Should Religious Education Foster National Consciousness?

Abstract

Dr Nicholas Tate, Chief Executive of the School Curriculum and Assessment Authority has argued recently that national consciousness and identity should be promoted through the school curriculum. This raises the question: ‘How should Religious Education teachers in state schools respond if required to nurture children into national consciousness particularly through the teaching of Christianity?’ This fundamental issue is explored using John Habgood's concept of critical solidarity and linking it with the British tradition of the nonconformist conscience. The paper concludes by advocating nurturing into a global rather than national consciousness through Religious Education.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Andrew Bolton

Dr Andrew Bolton is former Head of RE at Beauchamp College, Oadby, Leicester, a 14‐18 Comprehensive School and Community College. He is now a Lecturer in Religious Education at Westminster College, Oxford, OX2 9AT, Tel: [phone]. The first draft of this paper was given at the SCAA International Conference: Curriculum, Culture and Society held at the Kensington Hilton Hotel, London, 7 February 1996.