from Religion Media Centre
The government’s National Curriculum Review panel has issued an interim report which acknowledges that, despite the fact that Religious Education is compulsory, there are disparities in its provision due to a lack of national agreed content standards.
The report addresses the fact that both RE and “Relationships, Sex and Health Education” subjects are required by law but are not in the national curriculum. It says in its future discussions: “there is a balance to be struck between securing an entitlement to high quality content for all, and, particularly in the case of RE, the need for flexibility to be retained for different school types (i.e., schools with a religious designation and those without). We will consider these points through our analysis of each different subject before publishing our final report”.
The interim report identifies four key areas for overall improvement: ensuring high standards for all; addressing each subject’s specific challenges including why some subjects have been squeezed; responding to social and technological change including digital skills and media literacy; and ensuring courses beyond GCSEs work for all students.The final report is due to be published this autumn.