 |  |
| www.dg.dial.pipex.com | 242 readers since 22 Dec 2008 |
| |
| www.dg.dial.pipex.com | 242 readers since 22 Dec 2008 |
Primary Education (1959) (page numbers in brackets) Notes on the text
Part 1 Historical
Part 2 The Primary Schools
Part 3 The Fields of Learning
Part 4 The Special Problems of Wales
Index (331-334) |
Primary Education (1959)
Suggestions for the consideration of teachers and others concerned with the work of primary schools London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office 1959
[page 117] 'It shall be the duty of the local education authority ... to contribute towards the spiritual (and) moral ... development of the community by securing that efficient education shall ... be available to meet the needs of the population ...' This responsibility, laid by the Education Act of 1944 on the local education authorities, can of course only be carried out through the teachers. It is the purpose of this section to outline the frame within which they work and to describe some of the objectives at which they aim. It is concerned both with worship and with religious instruction. The Education Act of 1944 is so important a landmark in the development of school worship and religious instruction that a foreign visitor might be pardoned for thinking that it marked the beginning of both as far as what are now known as county schools are concerned. He would, of course, be quite wrong. Like many important reforming acts of Parliament, the 1944 Act made universal and obligatory a proved practice, giving it in the process a new sanction and a fresh impetus. At the beginning of this century the overwhelming majority of the old elementary schools and of the secondary schools began the day with worship and provided religious instruction in the classrooms; if the practice was not then universal, it had become virtually so by 1939. Now every county and voluntary school provides both. This publication in a new form of the Suggestions for Teachers gives an opportunity for a survey of the present position which will show what provision Parliament has made for the religious upbringing of children in the nation's schools. It is hoped that it may help young teachers and students in training colleges to see their part in this undertaking in proper perspective, and that older teachers, too, may find it useful as a reminder of the [page 118] changes since they started teaching, which include provision for the inspection of religious instruction, in accordance with an Agreed Syllabus. First comes the provision that the school day in every county and voluntary school must begin with corporate worship. Except where the premises make this impracticable, this means a single service in one place for the whole school. The Act also provides that religious instruction, or teaching, shall be given in all county and voluntary schools. At this stage it is necessary to begin to consider these two types of school separately. A county school is one entirely under the jurisdiction of a local education authority which owns the buildings, pays the salaries of teaching and other staff and meets the running expenses. A voluntary school is one where the building itself is owned by a voluntary body, usually but not always by a church. The salaries of the teaching and other staff and most of the running expenses are met by the local education authority. The essential condition of worship in a county school is that it should be such that members of various Christian denominations can with a good conscience take part in it. This involves a self-denying ordinance by which those who conduct it deny themselves the use of material which would not be acceptable to others. In the words of the Act 'the collective worship ... shall not ... be distinctive of any particular religious denomination'. This does not mean, of course, that many beautiful and well-loved prayers and responses are inappropriate merely because they appear in the liturgy of a particular church. It is only when they reflect doctrines about which there are established points of divergence between denominations that they are to be avoided. While the statutory purpose of an Agreed Syllabus under the 1944 Act is to give authoritative guidance on what is to be taught, and this is discussed below, in virtually every syllabus there are also suggestions on the school's corporate worship. Thus in the Sunderland syllabus (1944) a long section of detailed suggestions is introduced by some general paragraphs, of which the following is typical: 'The dominant note in worship should be reverence, praise, consecration and self-dedication to God rather than the desire [page 119] to receive something for oneself. The teacher must strive by the reverence of his own demeanour, as in the presence of God, to create the sense of worship and make the children to feel that he is himself praying the prayers which he speaks. Accordingly it is of the utmost importance that he should clearly apprehend, and (as opportunity serves) help the children to realise the fundamental principle of the Christian attitude to prayer, particularly in so far as prayer takes the form of petition.' In the infant school a simple service of praise and thanksgiving 'with personal references and in relation to the passing seasons will form the framework of the religious teaching' (Cambridgeshire syllabus). Great care is necessary in its planning. It is, for instance, important that the children should be physically comfortable when engaged in prayer and praise. The amount of time which young children can spend in quiet concentration, the quality of the music, the beauty of form and language in hymn and prayer, are essential points to be watched. The Surrey syllabus points out that 'hymns, if chosen with care, should lead the youngest to a first grasp of the Christian faith and ideals', and in its notes it twice illustrates this statement. 'The first three verses of the hymn "Once in royal David's city" contain a simple statement of the doctrine of the Incarnation suitable for little children ... "There is a green hill far away" contains simple but sound teaching about the meaning of our Lord's death.' Special celebrations at the recurrences of the major Christian festivals - for example Christmas, Easter and Whitsun as well as at Harvest time - link the prayers and praise of the school with the great rhythm of Christian worship. At these times especially the stories heard in the classroom and the service in the hall reinforce and enrich each other. The school Assembly or Daily Worship can have significance for the child of junior school age only if it recognises both his particular psychological needs and also his continuing limitations. Before the age of twelve children have little ability to think in abstract terms and their approach to the nature of God is largely anthropomorphic, coloured by their own personal relationships with their parents, their teachers and other adults. 'The Junior child is at that stage of development when he is beginning to feel his individuality', (Durham syllabus), and it is therefore essential that he should be allowed to take an active part in the school service. The older children can be trained to [page 120] read the lessons, all will enjoy simple responses, and some can be encouraged to plan and write out their service. 'The chief thing is that the Assembly should be spontaneous and alive, the children really taking part, and not listening to something imposed ... it should never be quite the same two days together' (Cambridgeshire syllabus). If we think of the school as a Christian community, then the morning service of worship will 'not be merely an opening ceremony but a preparation for the day ...' Before 1944, while the law did not require religious instruction to be given in provided schools, it ensured that, where given, it was undenominational. The manner in which the old principle is applied now that religious instruction is universally obligatory differs from the provisions regarding school worship. The form, content and manner of a school's corporate worship is left by the Act to the good sense of those who conduct it; the content and purpose of its religious instruction is decided under the Act by the Agreed Syllabus which each local education authority is responsible for having prepared. This is a method which had been widely used as a matter of common sense by education authorities before 1944. The Cambridgeshire syllabus, first issued in 1923, had been adopted by more than 100 of the 317 local education authorities then in existence. The West Riding and Middlesex syllabuses were also widely used, though many authorities preferred to draw up their own. In adopting an Agreed Syllabus procedure the framers of the 1944 Act were, therefore, making use of a well tried method. Teachers may like to be reminded how an Agreed Syllabus is drawn up and acquires the force of law. The procedure is laid down in the fifth schedule of the 1944 Act. Each local education authority is required to appoint four ad hoc committees (three in Wales) which together form a conference for preparing an Agreed Syllabus. Those committees represent respectively the Church of England (except in Wales), other religious denominations, teachers' organisations and the authority. The decisions of the conference are required to be unanimous, and the syllabus they thus recommend is submitted to the local education authority for approval. Once this is given, the syllabus or [page 121] syllabuses (for there is provision for more than one in certain circumstances) become the necessary basis of all religious instruction in the local authority's county schools. If the conference were to fail to reach unanimous agreement, or the authority to adopt the recommended syllabus, there is provision for the Minister, following as far as practicable the same conference procedure, to have an Agreed Syllabus prepared and to adopt it for the authority's area. This procedure, however, has never yet had to be used. The provision of a nationwide network of Agreed Syllabuses, each unanimously recommended by representatives of four 'interests' which in the past have frequently found it difficult to agree, is a fact of considerable historic and religious importance. The same section of the Act which orders authorities to convene conferences to prepare an Agreed Syllabus, empowers them to appoint standing advisory councils to advise them upon methods, choice of books and courses for teachers. An enquiry made by the Institute of Christian Education showed that by 1951 about a third of the authorities had made use of this power. At this point it is desirable to turn from the county schools to look very briefly at the position in aided and controlled voluntary schools. The Act provides for both corporate worship and religious instruction in voluntary schools as well as in county schools. It does not, however, prescribe in aided schools the content of either except to lay down that the instruction shall be in conformity with the trust deed, or with previous practice if the trust deed makes no specific provision. A controlled school provides on request one or two periods of denominational instruction as well as the Agreed Syllabus religious instruction which is its staple form. In aided schools all teachers are appointed by the managers, and it is usual for them to satisfy themselves as to the fitness of candidates to give religious instruction in accordance with the trust deed. In controlled schools the appointments are made by the local education authority, but the foundation managers have the right to satisfy themselves about the fitness and competence to give such instruction of a certain proportion of the staff known as 'reserved teachers'. The great majority of [page 122] voluntary schools are, of course, either Church of England or Roman Catholic schools, but there are others, among them several Jewish. The 1944 Act provides for children to be excused at their parents' request from religious worship and instruction. Children may be excused simply because their parents do not wish them to take part in or to receive religious instruction. This is very rare. Much more frequently a child is excused the school's religious instruction in order that he may be withdrawn to receive instead instruction according to his own religious faith. The Jewish community sometimes makes use of this provision as do also some Christian denominations. The religious instruction for which children are withdrawn is provided not out of public funds but by the denominational authority 'elsewhere' than in the primary school premises. It is fair, then, to say that this country provides Christian worship and Christian teaching for its children, whether they are in voluntary or county schools; but that at the same time it is not unmindful of the convictions and needs of members of other faiths. The 'conscience clauses' of the 1944 Act also protect the right of teachers to 'contract out' of giving religious instruction or taking part in corporate worship. The protection is absolute - the wish to 'contract out' has only to be expressed to be granted. There are no conditions of any kind, and no teacher may be put to any disadvantage because he makes use of it. Those who care most deeply for the religious upbringing of children in the Christian faith welcome this clause as sincerely as those who make use of it. It is for them neither a concession nor a compromise, it is a condition without which sincere religious education is impossible, and an expression of the Christian desire to place no obstacle in the way of fidelity to conscience. Until 1944 religious instruction had to be given either at the beginning or the ending of a school session. There is now no such regulation, and an increasing number of schools are making use of their new liberty to distribute the lessons throughout the school day. In this way the burden of the administrative interruptions which often mark the opening of the school day [page 123] can be shared between various subjects instead of falling always on religious instruction. Without some spreading of periods it is difficult to see how, except in a generously staffed school, it would be possible for a teacher to exercise his right not to give religious instruction. The expedient of joining several classes together is no solution for it is educationally unsound. In an infant school, and in the earlier stages of the junior school, the most 'natural' person to undertake the religious teaching is undoubtedly the class teacher, or the Head who also stands in a direct personal relation to every child as the head of the school 'family'. But, if needs be, it is in the interests of the children to choose some other teacher rather than to entrust this responsibility to one whose reluctance springs from more than the natural diffidence which all must feel in this particular matter. The diffidence which springs from ignorance is something that can be removed. A change in the examination regulations for the qualification of teachers accompanied the 1944 Act and provided the means without which it would have been difficult or impossible to carry out its intention. Older teachers may not always realise that religious knowledge, to give it one of the many titles under which it appears in training college timetables, is now a subject which may be taken 'for the certificate' like any other subject. Experience shows that students do in fact elect to take it in much the same numbers as they choose other subjects. The training colleges are thus now able to make a far greater contribution than was before possible to fitting teachers to give religious instruction. But even so only a small minority of teachers will have made a serious academic study of the Bible at college, though far more will have followed a slighter 'basic' course. There is, then, a constant and growing demand by teachers for short courses provided by local education authorities, Institutes of Education, the Institute of Christian Education, the Ministry and other bodies. The primary school is not a place in which there would often seem to be suitable employment for a full time specialist teacher of religious knowledge; but every primary school would be more confident of its ability to fulfil its obligations if it knew that it had on its staff at least one teacher who had made a sufficiently serious study of the subject to be able to help colleagues with suggestions and advice, and to take part in preparation of a general scheme of work for the school. [page 124] Religious instruction differs from all other subjects in the curriculum of the primary school in that it is the only subject in which there is a binding syllabus prepared outside the school. It is a difficult subject on which to offer generally applicable suggestions since, although the syllabuses agree to a remarkable extent in what they have selected as basic religious knowledge, they differ widely in their order and method of presentation. To discuss particular methods without reference to the selection of the material to be taught would be fruitless. It is necessary, therefore, that teachers should refer to the handbooks either incorporated in, or suggested by, the Agreed Syllabus with which they are concerned. An Agreed Syllabus usually specifies what may be taught to children of a given age and must therefore be studied in the light of the general characteristics of children of that age, which are discussed in earlier chapters of this book. What is there said is just as relevant to school worship or religious instruction as it is to language or number. The approach, for instance, to the stories of Abraham or of the 'Feeding of the Five Thousand' will be very different with children of seven and children of ten or eleven. Within the same subject matter children of different ages seize upon quite different aspects as significant, and a teacher must, if she is to be successful, work within their limits. In the earlier years the question of truth in the sense of objective historical reality will hardly arise - small children admittedly ask if a story is true, but they are asking little more than whether this is a story about a real person. Older children, however, begin to ask, 'Did this really happen?', or 'What really happened?', which marks the beginning of a questioning mind. In this context the kind of help which the Agreed Syllabuses offer may be indicated by two quotations. The Cambridgeshire syllabus reminds us that 'The distinction between history, legend and myth should ever be in the mind of the teacher and should affect the manner in which the stories of the Old Testament are told'. The miracles of the Gospel occupy a special position which is clearly put in the Sunderland syllabus: 'In the New Testament the supreme miracle is the Resurrection of Jesus. Whatever difficulties are presented by the details of the various records, the significance of the event lies in the demon- [page 125] strated fact that Jesus was alive. This was taken as a proof of His unique relation to God ... Each of His "Works and Signs" must be examined on its own merits. In some instances there is a call for reinterpretation, but under the closest scrutiny a series of wonderful works remain which can only be explained by reference to His unique personality and divine mission. They supplement the Resurrection in declaring Him to be the Son of God with Power.' We are at the end of a decade of particularly active syllabus making. There has been a process of learning from one another, of active borrowing and of new departures which show that those who are responsible are still in the exciting and healthy stage of discovery. Nearly half the county authorities, and nearly two thirds of the county boroughs, have after careful study adopted Agreed Syllabuses drawn up for other authorities. The most widely adopted syllabuses in June 1953, according to figures given in the report published by the Institute of Christian Education in 1955, were the Sunderland (1944); the Cambridgeshire (1939: revised 1949); the Surrey (1941); the West Riding (1937: revised 1945; new syllabus 1947); and the Durham (1945) - in that order. A primary school is concerned with only one syllabus, but teachers move from one authority's area to another's and training colleges have to prepare students to teach according to many various syllabuses. It is relevant, therefore, to ask how far these syllabuses have a common core. A comparison of a number of different syllabuses suggests the following answer. The main emphasis is on the Biblical narrative; a systematic approach to the main body of doctrine held in common by all Christian denominations is left to the secondary stage. The teaching of the Christian faith in the primary school springs naturally from the children's worship and is developed in the interpretation of the narrative lessons, which are carefully selected because of the insight they give into God's ways with men and their response. Most of the syllabuses give the essential characteristic of religious instruction as 'the fostering of a Christian way of living', in which children are shown how 'to know, love and serve God' (Norwich). All the syllabuses examined include at one time or another during the six years of primary school life the main narratives of all four gospels and many of those in Acts. The best known [page 126] parables come in all the syllabuses; so too does the ethical teaching of both Testaments as contained, for instance, in the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes. All draw largely on the story material connected with Abraham and the other patriarchs, with Moses, Samuel, Saul, David, Elijah and Elisha. Most include some of the stories from Judges. The great majority also provide for the older children in junior schools a simple introduction to the life and teaching of such prophets as Amos, Isaiah and Jeremiah. There is a rather greater diversity with regard to the use made of the early narratives in the first eleven chapters of Genesis. All the Agreed Syllabuses examined also make use of two other classes of material. In the provision for infant schools, they devote much attention to teaching about God as creator through the study of nature. The other additional class of material is the telling of stories from the lives of great Christians of every age including the present. 'The great fact to be established in the mind of the children', as the London syllabus says, 'is that Christian men and women have witnessed continuously since Christianity began, and that they belong to every country, live under all sorts of conditions, and express themselves in many and varied ways.' This is especially important in the later junior years, when the 'gang' is strong. Comrades in exciting enterprises can be found among 'the noble army of martyrs' as well as in gangster films. All the syllabuses examined make suggestions about short passages which might well be got by heart, either by direct learning, or through the assimilation which comes from constant repetition, or through employment in informal dramatic work. 'In few branches of learning or parts of life' as the Portsmouth syllabus says, 'is a well stored memory more rewarding than in religion; for it constitutes a treasure house to be drawn upon and added to throughout life.' Most Agreed Syllabuses have a section which deals specifically with the nursery stage, but in some (e.g. Norwich) the reference is in general terms only. In all instances the importance of living with children under five years of age in a way conducive to their spiritual growth is stressed, and the climate of this development is recognised as 'coming from the inspiration of the teacher' (Norwich) whose main task is to create within the nursery 'a healthy and loving environment' (Sunderland, [page 127] Cheshire) 'to aid and supplement natural growth' (Cheshire). It is recognised that young children's awareness of things of the spirit develops first 'through the atmosphere and practice of the Christian home and of church-going parents' (Norwich); but, since such influence from the home will not have been every child's experience, the teacher's contribution is of paramount importance either as the begetter or as the strengthener of the child's awareness of God's presence in the world. She needs, as the Middlesex syllabus points out, to be ready both to take and to make opportunities for this teaching. Agreed Syllabuses are neither teaching schemes nor lesson notes though many contain helpful suggestions on methods. A teaching scheme for religious instruction is necessary and requires as careful thought by the head teacher, or the teacher to whom its preparation has been delegated, as that in any other subject. It may select, but it should preserve the balance of the syllabus. The exact limits within which selection may be made differ from syllabus to syllabus. The scheme must meet the needs of the school in terms of the time and teaching skill available and of the varying capacity of the pupils. It should link up with the teaching schemes in other subjects: is Wilberforce or Shaftesbury or St Francis a figure in religious instruction or in history - or in both? Is the twenty-third Psalm English or scripture - or both? A scheme should consider the means which are necessary to serve the end in view. The pictures, the books, the maps, the film strips, the place of puppetry or painting or modelling - all these need as much attention in the scheme for religious instruction and in the individual teacher's lesson notes as in other subjects. All those who have been concerned in drawing up Agreed Syllabuses would probably endorse the plea of the London syllabus (1947): 'It is vital that every teacher should study the outline of the Syllabus as a whole before concentrating on his own particular section, for the Syllabus is a continuous and progressive one planned for the progressive growth of the pupils from three to eighteen years of age.' It is, however, important to realise that a progressive course of religious education is [page 128] concerned quite as much with an increasing understanding of elements which should always be present from the beginning as with the steady introduction of entirely new facets. In approaching the study of a whole syllabus the teacher will naturally look for a statement of the purpose which its framers have set for themselves, for some definition of the end which it is intended to serve. It may confidently be said that there is no division of opinion on this matter though there is a wide diversity of expression. The introduction of the London syllabus (1947) puts the matter cogently: '... The Christian religion is a historical religion; it is based upon the fact that certain events happened. It is necessary therefore in the first place to know as exactly as we can the nature of these events. But it is more than that. If the teaching of the Bible in our schools is to reflect accurately the actual character of the biblical writings themselves, it must do more than state and establish facts of history; it must interpret them. And that means that it must seek to show why the original writers regarded these facts as of special significance. That is in very large part the meaning of "doctrinal teaching" ... And that leads inescapably to the third aspect. For such teaching, if rightly given, will inevitably prompt the question: Is this interpretation true? Do the facts substantiate it? ... These are questions which must be honestly faced in the teacher's own mind, and in the classroom. It is upon the basis of such teaching, and only upon that, that it is possible to proceed to ... Christian ethics. We have no sympathy with those who deny this aspect of Christian teaching. They do little service to the Christian cause, and display a grave ignorance of the character of the Bible itself. For the Bible is from the start to finish a radically ethical book. But we are even less in agreement with those who appear to suppose that Christian ethical teaching can be given in a vacuum, wholly detached from the faith in God from which, in the Bible itself, it springs, and by which it is unquestionably inspired.' [page 129] The Agreed Syllabuses mentioned in this Chapter are: The Cambridge Syllabus of Religious Teaching for Schools: Cambridgeshire Education Committee. Cheshire Agreed Syllabus of Religious Instruction: University of London Press Limited. The Durham County Agreed Syllabus of Religious Instruction in Schools: University of London Press Limited. London Syllabus of Religious Education: London County Council. The Middlesex County Council Agreed Syllabus of Religious Instruction for Middlesex Schools: Middlesex County Council. Norwich Agreed Syllabus: City of Norwich Education Committee. Syllabus of Religious Instruction adopted by County Borough of Portsmouth Education Authority, 1952: Portsmouth County Borough Education Department. A Syllabus of Religious Instruction in Schools (Sunderland): University of London Press Limited. Surrey County Council Education Committee Syllabus of Religious Instruction: Surrey County Council. West Riding Education Committee Agreed Syllabus: West Riding (Yorkshire) Education Committee. 
|