Sacred Spaces: Exploring the Intersection of Faith and Education

Learning

Objectives

Skills We Learnt Last Week:

1 Learning Facts: Modern Piracy

Pirates still exist today, attacking ships on trade routes in less monitored seas to steal valuable cargo or hold passengers for ransom

2 Public Speaking Skills: Roleplaying

Speaking from the perspectives of different people

3 Debating Skills: Analyzing Preventative Versus Reactive Policies

Is it better to try and fix the root cause of an issue, or punish people who commit crimes?

Skills We Will Learn This Week

1 Learning Facts: Religion and Schools

Understanding the basics of global religion, and what religious education looks like

2 Public Speaking Skills: Speech Practice

Practicing speaking in a debate format

3 Debating Skills: Analyzing Incentives and Outcomes

Why do different school choose to teach, or not teach, religion? Should schools be allowed to teach a specific religion?

SYMBOL OBJECTIVES:

Learn a special skill Activity time Key takeaway

Reminder:

Class Rules

Now that we all know each other, let’s make this class into a proper classroom!

Here are some rules that we will all follow together:

Before Class

1. 2.

Make sure that you’ve eaten breakfast/lunch and have gone to the bathroom

Join the zoom call a few minutes before class starts so we can get started right away!

At the Start of Class

Turn your camera on so we can see your lovely smile! Let your coach know if you need to leave class early 1. 2.

During Class

Keep your camera on unless you are preparing during an activity

Put your hand up if you want to say something Do not leave your computer during class - if you need to go to the bathroom, put your hand up and ask your coach before you go

SYMBOL OBJECTIVES:

Learn a special skill Activity time Key takeaway

Your Own Religion Warm Up:

Imagine you are the founder of a brand new belief system, that you think everyone in the world should have faith in.

What does it look like?

You can answer questions like:

Who created the universe?

What were humans created to do?

What rules should followers of your religion adhere to?

How do you worship in your religion?

Is there a holy text that people can read? Who wrote it?

Is there an afterlife after you die?

Time 3 Mins (Preparation) | 1-2 Mins (Speaking)

PART 1: The Basics of Religion

Learning Facts

What Is Religion?

Religion is a way that people understand and connect with the world around them.

It involves beliefs, practices, and traditions that help people find meaning and purpose in their lives

People have existential questions about the way the world works. These can include:

Who created the world, or the universe?

Why are we here?

What is ‘good’ and ‘bad’?

What happens after we die?

It’s hard to answer all of these questions using facts and science Even if we might know about the big bang theory, or the theory of evolution, they don’t answer all of the mysteries of the universe. This is where faith steps in th t b li f thi if d ’t il h

connecting with the world Overall, religion provides comfort, support and guidance to billions of people around the world

Freedom of religion is a widely accepted human right Freedom of religion means that everyone has the right to choose and practice their own religion or belief system It is an important part of human rights and is protected in many countries around the world.

Do you think freedom of religion is important? Why/why not?

Religion is a belief system that answers existential questions regarding our creation, purpose and morality. Religion is based on faith, or a belief of something regardless of scientific proof. Religions can be community-based or personal, and people have the right to freedom of religion.

What Do Religions Look Like?

Learning Facts

There are thousands of religions across the planet.

Hinduism

Hinduism is one of the oldest religions in the world Hindus believe in many gods and goddesses, but they believe that these gods are different forms of one ultimate reality called Brahman. They believe in the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth called reincarnation.

Christianity

hristianity is based on the teachings of Jesus hrist. Christians believe that Jesus is the Son f God and that he came to Earth to save umanity

Islam

Islam is based on the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad Muslims believe in one God, called Allah, and they follow the guidance of the Quran, which is their holy book They believe that Muhammad is the last and final prophet of God.

Buddhism

Buddhism was founded by Siddhartha Gautama, also known as the Buddha Buddhists believe in the Four Noble Truths, which teach that life involves suffering, but there is a way to end it. They believe in achieving enlightenment through meditation and living a moral and compassionate life

udaism

udaism is one of the oldest monotheistic eligions (religions that believe in god). Jews elieve in one God and follow the teachings of he Torah, which is their holy book They elieve that they have a special covenant or greement with God.

Sometimes, religions branch off into different sects based on disagreements about the way that religions should be practiced, for example, Catholicism and Protestantism in Christianity, or Sunni and Shia in Islam. Sometimes, these divisions go back hundreds or thousands of years, and cause great tension between groups.

The world has many religions - some of the largest ones include Hinduism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and Judaism

Having Faith Activity:

You are going to give a speech about how it can be helpful to you life to believe in religion.

You can choose to speak about:

religion generally or choose a specific religion.

You speech should follow your building blocks structure:

1 2 3 4

Introduction

Reason 1

Reason 2

Conclusion

Follow the build blocks guide below when delivering your speech

Time 8 Mins (Preparation) | 1-2 Mins (Speaking)

INTRODUCTION

Insert opening sentence here

Try to focus on including relevance, urgency or background information

Religion can be helpful for people to believe in. Today, I am going to discuss (pick one)

/ / /

religion in general Hinduism

REASON 1

REASON 2

CONCLUSION

Judaism Buddhism Christianity

Islam

/ /

The first reason why religion can be helpful is

Insert reason, and explain why

The first reason why religion can be helpful is…

Insert reason, and explain why

Religion can be meaningful and powerful, especially when you consider

Insert your two reasons here

dback me!

PART 2: Religion in Schools

Why Does Religion Get Taught in Some Schools?

Learning Facts

Some schools have religious education as part of their curriculum

In general, schools can be divided into three separate categories:

Secular: no religious education

General: introduces students to several religions and their distinctions

Religious: teach a specific religion

Study of religion as an academic subject

studies or history classes. The purpose of this is to provide students with an understanding of the beliefs, practices, and impact of various religions throughout history and in different cultures. Most public schools (schools funded by the government) are not allowed to prioritise a particular religion

a can look like:

Religious Education: teachings, rituals, scriptures, and moral principles specific to the religious tradition

Worship and Practices: prayers, worship services, or religious ceremonies, as part of their daily or weekly routines.

Ethical and Moral Emphasis: instilling virtues and principles that align with the religious teachings and promote character development.

Teacher Qualifications: Teachers in religious schools may be required to have a certain level of religious knowledge or affiliation with the specific faith

Uniform: students may have to wear clothing affiliated with thatr specific religion, for example a hijab.

Do you think that schools should teach about religion? Should they be allowed to teach about a specific religion?

Different schools approach religion in different ways. Most public schools either teach about all religions equally, or do not teach about religion at all. Religious schools can feature worship, moral teachings, and require their teachers to be religious or have religious garments as part of their uniforms.

Why Does Religion Get Taught in Some Schools?

Principled Analysis

Education plays an important role for society and is therefore funded by the government. Education is important for helping young people develop useful skills, but also for things like socialization, physical education, and general well-being That’s why the government fully funds most schools

Freedom of Religion

Parents should be able to instill their beliefs in their children’s upbringing Religion provides an important guide to how we should see the world and live our lives, so all other learning we do should be through the lens of that religious framework

Freedom of Religion

In many countries, the government is secular This means that it is not associated with a particular religion, and does not incorporate religion into its operations. This is important because the government is meant to represent the entire population of a country, including those with different religions or no religion at all. This is also known as the separation between church and state.

When people want a specific religious education, this creates a tension between freedom of religion and the separation of church and state.

What do you think is more important in the context of schools: freedom of religion or the separation of church and state?

Separation of Church and State Separation of Church & State

The government should not support one religion over another, or incorporate a specific religion into its daily affairs Funding a religious school would be condoning the indoctrination of a specific religion

PART 3: Rebutting in a Debate

Rebutting in a Debate

We all remember our building block format for giving a speech

Several classes ago, we also discussed the idea of rebuttal: responding to the previous speaker and explaining why their points are not correct This goes before our substantive reasoning

When you’re delivering rebuttal, you need to do three things:

Pinpoint

Pinpoint: quickly refer to the other’s person’s argument. This is so the judge knows what part of their speech you are talking about. You want to keep this short, because you want to save your time for actually responding!

Reasoning

Reasoning: explain why their point isn’t true. The best rebuttal has multiple reasons that attack the point in different ways

Summarize

Summarize: explain to the judge what it means for the debate, now that their point doesn’t stand.

Now, let’s practice our rebuttal in the context of religious schools!

Rebuttal Practice Activity:

You will have to rebut the statements on the board. Everyone will have a try at rebutting each sentence.

Make sure that when you deliver your rebuttal, you:

Pinpoint

Reasoning

Summarize

Time 3 Mins (Each Response Prep) | 30s (Respond)

Statement 1

Prep Time: 3 minutes

“I don’t think children should learn anything about religions at school, even if it’s learning about all religions equally. School is only about learning academics, and anything else is the role of the parents. There’s no way that introducing children to religion could be useful ”

Statement 2

Prep Time: 3 minutes

“I don’t think children should learn anything about religions at school, even if it’s learning about all religions equally. School is only about learning academics, and anything else is the role of the parents. There’s no way that introducing children to religion could be useful.”

Practice Debate Activity:

The topic for the debate is:

“We believe

is justified for public schools to teach about a specific religion”.

Half of the group will be FOR religion in schools, and half of the group will be AGAINST.

it

Spend ten minutes thinking about why your side is the right one.

You might want to think about:

What the role of schooling is

How religion can be helpful to people’s lives

Freedom of religion

Separation of church and state Alternatives to religious schools

What a religious school looks like

The role of government-funded education

Use the building blocks below to help you put together a speech/case.

dback me!

2.

Religion is a belief system that answers existential questions regarding our creation, purpose and morality. Religion is based on faith, or a belief of something regardless of scientific proof Religions can be community-based or personal, and people have the right to freedom of religion.

1. Freedom of religion is a widely accepted human right. Freedom of religion means that everyone has the right to choose and practice their own religion or belief system.

3.

Some of the world’s most popular religions are:

Hinduism

Judaism

Christianity

Islam

Buddhism

4.

Some schools teach religious education. Schools can be divided into three categories:

Secular: no religious education

General: introduces students to several religions and their distinctions

Religious: teach a specific religion

5. The separation of church and state must be balanced with people’s freedom of religion. While it’s important to many that their child grows up governed by religion, the government typically cannot affiliate itself with a particular religion

Most public schools do not teach about religion or give a generalized religious education. Many religious schools are private

6.

SYMBOL OBJECTIVES:

Learn a special skill Activity time Key takeaway

THANK YOU! EXCITED TO SEE YOU ALL NEXT WEEK!