Religion in Education. A contribution to Dialogue or a factor of Conflict in transforming societies of European Countries (REDCo)



Introduction:
"Throughout  the  world, people are increasingly coming to recognize the implications of the renewed importance religion holds for both individuals and societies in national and international politics and public discourse. Growing religious diversity has given the question new urgency,  and accordingly ‘social cohesion’ is a frequently cited policy goal when addressing the role of religion in European societies. This is especially evident in the attention paid to the study of religion as a part of intercultural learning and human rights education and is clearly expressed in international documents such as the Council of Europe’s White Paper on Intercultural Dialogue (CoE 2008) and the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s Toledo Guiding  Principles on Teaching about Religions an Beliefs in Public Schools (OSCE 2007). Both stress  the importance of dialogue between people of different faiths and convictions in the context of intercultural teaching and learning.

This is also the focus of REDCo, a European comparative research project on young people’s views of religion, religious diversity and possibilities for dialogue, as well as of classroom interaction and teacher-strategies. It is financed by the European Commission, running from March 1st 2006 until March 31st 2009.

It has carried out qualitative and quantitative research in eight countries (Germany, France, England, The Netherlands, Norway, Estonia, Russia, Spain) mainly focusing on religion in the  lives and schooling of students in the 14–16 age group. The students expressed their attitudes  about personal experience with religion, the social dimension of religion, and religion in school." For further information, please view the REDCo Homepage.


Research findings:
The findings contribute to a better understanding of how questions of religion for children, young people and students can be anchored in the educational process so as to promote an understanding of the values held in common and develop mutual respect. Some of the key findings:

• Irrespective of their religious positions a majority of students are interested in learning about religions in school.
• Those who learn about religious diversity in school are more willing to enter into conversations about religions and worldviews with students from other backgrounds than those who do not have this opportunity for learning.
• Most students would like to see school dedicated more to teaching about different religions than to guiding them towards a particular religious belief or worldview.
• Students express their desire that learning about religions should take place in a safe class-room environment governed by agreed procedures for expression and discussion.
  

Recommendations:
"At a European level we suggest making room in the classroom for dialogue and discussion about and between different religious (and non-religious) worldviews."

“The  curriculum  for  teacher  training  should  include  the  development  of  skills  to  organize   and   moderate   in-class   debates   on   controversial   religious   issues   and  conflicting worldviews. Train  educators  in  methods  that  support  and  encourage  students  to  be  comfortable  with difference and to engage with the diversity of their personal experiences.”

Read more: Policy recommendations of the REDCo research project


Further information on the REDCo findings:

• Documentation of the REDCo presentation in the European Parliament  (December 2008)
• Report on the REDCo exhibition 
• Documentation of a public event in the Council of Europe (March 2009)

  

Related events: 
Since this research project, as many others, so far only has resulted in academic publications and policy recommendations, the dialog with educational practitioners are limited.

To help bridging this gap, the EWC organizes a series of “educators’ consultations”, in close cooperation with a range of European universities and other institutions. These events aim to make the REDCo findings known to students, teachers and other educators and to discuss possible implementation for educational practice.

Following events are planned for 2010:

• September 14: Workshop "Dialogue about religion – Integrating students with and without religious identification", Oslo University College, with Prof. Dr. Robert Jackson, at Litteraturhuset, Oslo/ Norway
  

• September 20: Seminar "Dialogue on Religious Issue in the Classroom", Center for Studies of Holocaust and Religious Minorities in Oslo/ Norway

• October 5-6: Pestalozzi Seminar for teacher trainers and teachers in Graz/ Austria

• November 18-19: Training course for teachers at the University of Hamburg/ Germany, with Prof. Dr. Wolfram Weisse

More details on the events will be published soon.