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| Photography by Marketing & Creative Services, Queen's University |
RE teachers from across Northern Ireland gathered with representatives from the Department of Education, the Education and Training Inspectorate and Teacher Education providers on Wed 13th February to discuss the theme of sharing Religious Education. The conference was organised by the
Sharing Education Programme (SEP) which has been working with schools in Northern Ireland for six years to facilitate multiple forms of sharing in education across school boundaries. Contributors included Prof Jim Conroy (University of Glasgow , Dr Jones Irwin (St Patrick's College, Drumcondra), Mr John Keast (The RE Council of England and Wales) and Ms Jo Malone (The Tony Blair Faith Foundation) as well as local contributors Dr Norman Richardson (Stranmillis University College), Mrs Francine Magill (Malone College), Mr David Thompson (Forge Integrated Primary School), Prof Tony Gallagher (Queen's University) and Mr James Nelson (Stranmillis University College). After lunch the audience were also privileged to receive a video message, recorded specifically for the conference, from the former UK Prime Minister, Tony Blair. Mr Blair spoke of the need for young people to engage with each other in dialogue around religion and explained the work of his foundation in facilitating respectful dialogue 'from Belfast to Beirut'.
Aware of the contested nature of religious education, the contributors approached the question of sharing religious education from various perspectives, and, importantly, there was a balance between practical and theoretical issues throughout. Participants also made their views known around the opportunities and challenges which arise from sharing religious education during small group discussions.The relevance of these discussions was brought home by John Keast and Jones Irwin in particular who reported on the current debates over the future shape of religious education in England and the Republic of Ireland.
At a time when many RE teachers in Northern Ireland have few opportunities for professional development and when there is a need for informed conversations around the future of the subject, the event was warmly received.
Presentations from the day will soon be available on the SEP website and a link will be provided here when available. In the meantime, you may want to look at the paper given by James Nelson and the PowerPoint presentation by Norman Richardson:
