not inferior to the standards of comparable public educational
institutions[3]. Similarly,
Section 57 of the Schools Act provides for “Public Schools on Private Property
with a recognised religious character”, which also have the right to specify a
religious ethos and character, subject to an agreement with the provincial
authorities[4]. In both
such institutions the requirements for Religious Instruction and Religious
Observances would not be prescribed by this policy. However in maintaining the
curriculum standards with respect to Religion Education, both independent
schools and public schools on private property with a recognised religious
character[5]
are required to achieve the minimum outcomes for Religion Education.
Religion Education
17.
Religion Education is a curricular programme[6]
with clear and age-appropriate educational aims and objectives, for teaching
and learning about religion, religions, and religious diversity in South Africa
and the world. The study of religion must serve recognisable educational goals
that are consistent with the aims and outcomes
of other learning areas, and like other learning areas in the
curriculum, programmes in Religion Education must contribute to developing
basic skills in observation, listening, reading, writing, and thinking.
18.
Religion Education may also be justified by the
educational character of the programme, which includes the common values that
all religions promote, such as the human search for meaning and the ethic of
service to others, and by the desirable social ends, such as expanding
understanding, increasing tolerance, and reducing prejudice. Religion Education
is justified by its contribution to the promotion of social justice, and
respect for the environment, that can be served by this field of study within
the school curriculum.
19.
Religion Education, with educational outcomes, is the
responsibility of the school. Religion Education shall include teaching and
learning about the religions of the world, with particular attention to the
religions of South Africa, as well as worldviews, and it shall place adequate
emphasis on values and moral education. In this, we re-assert the policy of the
Revised National Curriculum Statement to offer education about religions for
the purposes of achieving “religious literacy”. Religion Education is therefore
an educational programme with clearly defined and transferable skills, values
and attitudes as the outcomes. It is a programme for teaching and learning
about religion in its broadest sense, about religions, and about religious
diversity in South Africa and the world.
Religion Education should enable pupils to engage with a variety of
religious traditions in a way that encourages them to grow in their inner
spiritual and moral dimensions. It must affirm their own identity, while
leading them to an informed understanding of the religious identities of
others.
20.
The full
development of our children is fundamental to the education process. Outcomes
Based Education and the National Curriculum Statements for General and Further
Education and Training are geared to develop the cognitive, social, emotional,
physical, spiritual and ethical dimensions of pupils. The unique characteristics of the various learning areas,
learning fields and subjects position each to provide more emphasis on
particular dimensions of pupil development.
The Life Orientation learning area, through programmes like Life Skills,
Religion Education and Social Responsibility, is well positioned to impact
on the ethical and moral dimensions of pupil development. Programmes for Religion Education should
purposefully pursue the moral and ethical development of pupils, whilst they
learn in a factual way about the various religions and beliefs which exist.
21.
When we provide our pupils with educationally sound
programmes, they will gain a deeper and broader understanding of the life
orientations, worldviews, cultural practices, and ethical resources of
humanity. As they develop creative and critical abilities for thinking about religion
and religions, pupils will also develop the capacities for mutual recognition,
respect for diversity, reduced prejudice, and increased civil toleration that
are necessary for citizens to live together in a democratic society. Learning
about themselves while learning about others, pupils will surely discover their
common humanity in diversity, and be both affirmed and challenged to grow in
their personal orientation to life
22.
Confessional or sectarian forms of religious
instruction in public schools are inappropriate for a religiously diverse and
democratic society. As institutions with a mandate to serve the entire society,
public schools must avoid adopting a particular religion, or a limited set of
religions, that advances sectarian or particular interests. Schools should be
explaining what religions are about, with clear educational goals and
objectives, in ways that increase understanding, build respect for diversity,
value spirituality, and clarify the religious and non-religious sources of moral
values. We owe this to our pupils, as well as to parents, citizens, and
taxpayers.
23.
Unlike a single-faith approach to religious education,
which provides religious instruction in one religion, and unlike a multiple
single-faith approach, which provides parallel programmes in religious
instruction for an approved set of religions, a multi-tradition approach to the
study of Religion Education does not promote any particular religion. It is a
programme for studying about religion, in all its many forms, as an important
dimension of human experience and a significant subject field in the school
curriculum.
24.
In clarifying the role of religion in public
education, we seek to realise the benefits of a coherent education programme in
the study of religion. An open, plural, historically informed, intercultural
and interdisciplinary study of religion in public schools is consistent with
international developments, and it is also a model gaining popularity and
relevance throughout Africa. This approach engages religion as an important
human activity, which all pupils should know about if they are to be deemed to
be educated.
25.
Instead of promoting a religious position, a programme
in Religion Education pursues a balanced approach to teaching and learning
about religion. Religion Education can provide opportunities for both a deeper
sense of self-realisation and a broader civil acceptance of others. It can
balance the familiar and the foreign in ways that give pupils new insights into
both. It can facilitate the development of both empathetic appreciation and
critical analysis. It can teach pupils about a world of religious diversity,
but at the same time it can encourage pupils to think in terms of a new
national unity in South Africa. By teaching pupils about the role of religion
in history, society, and the world, a unified, multi-tradition programme in the
study of religion can be an important part of a well-balanced and complete
education.
26.
With respect to the kinds of thinking that can be
facilitated, a programme in Religion Education provides an opportunity for
pupils to develop a disciplined imagination that will empower them to recognise
a common humanity within religious diversity. Religion Education creates a
context in which pupils can increase their understanding of themselves and
others, deepen their capacity for empathy, and, eventually, develop powers of
critical reflection in thinking through problems of religious or moral concern.
Like basic educational skills such as reading comprehension or writing ability,
these styles of thinking are transferable skills that are potentially relevant
to any occupation or role in life. They represent purely educational grounds
for developing a programme in Religion Education.
27.
In addition to developing basic and transferable
skills, a programme in Religion Education must also identify the fundamental
structure of knowledge in the subject field. The term ‘religion’ can be defined
broadly to refer to beliefs and practices in relation to the transcendent, the
sacred, the spiritual, or the ultimate dimensions of human life. Or it can be
defined more narrowly as a term that embraces the many religious traditions,
communities, and institutions in society. In either case, religion is an
important aspect of human endeavour that pupils should learn about – both the
general and the specific understandings. A programme in Religion Education must
identify for pupils, and explore in a critical fashion, this significant and
relevant field of knowledge.
28.
In the process of exploring a field of knowledge, a
programme in Religion Education develops ways of knowing that are consistent
with constitutional guarantees of human and civil rights to freedom of
religion, thought, and conscience. Religion Education allows for a free
exploration of religious diversity in South Africa and the world, and is
therefore consistent with and indeed promotes the freedom of religion. It does
not seek to impose a unified, syncretistic or state religion, and does not
proceed from or advance any of these positions. It is about a civic
understanding of religion, which is compatible with all major religious
traditions. The policy is about the equality of all religions before the law;
whether all religions are equal and true in a religious or philosophical sense
falls outside of the scope of this policy.
29.
Firstly, Religion Education is educational. Knowledge,
understanding, and appreciation of the full extent of our rich and textured
religious diversity should be reflected in the learning programmes of our
schools. Religion in our education system could serve to promote particular
interests, based on the still common conviction that the problems of our
society stem from a loss of religious belief, which can only be corrected
through one particular interpretation of spirituality. By contrast, we could
reject any place for religion in education, by arguing that the mutual
acceptance of our common humanity is the only solution for societal harmony. We
believe we will do much better as a country if our pupils are exposed to a
variety of religious and secular belief systems, in a well-informed manner,
which gives rise to a genuine respect for the adherents and practices of all of
these, without diminishing in any way the preferred choice of the pupil.
30.
Second, Religion Education is education about
diversity for a diverse society. As apartheid barriers dissolve, the classroom
will increasingly become a space of linguistic, cultural, and religious
diversity. Schools must create an overall environment - a social, intellectual,
emotional, behavioural, organisational, and structural environment - that
engenders a sense of acceptance, security, and respect for pupils with
differing values, cultural backgrounds, and religious traditions. Schools should
also show an awareness and acceptance of the fact that values do not
necessarily stem from religion, and that not all religious values are
consistent with our Constitution. By teaching about religious and secular
values in an open educational environment, schools must ensure that all pupils,
irrespective of race, creed, sexual orientation, disability, language, gender,
or class, feel welcome, emotionally secure, and appreciated.
31.
Third, Religion Education is education not only about
valuing traditions but also about the traditions and histories of values.
Religions are an important, although not an exclusive source of moral values.
We are all concerned about the general decline in moral standards in our
country, and the high rates of crime, and the apparent lack of respect for
human life, are worrying factors in this regard. We find ourselves in need of
moral regeneration. For this to happen, the commitment of all people of good
will is required. As systems for the transmission of values, religions are key
resources for clarifying morals, ethics, and building regard for others.
Religions embody values of justice and mercy, love and care, commitment,
compassion, and co-operation. They chart profound ways of being human, and of
relating to others and the world. Moral values are not the monopoly of
religions, much less the exclusive property of any one religion. However, when
Religion Education is given its rightful place in our education system, the
important process of imparting moral values can be intensified through teaching
and learning about religious and other value systems.
32.
As a programme for both integration and
specialisation, Religion Education will be introduced into various learning
areas and subjects, especially Life Orientation, in both General and Further
Education and Training. The teaching of Religion Education is encapsulated in
the relevant outcome and assessment standards showing how the outcome is to be
achieved in the Life Orientation learning area.
33.
A new subject called Religious Studies shall also be
introduced in the FET band for matriculation (or FETC) purposes, as an
optional, specialised, and examinable subject, with a possible career
orientation towards teaching, social work, community development, public
service, and related vocations. This curriculum is still in development, and
other subjects of religious specialisation, may be included from Grade 10-12.
34.
As an educational programme, Religion Education
requires the training, commitment, and enthusiasm of professional educators.
The teaching of Religion Education in schools is to be done by appropriately
trained professional educators registered with the South African Council of
Educators (SACE). Representatives of
religious organisations who are registered with SACE could be engaged, and as
with other learning areas, occasional guest facilitators from various religions
may be utilised, provided that this is done on an equitable basis. Such guest
facilitators need not be registered with SACE, since they and the class remain
under the authority of the teacher. Religious organisations are therefore
encouraged to explore ways in which schools, especially poorly resourced
schools and those in remote areas, could also have access to such guest facilitators.
35.
The teaching of Religion Education must be sensitive
to religious interests by ensuring that individuals and groups are protected
from ignorance, stereotypes, caricatures, and denigration. Professional
educators will have to develop programmes in Religion Education that serve the
educational mission of public schools in a democratic South Africa. Curriculum
2005 and the Revised National Curriculum Statement for Schools (Grades R -9)
assumes that any educator, regardless of his or her personal religious
orientation, is called upon to teach in a pluralistic public school in which
pupils can be expected to belong to different religions. If called upon to do
so, professional educators must accommodate this reality, in an impartial
manner, regardless of their personal views. However, the utilisation of
teachers in a school is managed by the school, and as with any other learning
area, should take account of the interests, capabilities and sensitivities of
each teacher.
36.
The outcomes identified for Religion Education fit
with the competences required of all teachers in public schools. The Norms and
Standards for Educators[7]
require all teachers to have the skills, values and attitudes related to a
Community, Citizenship, and Pastoral Role. This includes the responsibility to
“practice and promote a critical, committed, and ethical attitude towards
developing a sense of respect and responsibility towards others.” Religion
education is therefore not the mere technical transmission of factual
information; its comprehensive role is demonstrated in the teacher’s reflexive,
foundational, and practical competency to facilitate learning by:
§
Reflecting on ethical issues in religion, politics,
human rights, and the environment.
§
Knowing about the principles and practices of the main
religions of South Africa, the customs, values, and beliefs of the main
cultures of South Africa, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.
§
Knowing about ethical debates in religion, politics,
economics, human rights, and the environment.
§
Understanding the impact of class, race, gender, and
other identity-forming forces in learning.
§
Showing an appreciation of, and respect for, people of
different values, beliefs, practices, and cultures.
§
Being able to respond to current social and
educational problems with particular emphasis on the issues of violence, drug
abuse, poverty, child and women abuse, HIV/AIDS, and environmental degradation.
§
Demonstrating caring, committed, and ethical
professional behaviour and an understanding of education as dealing with the
protection of children and the development of the whole person.
37.
There is legitimate concern about the widespread
‘religion illiteracy’ found among teachers, who call for and deserve the
support that will enable them to deal with religion in the classroom. Teachers
do need access to textbooks, supplementary materials, handbooks, guidelines for
teaching methods and student assessment, and in-service training, that will
allow them to build and sustain their professional competence and recognition
as teachers in the subject. Guidelines and resources will be made available to
assist teachers in dealing with issues of religion in the classroom, and
religious organisations will be requested to assist in the training of
teachers. In view of the serious backlog of trained religion educators, this
aspect is also to be addressed in training serving teachers for the
implementation of the Revised National Curriculum Statement.
38.
Notwithstanding the difficulties, many teachers have
already found creative ways to integrate the study of religion. Some have
focused on the term ‘religion’ as an example of how concepts are formed in
society more generally. In other cases, teachers have found creative,
sensitive, and educationally responsible ways to include religious materials
and perspectives in other learning areas, and the value of religion has been
recognised for the teaching of themes in history, world history, language and
literature, including the teaching of sacred texts as literature, art and art
history, music, health education, and even science education.
39.
Teachers can be assisted in developing effective
teaching methods for Religion Education. International guidelines for meeting
the challenges and avoiding the pitfalls of teaching Religion Education are
available, which encourage teachers to adopt as a basic principle the
distinction between teaching and preaching. A Religion Education lesson
requires the same pedagogical standards of clarity of purpose, communication,
interest, and enthusiasm, that represent effective teaching in other areas of
the school curriculum.
40.
Some teachers will adopt a cognitive approach to the
subject, preferring a method of elucidation, designed to clarify the meaning of
religious beliefs and practices in their contexts. In this method, pupils not
only learn about the variety of religions, but they are enabled to make free
and informed choices about religion in their personal lives. Other teachers may
emphasise the more affective dimensions of the subject, and adopt an
interactive approach to teaching that attempts to involve pupils in an
exploration of the meaning and significance of religion.
41.
Since Religion Education must be facilitated by
trained and registered teachers, Higher Education Institutions are called upon
to provide appropriate training for prospective teachers by introducing
suitable courses in the study of religion and religions as part of teacher
education programmes. Such teacher education programmes in the study of
religion and religions should be of two types:
42.
With Religion Education as part of a formal,
examinable learning area of the curriculum[8],
cooperation between universities and schools goes well beyond training
teachers. The academic community can help to advise on the coherence and
integrity of the study of religion as a field of study, where, as in any field,
differences in theory and method can be found. Greater interest and involvement
in teacher education by departments of Religious Studies is necessary to
translate the study of religion into a viable academic programme.
43.
Learning about religion, religions, and religious
diversity serves important educational outcomes. The National Qualifications
Framework has articulated a vision for education in South Africa in support of
a “prosperous, truly united, democratic, and internationally competitive
country with literate, creative, and critical citizens leading productive,
self-fulfilled lives in a country free of violence, discrimination, and
prejudice”. This statement of educational purpose calls for the empowerment of
pupils through literacy, creativity, and critical reflection.
44.
The Revised National Curriculum Statements of
Curriculum 2005 understand literacy to include cultural literacy, ethical
literacy, and religion literacy; creativity to include developing capacities
for expanding imagination, making connections, and dealing with cultural
difference and diversity; and it understands critical reflection to include
comparison, cultural analysis, ethical debate, and the formulation and
clarification of values. These capacities are captured in the outcome
statements and assessment standards of the curriculum, and are obligatory for
all pupils.
45.
Religion Education provides a programmatic focus for
some of these educational outcomes. The Learning Area statement for Life
Orientation directs that pupils should develop the capacity to respect the
rights of others and to appreciate cultural diversity and different belief
systems. In the Foundation Phase,
pupils may learn about the differences and similarities in symbols, diet,
clothing, sacred space and ways of worship of a range of belief systems, while
in the Intermediate Phase this is taken further through learning about values,
festivals, rituals, customs and sacred spaces of different belief systems. In
the Senior Phase they learn about how spiritual philosophies are linked to
community and social values and practices. Opportunities and possibilities for
further development of the principles and practices related to religion education
are also found in other learning areas.
46.
Teaching materials for Religion Education in the
General and Further Education and Training bands shall be developed as a matter
of urgency through the collective effort of provincial authorities, learning
area committees, tertiary institutions, publishers, materials developers,
religious bodies and researchers in religion education.
47.
As a call to action, Tirisano requires the
combined efforts of everyone involved in education to work towards preserving
our heritage, respecting our diversity, and building our capacity for the
future, and to this end we invite representatives of religious organisations to
voluntarily contribute to the development and distribution of suitable materials
for use at all ages. The Standing Advisory Committee for Religion in Education
will advise on the procurement of Learning and Teaching Support materials, to
ensure that only credible texts with correct information are used.
48.
Despite the significant attention paid to Religion
Education, it is only a small component of one out of eight Learning Areas that
are studied in the General Education and Training band. A learning programme in
Religion Education, if offered as a discrete module, would constitute no more
than a few lessons in each year. However the principle of curriculum
integration would suggest that the matter would not usually be dealt with in
such a way. The relevant Assessment Standards for the Religion Education aspect
of the National Curriculum Statement (Grades R-9) are attached as an Appendix.
49.
The Department of Education will establish
representative voluntary bodies to develop illustrative learning programmes in
Religion Education for different levels. While firm on the principles and
parameters of Religion Education, which require attention to the rich variety
of religions in South Africa and the world, any learning programme must allow
space for dealing with local and regional concerns, and be in accordance with
the ethos of the school.
50.
Like any other learning programme, Religion Education
must be developmental in design. The reality of religious diversity is already
to be found in the majority of schools in South Africa, and most pupils are
exposed to it from a very young age. Research has concluded that Religion
Education can be introduced at an early age, in ways that are appropriate to
the development of pupils. With an age-appropriate emphasis placed on living
together, and without any overt or covert pressures, religion education can
start at a very early stage. Pupils in the Foundation Phase could begin a study
of religious diversity by exploring the more tangible forms of religion, the
observable aspects of religious diversity found in churches, mosques,
synagogues, temples, and other places of gathering for religious life.
51.
In the Intermediate Phase, pupils should begin
studying the basic component phenomena of religion, such as stories, songs,
sacred places, founders, rituals, and festivals, with illustrations drawn from
various religious traditions and communities in South Africa and the world. In
the senior phase programmes in Religion Education could introduce the
integration of these component parts of religion as a forerunner to a Religious
Studies programme in the Further Education and Training band.
52.
A programme of Religious Studies should introduce
pupils to the kinds of critical thinking about significant issues of personal
morality and social ethics that are often associated with religion. If the
structure of knowledge in the field is organised in this way, or in some other
developmentally coherent way, the study of religion can be an important subject
for cultivating significant knowledge and skills within the total curriculum.
53.
A Religion Education programme does not assess a
student’s faith. Religion Education must be tested, examined, and assessed by
the same methods used in other Learning Areas. Religion Education has to teach
pupils the same abilities in observation, reading, writing, and thinking that
apply in other areas of the curriculum. Accordingly, assessment of student
performance must be conducted on the same basis as other learning areas, in
relation to the prescribed Assessment Standards, which show how the outcome is
to be achieved and measured in the different grades and phases.
Religious
Instruction
54.
Religious instruction is understood to include
instruction in a particular faith or belief, with a view to the inculcation of
adherence to that faith or belief.
55.
Religious instruction of this sort is primarily the
responsibility of the home, the family, and the religious community, and more
needs to be done to strengthen this role, in place of the school. Religious
Instruction would in most cases be provided by clergy, or other persons
accredited by faith communities to do so. Religious Instruction may not be part
of the formal school programme, as constituted by the National Curriculum
Statement, although schools are encouraged to allow the use of their facilities
for such programmes, in a manner that does not interrupt or detract from the
core educational purposes of the school. This could include voluntary
gatherings and meetings of religious associations during break times.
56.
Schools currently make provision for important holy
days, in regard to the setting of examinations and tests, to ensure that pupils
are not prejudiced by their attendance at religious observances. Similarly, the
possibility of a “release time” for pupils to attend Religious Observances or
Instruction off the school property may be considered by schools, but in each
case provision must be made to catch up any loss of teaching and learning time.
57.
This policy encourages the provision of religious
instruction by religious bodies and other accredited groups outside the formal
school curriculum on school premises, provided that opportunities be afforded
in an equitable manner to all religious bodies represented in a school, that no
denigration or caricaturing of any other religion take place, and that
attendance at such instruction be voluntary. Persons offering Religious
Instruction would do so under the authority of the religious body, and would
not be required to be registered with the South African Council for Educators.
Religious Observances
58. In accordance with the Constitution, the South African Schools Act, and rules made by the appropriate authorities, the Governing Bodies of public schools may make their facilities available for religious observances, in the context of free and voluntary association, and provided that facilities are made available on an equitable basis.
59. There are various types of religious observance implied in this instance:
60.
Voluntary religious observances in which the public
participates should be encouraged. Although such religious observances take
place on the school property, they are not part of the official educational
function of the public school.
61.
School Governing Bodies are required to determine the
nature and content of and religious observances for teachers and pupils, such
that coherence and alignment with this policy and applicable legislation is
ensured. It may also determine that a policy of no religious observances be
followed. Where religious observances are held, these may be at any time
determined by the school, and may be part of a school assembly. However an
assembly is not necessarily to be seen as the only occasion for religious
observance, which may take place at other times of the day, and in other ways,
including specific dress requirements or dietary injunctions. Where a religious
observance is organised, as an official part of the school day, it must
accommodate and reflect the multi-religious nature of the country in an
appropriate manner.
62.
Appropriate and equitable means of acknowledging the
multi-religious nature of a school community may include the following:
Other forms of
equitable treatment may be developed which are consistent with this policy and
applicable legislation. Where the segregation of pupils is contemplated, a
school must consider and mitigate the impact of peer pressure on children, and
its negative influence on the willingness of children to be identified as
“different”.
63.
A school assembly has the potential for affirming and
celebrating unity in diversity, and should be used for this purpose. Public
schools may not violate the religious freedom of pupils and teachers by
imposing religious uniformity on a religiously diverse school population in
school assemblies. Where a religious observance is included in a school
assembly, pupils may be excused on grounds of conscience from attending a
religious observance component, and equitable arrangements must be made for
these pupils.
64.
Since the state is not a religious organisation, theological
body, or inter-faith forum, the state cannot allow unfair access to the use its
resources to propagate any particular religion or religions. The state must
maintain parity of esteem with respect to religion, religious or secular
beliefs in all of its public institutions, including its public schools.
65.
This policy provides a framework within which
Religious Observances could be organised at public schools. Schools and
teachers should take cognisance of the opportunities that the framework offers
for the development of ethical, moral, and civic values. The policy does not
prescribe specific ways in which religious observances at public schools must
be organised, and encourages creative and innovative approaches in this area.
It is our hope that schools will make use of these opportunities.
66.
This policy firstly establishes a broad,
religion-friendly basis for Religion Education, taken care of by professional
teachers. It also encourages the equitable practice of Religious Observances at
school, and the involvement of clergy in the extra-curricular Religious
Instruction of pupils, and as guest facilitators for Religion Education. In
this manner the complementary, cooperative principle as regards the
relationship between the state and organised religion is given substance in
education, and optimised in the best interests of both spheres.
67.
Our country has sufficient expertise and energy to
meet the challenge of developing a distinctively South African approach to
Religion and Education. As a matter of priority, we must deploy our intellect,
imagination, talent, and human capacity in the work of creating and sustaining
the relationship between Religion and Education.
68.
Religion can contribute to creating an integrated
educational community that affirms unity in diversity. In providing a unified
framework for teaching and learning about religion, religions, and religious
diversity, this policy on Religion and Education does not suggest that all
religions are the same. Nor does it try to select from different religious
traditions to try and build a new unified religion. The policy is not a project
in social or religious engineering designed to establish a uniformity of
religious beliefs and practices. The policy does not promote religious
relativism, religious syncretism, or any other religious position in relation
to the many religions in South Africa and the world. By creating a free, open
space for exploration, the policy demonstrates respect for the distinctive
character of different ways of life.
69.
Like the public school, the policy on Religion and
Education is designed for diversity. As we overcome the entrenched separations
of the past, we are finding new ways to celebrate our different linguistic,
cultural, and religious resources. We must move decisively beyond the barriers
erected by apartheid; beyond the shields provided by ignorance of the other,
which invariably breeds suspicion, hatred and even violence. It is time for all
people of goodwill to know and understand the diversity of religious and other
worldviews that are held by their fellow citizens. Every child has the right to
quality education in this most important area of human development and social
relations. By working together, everyone involved in education - teachers and
pupils, principals and administrators, trade unions and professional
associations, parents and communities - can benefit from the inter-religious
knowledge and understanding cultivated through Religion and Education.
70.
Our policy for religion in education, therefore, is
designed to support unity without uniformity and diversity without
divisiveness. Our public schools cannot establish the uniformity of religious
education in a single faith or the divisiveness of religious education through
separate programmes for a prescribed set of faiths. Neither course would
advance unity in diversity. In any event, as we have established, our schools
are not in the business of privileging, prescribing, or promoting any religion.
Schools have a different responsibility in providing opportunities for teaching
and learning about our religious diversity and our common humanity.
71.
Although the goal of unity in diversity must be
achieved within the formal learning programmes of the curriculum, our policy
also has clear implications for the role of religion in the broader life of a
public school. In particular, our policy clarifies the role that might be given
to Religious Observances, and to Religious Instruction. This policy for
Religion and Education upholds the principles of a cooperative model for
relations between religion and the state, by maintaining a constitutional
impartiality in the formal activities of the school, but encouraging voluntary
interaction outside of this.
DEFINITIONS
Religion is used to describe the comprehensive and fundamental orientation in the
world, mostly with regard to ideas of divinity, spiritual and non-secular
beliefs and requiring ultimate commitment, including (but not restricted to)
organised forms of religion and certain worldviews , as well as being used
collectively to refer to those organisations which are
established in
order to protect and promote these
beliefs.
Confessional or sectarian approaches are used to
describe those approaches to religion which take as a starting point a
particular set of beliefs, or a particular
perspective informed by these beliefs, and advance a position that is narrowly based on these beliefs and perspectives.
Religion Education describes a set of curriculum outcomes which define
what a pupil should know about religion. Further definition is provided in
paragraphs 17 to 19 of the policy.
Religious Observances are those activities and behaviours
which recognise and express the views, beliefs and commitments of a particular
religion., and may include gatherings of adherents, prayer times, dress and
diets.
Religious instruction refers to a programme of
instruction which is aimed at providing information regarding a particular set
of religious beliefs with a view to promoting adherence thereto
Religious Studies is a subject which is being proposed for the Further
Education and Training band (Grades 10-12), in which pupils undertake the study
of religion and religions in general, with the possibility of specialisation in
one or more in that context.
The School Day entails that portion of each day in which it is
compulsory for teachers and pupils to be at school. The seven hours of contact
time that is expected of teachers is part of the school day, but the latter
also includes breaks and compulsory activities, including assemblies,
designated extra –mural activities and possible disciplinary sanctions. No
pupil or teacher may be absent from school during the school day, without
permission.
Appendix to the Policy on Religion and
Education
The National Curriculum Statement and Religion Education.
Religion Education forms one part of the Life
Orientation Learning Area of the National Curriculum Statement. This Learning
Area has five broad Outcomes:
Religion Education is contained within Outcome 2,
in relation to Social Development, which requires that:
The
learner will be able to demonstrate an understanding of and commitment to
constitutional rights and responsibilities, and to show an understanding of
diverse cultures and religions.
The Assessment Standards for this part
of the Learning Area are as follows:
Grade We know this when the learner:
Grade R Identifies
and names symbols linked to own religion.
Grade 1 Matches
symbols associated with a range of religions in South Africa.
Grade 2 Describes
important days from diverse religions.
Grade 3 Discusses diet, clothing and
decorations in a variety of religions.
Grade 4 Discusses
significant places and buildings in a variety of religions.
Grade 5 Discusses
festivals and customs from a variety of religions.
Grade 6 Discusses
the dignity of the person in a variety of religions.
Grade
7 Explains the role of oral
traditions and scriptures in a range of the world’s religions.
Grade
8 Discusses the contributions
of organisations from various religions to social development.
Grade
9 Reflects on and discusses the
contributions of various religions in promoting peace.
The above presentation is part of
a database developed by
The Oslo Coalition on Freedom of Religion or Belief.
This entry: November 2003
[1] The Constitution
of the Republic of South Africa (Act 108 of 1996)
[2] Sections 15(1) and (2) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa
[3] Section 29(3) of the Constitution of the
Republic of South Africa
[4] In terms of Section 14 of the South African Schools Act.
[5] As provided for in Section 57 of the South African Schools Act
[6] National Curriculum Statement for Grades R-9 (Schools); 2002
[7] Government Notice #82 published in Government Gazette 20844 of 4 February 2000
[8] National Curriculum Statement and Assessment Standards for Life Orientation
[9] Section 15(2) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa
[10] Section 7 of the Schools Act and Section 15(2) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa