Creative Approaches to Teaching Primary RE

Maggie Webster

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2014
• ISBN:
  9781317863144
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Elementary Education

As an increasingly significant aspect of primary teaching, Creative Approaches to Teaching Primary RE is the essential companion to help bring creativity to life in the classroom.

The text begins with a discussion of creative education and the value of Religious Education, moving on to reflect on the cross-curricular nature of the subject, exploring ways of introducing creativity to the classroom, through the medium of Religious Education.

Each chapter provides ideas and activities demonstrating how pedagogy and theory can be applied in practice within a school setting. The inclusion of case studies will help you consider how to develop creative approaches in all curriculum areas.

This book invites you to ask questions such as:

· What is Creative Education?

· Why should RE be included in the ever-changing curriculum?

· How can I use Religious Education to generate a more creative environment in the classroom?

Chapter 1

What is creative education?

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

In this chapter we will consider:

•  The definition of creativity

•  How to learn creatively

•  How creativity is demonstrated

•  The definition of creative Religious Education

It will also address elements within the following Standards:

Q8, Q10, Q14, Q15, Q18, Q29

Introduction: What is creativity?

Creativity is subjective. What one person considers to be creative another may find unimaginative or mundane. For instance, the shortlist for the Tate Modern’s Turner Prize provokes much controversy each year. Damien Hirst’s Mother and Child, Divided won the prize in 1995 and My Bed by Tracey Emin was short-listed in 1999, yet both occasioned considerable discussion in the press and amongst many ordinary people about whether they were even art. Many considered that a cow cut in half and preserved in formaldehyde and a bed that looked similar to most people’s on a Sunday morning lacked creativity and were either far too elitist, or far too mundane, to be seen as good art (Turpin, 1995; Robson, 1999). However, the Turner Prize judges (along with other acclaimed art critics) considered both to be imaginative, creative and inspiring originals, thus proving that creativity is a matter of personal taste and bias.

If creativity is personal and educational learning has become prescribed through the National Curriculum and National Strategies, it seems that ‘The Creative Curriculum’, a general term which is used by many, including the National College of School Leadership (www.ncsl.org.uk) and The Arts Council (www.artscouncil.org.uk), is an oxymoron (Burgess, 2007). Education has, for a long time, lost its personal touch and the curriculum has become pigeon-holed to focus on English and Mathematics; categorising what a child should be learning in each term and at each level. Individuality, either that of the teacher or the class, has been squeezed out in an attempt to raise the standards of those who are generally considered the middle ability children. Yet, since the Excellence and Enjoyment document (DfES, 2003), the Rose Review (Rose, 2008) and the Cambridge Primary Review (Curtis, 2009) creativity is a concept that is becoming more fashionable within the fields of education and there seems to be a broad but loosely agreed definition of what it is.

The National Advisory Committee on Creative and Cultural Education (NACCCE) considers cross-curricular teaching to be a creative approach to learning that is within us all and develops self esteem (1999:6), whereas other organisations such as Creative Partnerships (www.creative-partnerships.com) extend the definition to include learning through a skills-based programme mainly through and with the arts, i.e. dance, drama, music. However, there seem to be two separate concepts: learning creatively and being creative. Learning creatively is the mode of learning, i.e. how a person learns in a certain environment, whereas being creative is how a person may demonstrate what they have learnt through a creative method.

Learning creatively

Since 2003, the education climate has seemed to encourage us to become more creative or experimental in our teaching. Terms such as Personalised Learning; Visual Auditory and Kinaestheic Learning (VAK); Personal Learning and Thinking Skills (PLTS) and Brain Gym offer what are considered by some to be new and innovative approaches to learning (Mansell, 2008; Taylor, 11 January 2008; Mansell et al., 2008) and this does not seem to be solely a Primary issue.

In 2002, the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) provided guidance on how to make the Key Stage 3 curriculum more adaptable so as to improve pupil attainment and interest (DfES, 2002). Since then, the DfES has morphed into the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) and stated that from September 2008 schools in England would have more autonomy to create an integrated Key Stage 3 curriculum (www.qca.org.uk). They advocate a more flexible approach to learning and teaching, thereby proving that creative teaching is beginning to be seen as the X factor that can turn a child off or on to learning.

Indeed, throughout 2008 the TES, The Guardian newspaper and many authorities on educational issues such as Escalate (http://escalate.ac.uk/) have produced book reviews and articles about creativity and the curriculum. They discuss how to teach creative lessons using an interactive skills-based approach and suggest that, because children learn in a holistic way, they should learn through a variety of subjects so that they are able to explore the imaginative and creative parts of the brain. The National Curriculum in Action website (www.ncaction.org.uk/creativity) dedicates 11 web pages, which include video clips, to helping you understand what the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) consider creativity to be and how to plan for it, suggesting that learning and teaching creatively should be a key priority for you and the school you work in.

Being creative

However, demonstrating creativity still needs to be considered. Exam pressure, and SATs in particular, have undermined many of the opportunities to explore the creative part of the brain and, possibly due to league tables, some schools have opted to teach towards a measurable target that indicates what a child has learnt in a narrow field. I would argue that because it is not mandatory to measure creativity, it is not a requirement to demonstrate it, which is a shame.

Since the new millennium, the Government has been trying to consider children’s individual creativity and find a way of targeting their progress. They are doing this through registering Gifted and Talented (G&T) pupils within schools or with a G&T Academy (the National Academy for Gifted and Talented Youth) and by appointing school coordinators to monitor the academic progress of their identified G&T children (www.qca.org.uk/qca_1972apsx). A school is required to provide opportunities to enhance a child’s individual talent or gift in something at which they excel, and enjoyable activities such as external visits, holiday schools or extended work within the classroom suggest that frequent testing of such children and a prescribed curriculum has not stopped them learning through a creative medium or inhibited their creative expression. But there still seem to be few opportunities for the average Jo and Jenny Bloggs to explore and develop their individual creative talents within the ordinary classroom.

Thus, we need not only constantly to teach in a creative way to explore ideas and maintain motivation, but also to provide opportunities for all children to express what they know and understand in a way that they choose, so that there is opportunity for their creativity to be encouraged. If children are permitted to express their understanding in a method they prefer, rather than one which is prescribed, then creativity will be enhanced. This way the child is more likely to develop the creative potential that is compatible with their personality and interests; for not all children enjoy expressing themselves through art, dance, drama or music, some prefer to explore their understanding through writing, discussions or a presentation. Therefore, as creativity is subjective, it is crucial that the child be offered an opportunity to demonstrate their learning in a way that they consider to be creative and not through a way you consider it should be revealed.

Measuring creativity

Creativity is something that is unique to each individual. As such, it is difficult to measure through an agreed set of targets such as Level Descriptors. Yet Attainment Targets still need to be evaluated so that children are provided with the chance to explore increasingly difficult skills and develop both sides of the brain and, as Howard Gardner (1993) would agree, this should happen by being given the opportunity to investigate a variety of intelligences. That is why you need to provide creative opportunities for all children to examine what they know and understand through a teaching method that not only stimulates, motivates and interests your class and yourself as a professional, but also encourages the children you teach to probe the creative gene within themselves. One size for creativity does not fit all and so creative education is the chance to learn through an environment that encourages personal expression of one’s own view of the world. This is not easy to measure, yet the fact that it cannot be easily quantified does not mean it should not be catered for.

What is creative Religious Education?

Exploring the world we live in is a fundamental concept of religion, and enquiring into how people live their lives is one of the ways that a child can begin to develop their own opinion on how society works. Religious Education can support a child’s growing understanding of themselves, their belief systems and how they fit into the society in which they live. Creative RE is crucial in allowing children to practise enquiry skills, thinking skills, listening skills and communication skills so that they develop an understanding of themselves and others (see Chapter 3).

Creativity can be encouraged in many ways through RE and, as we have seen, because creativity is subjective and involves the expression of a child’s own opinion, RE is perfectly placed to support it. Within the Non Statutory Framework, Attainment Target 2 (AT2) Learning from Religion, encourages pupils to develop

reflection on, and response to, their own experiences and learning about religion. It develops pupils’ skills of application, interpretation and evaluation of what they learn about religion, particularly questions of identity and belonging, meaning, purpose, truth, values and commitments.

(QCA, 2004:34)

These skills are essential for the development of creative thinking, as they encourage the expression of a personal viewpoint. A further noted skill of ‘Communicating their responses’ (ibid.) advocates personal interpretation, which gives the pupils scope to present what they know and understand through any means they choose.

Moreover, Attainment Target 1 (AT1), Learning about religion, encourages communication, while focusing mainly on skills that develop the retention of knowledge, i.e. through enquiry, analysis and interpretation. So, if you teach AT1 and AT2 together, you will ensure a twopronged approach to creativity and holistic learning. For the children in your class to have the opportunity to learn creatively and be creative they need the opportunity to be taught the aims of Religious Education because, by its innate characteristics, RE encourages both internal enquiry and the external expression of creativity.

Creative Religious Education lessons offer children the opportunity to explore the ‘What’, the ‘Why’ and the ‘So what?’ of how people choose to live their lives. For this reason it needs to be considered seriously in schools. Without the opportunity to contemplate collective and individual answers to personal questions and discuss what they mean in society, bigotry and racism are likely to abound.

To develop creativity in children, you need to open up your professional imagination and enable your class to delve into the creative learning process. Creative learning and teaching with creative interpretation are the essential ingredients of RE and how and why to do this are explored in Chapters 3 to 8.

Summary of key points

•  Creativity is subjective

•  The Government is encouraging all teachers to be creative in their teaching and learning

•  Creativity needs nurturing through allowing children to demonstrate what they know and understand in their own preferred style

•  There is a difference between learning creatively and being creative

•  RE is well positioned to be an excellent vehicle for creativity

Chapter 2

The purpose of Religious Education

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

In this chapter we will consider:

• The current purpose of Religious Education

• Historical events that have impacted on RE in schools

• Current and past legislation relating to RE

• The difference between RI and RE

• How, when society changes, so does RE in schools

It will also address elements within the following Standards:

Q3, Q15, Q21

Introduction: What is the purpose of RE today?

In today’s over-subscribed curriculum, and given the constant pressures of new initiatives, it is difficult to find time to teach all the subjects that are required in a primary school. Religious Education can at times be a subject that is marginalised (Revell, 2005) and one of the first subjects you may not teach if you have to make a choice between achieving good SAT results or completing a unit of work for a core subject. There are many reasons why RE goes first, yet it is mainly because of the many insecurities you may feel due to lack of knowledge or understanding about its role in a child’s holistic education.

It is necessary then for you to reflect on what you think the purpose of Religious Education is, especially in a society wh...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• About the author
• Preface
• Acknowledgements
• Chapter 1 What is creative education?
• Chapter 2 The purpose of Religious Education
• Chapter 3 The value of Religious Education
• Chapter 4 Creatively connecting RE
• Chapter 5 What are the connections between Art and RE?
• Chapter 6 What are the connections between Dance and RE?
• Chapter 7 What are the connections between Drama and RE?
• Chapter 8 What are the connections between Music and RE?
• Chapter 9 Using creative resources in Religious Education
• Chapter 10 Planning for creative Religious Education
• Chapter 11 Creatively assessing Religious Education
• Chapter 12 What do I need to know?
• Chapter 13 ‘Of making many books there is no end’ (Ecclesiastes 12:12)
• References
• Index