Is religious studies still compulsory in schools

[User363732736363273]

Secondary ^

my son started secondary in September and it's just dawned on me that there is no form of religious studies in his timetable. Is this a thing? Do you think they are doing religious studies within in other topics? I know there's a serious lack of teachers atm, maybe they can't get an RE teacher.

it's a standard mainstream secondary

I am just surprised, I just thought it was compulsory.

i am not particularly religious and not fussed like that but just thought it was a thing and surprised at it.

I don't know but it is an extremely interesting subject which stretches pupils intellectually and touches on many other subjects, eg history, literature, psychology, geography and sciences. I used to love it!

I found this online:
www.natre.org.uk/about-re/about-re/

I went to a faith school so it was compulsory there as a GCSE. It happened to be biased nonsense though so hardly a valuable lesson.

If taught properly I can imagine its a important subject- I thought it was a compulsory lesson for KS3- but not on the national curriculum?

It is but many schools roll it into a Humanities programme, or do occasional off timetable focus days or slot it in with PHSE. I teach it and as a pp said, there's a huge amount to it beyond the obvious but schools are so squeezed now and have ever increasing demands for them to teach absolutely every life skill under the sun..not surprised some just do a token effort.

I taught in a school where it was taught through other subjects, but it wasn't done very well.

It may be classed as humanities the first few years and then as a GCSE ours was called Believes and Values (so something along these lines)

It predates the national curriculum...was made compulsory up to school leaving age in the 1944 Education Act

am not particularly religious and not fussed like that

The reason RE is compulsory is to equip them to live in a multi faith society.

It is compulsory but some schools get round it by combining RE in with PSHE and citizenship, then calling it something else, which in my experience tends to mean very little study of RE happens in reality.

All secondaries around here do teach RS. DD really enjoyed it despite all of us being atheists. She especially finetuned her debating. skills.

It can be an amazing subject if taught well. She learned a lot about how religion shaped society and while there is so much tension in the middle east and how religion influences politics in the US.

A shame that she had to stop at GSCE level as it wasn't compulsory and she had no more options available.

But the PCSHE lessons now do. cover some RS topics as well.

Absolutely. I loved it at school too, it opened my ears not just to different faiths but to different worlds events and topics!

There is nothing in the timetable that would fit with religious studies at all.

when I was at school it was called ethics and philosophy or something similar!

It is absolutely a statutory subject and legally they should be having at least one hour a week at KS3 and KS4. Ofsted would not be impressed. Some schools try to get away with lumping it in with PSHCE, but they are distinct subjects and should not be squished together. GCSE is optional, though some schools enter a full cohort.