Y7 Content
Judaism - The roots of the three Abrahamic religions, and how jewish identity has developed in the modern world.
Hinduism
The oldest and most populous polytheistic (sometimes!) conception of God, and how it has affected the lives of Hindus.
Buddhism
A non-theistic religion, and the difference this brings. Sikhism
A combination of Hindu and Abrahamic influences, with distinctive practical applications.
Islam - Key Beliefs
Humanism
A worldview that rejects theism, and the struggle to replace the values that it provides.
Revision and end of year exam
Spirited arts
How art can express ultimate ideas in a way that language never could.
Students should be able to explain the main beliefs of Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Humanism, and give examples of how they affect practice. They should also be able to evaluate opposing arguments on a controversial issue, with reference to relevant religious beliefs.
Y8 (AQA Short Course GCSE)
Content
Christianitynature of God
Attributes of God, the problem of evil, the Trinity, Creation, the afterlife.
ChristianityJesus Christ
The life of Jesus, salvation and atonement.
The 5 roots / 6 articles, Tawhid, the role of angels, predestination and human responsibility, the afterlife.
IslamAuthority Prophets, holy books and the Imamate. Revision, exam, feedback and improvement Focus on exam technique and timing
Moral thinking
Utilitarianism, Divine command theory, situation ethics, natural law and key principles relevant to Peace and Conflict / Relationships and Families
Students should be able to explain and critically evaluate Christian and Islamic beliefs about the following topics, showing understanding of their significance and implications for practice.
Christianity: The nature of God, Creation, The afterlife, Jesus, Salvation
Islam: The nature of Allah, Angels, Predestination, The afterlife, Prophets / Imams, Holy books
Y9 (AQA
Short Course
GCSE)
Content
Peace and Conflict
The legitimacy of violence in the name of justice: just war, holy war, extremism and terrorism.
Peace and Conflict
Nuclear weapons, Peace making, Support for victims of war
Relationships
Religious and non-religious attitudes towards sexual and familial relationships
Revision
Focus on exam technique and timings
Revision/ exam
Students sit the AQA short course GCSE, with sections on Christian beliefs and teachings, Islamic beliefs and teachings, Relationships & families and Peace & conflict.
Intro to philosophy
What is philosophy, and how does it differ from RS?
How do sceptical hypotheses threaten to undermine knowledge? And can this be escaped?
In addition to the revising the year end points from Y8, students should be able to apply and critically evaluate Christian and Islamic beliefs to the following topics: Peace and conflict: The legitimacy of violence / pacifism, Reasons for war, including holy war, Nuclear weapons, Peace making, Support for victims of war
Relationships: Sexuality, including heterosexual and homosexual relationships, Cohabitation, marriage and divorce, Contraception and family planning, Family roles, Gender roles
Students should also be able to give informed, considered evaluations of arguments for and against philosophical scepticism (studied in the summer after the short course GCSE exam)
Y10 (all students):
Themes in philosophy
Is there a god? Cosmological and teleological arguments, reductive accounts of religious belief
Moral theories
Utilitarian, deontological and virtue ethics approaches to morality.
Applied and metaethics
Is it ever morally right to take a life? Do we have an obligation to help others? Is there any objective moral truth?
Political philosophy
What limits should there be on freedom?
What sort of equality should we aim for?
Aesthetics
What is valuable about art? Is beauty in the eye of the perceiver? The mind Is the mind just the brain? Do you know other people have minds? Can the mind be free if it depends on the physical?
Students should be able to give informed, considered evaluations of competing views / arguments about:
- Belief in God
- Moral theories, applied to a range of contemporary issues
- Political philosophy, including libertarianism / paternalism, equality and our responsibilities to our society
- Aesthetic value
- The metaphysics of mind, and its implications for the afterlife and free will
Y10 (option):
Eduqas Full Course GCSE
Component 3Religious, philosophical and ethical studies in the modern world
Life and Death
Is there life after death? Bodily resurrection? Is human life sacred? Are abortion or euthanasia morally permissible?
Good and Evil
Where does our sense of morality come from? Why might a loving god allow evil and suffering? Why do people commit crimes? Why and how should we punish them?
Human Rights
What is ‘equality’, and why is it important? How have individuals challenged the law because of their personal conviction? What limits should be placed on individual freedom? Revision / exam
Relationships
Do religions promote gender equality? Do traditional religious views on sexuality promote healthy relationships? What roles do families play in modern Britain?
Project Students return to an earlier topic in more depth, or apply their learning to a related topic, presenting their findings and opinions to the class.
Students should be able to apply and critically evaluate Christian and Islamic beliefs to the following topics: Life and Death: The origins of the universe, Our responsibility for our world, The origins and value of human and animal life, Abortion and Euthanasia, Death and the afterlife
Good and Evil: Sources of moral belief and guidance, Causes of sin and criminality, Treatment of criminals, including the death penalty, The problem of evil Human Rights: Human rights & social justice, Prejudice and discrimination, Wealth and poverty
Relationships: Sexuality, including heterosexual and homosexual relationships, Cohabitation, marriage and divorce, Contraception and family planning, Family roles, Gender roles
Y11 (option):
Eduqas Full Course GCSE
Components 1 & 2
- Study of Christianity and another world faith
Christian Beliefs
Attributes of God, the problem of evil, the Trinity, Creation, the afterlife, the life of Jesus, salvation and atonement.
Christian Practices
Forms of worship, Sacraments, Pilgrimages and celebrations, Christianity in modern Britain, The worldwide church
Islamic Beliefs
The 5 roots / 6 articles, Tawhid, the role of angels, predestination and human responsibility, the afterlife, Prophets, holy books and the Imamate.
Islamic Practices
The 5 pillars of Sunni Islam, The 10 obligatory acts of Shi’a Islam, Jihad, Festivals and commemorations
Revision / Exams Exams
In addition to revising the year end points from Y8 & Y10, students will be able to explain and critically evaluate the following Christian and Islamic practices. Christianity: Forms of worship, Sacraments, Pilgrimages and celebrations, Christianity in modern Britain, The worldwide church
Islam: The 5 pillars of Sunni Islam, The 10 obligatory acts of Shi’a Islam, Jihad, Festivals and commemorations.
Y12 (AQA Philosophy)
Epistemology & Moral Philosophy
Intro to philosophy.
Different types of truth and argument.
What is Knowledge?
Attempts to define the necessary and sufficient conditions for knowledge.
Perception as a source of knowledge.
Direct realist, indirect realist and idealist theories of the objects of perception.
Reason as a source of Knowledge
Does experience provide the content of every idea, and the justification of all knowledge?
Limits of Knowledge
Can philosophers respond to the challenge of scepticism?
Utilitarianism
Is pleasure the only good?
Are all pleasures of equal value? Should we lie or steal to minimise suffering?
Kantian Deontology
Are some types of action rational / irrational regardless of their consequences? Must we respect the autonomy of every person? What about animals?
Substance and Property dualism
Physicalism: Behaviorism, MBIT
Virtue Ethics
Should the focus of morality be ‘the good life’? Would a virtuous person enjoy violent computer games?
Revision, Mocks
Metaethics
Do moral statements even express beliefs, or merely feelings?
Metaethics
Are there any objective moral truths?
How might utilitarianism, deontology or virtue ethics account for them?
Students should be able to explain and evaluate theories and arguments related to:
Epistemology:
The definition of knowledge
Perception as a source of knowledge
Reason as a source of knowledge
The limits of knowledge
Moral Philosophy:
Moral theories (utilitarianism, deontology and virtue ethics)
Their application to practical issues (stealing, lying, eating animals and simulated killing)
Metaethics - the meaning of moral language and the possibility of moral knowledge
Y13 (AQA Philosophy)Metaphysics of Mind
What do we mean by mind?
Characteristics of the mind, including phenomenal and intentional properties. Chalmers’ ‘hard problem of consciousness’.
Arguments for and against each view, including the divisibility of the physical, the possibility of ‘philosophical zombies’, the problem of other minds and psychophysical interaction.
Arguments for and against view based on our use of language, the possibility of faking or concealing mental states, and the multiple realisability of mental states.
Functionalism / Eliminative Materialism
Can mental states be functionally defined? Can computers think / feel? Could we replace our concepts for the mind with those of neuroscience?
Revision
In addition to revising the Y12 year and points, students should be able to explain and evaluate theories and arguments related to:
Revision / Exams
Y13 (AQA Philosophy) -
Metaphysics of God
The concept and nature of 'God'
The coherence and consistency of omniscience, omnibenevolence, omnipotence, eternality.
Ontological and Cosmological Arguments
Must God exist as the ‘first cause’ explaining the existence of the universe? Is existence a perfection, and so part of the definition of God?
Teleological argument, Problem of Evil
Does the order and perfection of the universe show God created it? Does the disorder and imperfection show he doesn’t exist?
Religious Language
Can we speak meaningfully about the transcendent? What other purposes might religious language have?
Revision
Revision / Exams
Metaphysics of Mind
-The nature of the mind
-Substance dualism
-Property dualism and epiphenomenalism
-Mind-brain type identity theory
-Behaviourism
-Eliminative materialism
-Functionalism
Metaphysics of God:
-The coherence of the concept of God
-The cosmological argument
-The teleological argument
-The ontological argument
-The problem of evil
-The meaningfulness of religious language