Conceptualizing and Researching the Professionalization of Religious Education Teachers: Historical and International Perspectives

Current discussions on Religious Education (RE), both in Germany and England, focus on the quality of teaching and the professionality of teachers, but neglect the historical and institutional process of professionalization upon which conceptions of teaching quality and teacher professionality hinge. This article seeks to provide definitional clarity by differentiating between individual and collective professionalization; exploring teacher professionalization in general and in the special case of RE; and operationalizing the concept of RE teacher professionalization for the purposes of planned historical and international comparative research. A three-fold conceptualization of professionalization is proposed, consisting of the following inter-related levels: (1) initial and continuing professional development; (2) professional self-organization and professional politics; and (3) professional knowledge. The breadth, complexity and significance of the historical and institutional processes associated with the professionalization of RE teachers at each of these levels is described and discussed. It is argued that further historical and international comparative research on these lines would contribute a broader and deeper understanding of the presuppositions of RE teacher professionality beyond current debates.

The Professionalisation of Non-Denominational Religious Education in England: Politics, Organisation and Knowledge

In response to contemporary concerns, and using neglected primary sources, this article explores the professionalisation of teachers of Religious Education (RI/RE) in non-denominational, state-maintained schools in England. It does so from the launch of Religion in Education (1934) and the Institute for Christian Education at Home and Abroad (1935) to the founding of the Religious Education Council of England and Wales (1973) and the British Journal of Religious Education (1978). Professionalisation is defined as a collective historical process in terms of three inter-related concepts: (1) professional self-organisation and professional politics, (2) professional knowledge, and (3) initial and continuing professional development. The article sketches the history of non-denominational religious education prior to the focus period, to contextualise the emergence of the professionalising processes under scrutiny. Professional self-organisation and professional politics are explored by reconstructing the origins and history of the Institute of Christian Education at Home and Abroad, which became the principal body offering professional development provision for RI/RE teachers for some fifty years. Professional knowledge is discussed in relation to the content of Religion in Education which was oriented around Christian Idealism and interdenominational networking. Changes in journal name in the 1960s and 1970s reflected uncertainties about the orientation of the subject and shifts in understanding over the nature and character of professional knowledge. The article also explores a particular case of resistance, in the late 1960s, to the prevailing consensus surrounding the nature and purpose of RI/RE, and the representativeness and authority of the pre-eminent professional body of the time. In conclusion, the article examines some implications which may be drawn from this history for the prospects and problems of the professionalisation of RE today.

Enriching the Historiography of Religious Education: Insights from Oral Life History

This article seeks to exemplify the extent to which oral life history research can enrich existing historiographies of English Religious Education (RE). Findings are reported from interviews undertaken with a sample of key informants involved in designing and/or implementing significant curriculum changes in RE in the 1960s and 1970s. The interviews provided insights into personal narratives and biographies that have been marginal to, or excluded from, the historical record. Thematic analysis of the oral life histories opened a window into the world of RE, specifically in relation to professional identity and practice, curriculum development, and professional organizations, thereby exposing the operational dynamics of RE at an (inter-)personal and organizational level. The findings are framed by a series of methodological reflections. Overall, oral life histories are shown to be capable of revealing that which was previously hidden and which can be confirmed and contrasted with knowledge gleaned from primary documentary sources.

Prospects and Problems for Religious Education in England, 1967-1970: Curriculum Reform in Political Context

This article provides an historical case study of an abortive attempt to revise policy and legislation relating to Religious Education (RE) in English schools in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Drawing upon published sources, including parliamentary debates, as well as previously unutilised national archival sources from the Department of Education and Science, it comments upon events which have hitherto been omitted from the historiography of RE, but which help to contextualise significant changes in RE theory and practice at that time. Moreover, it demonstrates that the current parlous state of RE in schools is in part the result of latent and longstanding issues and problems, rather than a consequence of present-day government policy alone. Therefore, in reviewing and developing RE policies and practices, all stakeholders are urged to look more closely at both changes and continuities in the subject’s past and the contexts in which they occurred.

Context, Complexity and Contestation: Birmingham’s Agreed Syllabuses for Religious Education since the 1970s

The present article offers an historical perspective on the 1975, 1995 and 2007 Birmingham Agreed Syllabuses for Religious Education. It draws upon historical evidence uncovered as part of ‘The hidden history of curriculum change in reli- gious education in English schools, 1969–1979’ project, and curriculum history theories, especially David Labaree’s observations about the distance between the ‘rhetorical’ and ‘received’ curricula. We argue that, contrary to the existing his- toriography, curriculum change in religious education (RE) has been evolution- ary not revolutionary. Multiple reasons are posited to explain this, not least among which is the capacity and agency of teachers. Furthermore, we argue that ongoing debates about the nature and purpose of RE, as exemplified in the Birmingham context, reflect the multiple expectations that religious educators and other stakeholders had, and continue to have, of the curriculum subject. These debates contribute to the inertia evident in the implementation of RE cur- riculum reforms. A consciousness of the history of RE enables curriculum con- testations to be contextualised and understood, and, thereby, provides important insights which can be applied to ongoing and future debates and developments.

Religious Education and Freedom of Religion and Belief

What opportunities and challenges are presented to religious education across the globe by the basic human right of freedom of religion and belief? To what extent does religious education facilitate or inhibit ‘freedom of religion’ in schools? What contribution can religious education make to freedom in the modern world? This volume provides answers to these and related questions by drawing together a selection of the papers delivered at the seventeenth session of the International Seminar on Religious Education and Values held in Ottawa in 2010. These reflections from international scholars, drawing upon historical, theoretical and empirical perspectives, provide insights into the development of religious education in a range of national contexts, from Europe to Canada and South Africa, as well as illuminating possible future directions for the subject.

Social Capital in Inter-Organizational Partnership Research

This chapter focuses on the use of social capital as a construct to examine and explain the formation and operation of inter-organizational partnerships. In particular it shows how social capital contributes to the sustainability of a public sector partnership. In this research context social capital is defined as the networks, trust, norms and values that enable individuals and organizations to achieve mutual goals through collaboration. This definition draws upon the author’s empirical research on partnerships and partnership working in the field of post-compulsory education and her practical experience of establishing, managing and leading international partnerships for teaching and research in teacher education. The emphasis is on the practical application of social capital to qualitative data and on identifying sources of evidence, including research literature from different disciplines in the social sciences to interpret and theorize primary data. The first section of the chapter considers the complexities of defining social capital in the context of rival theoretical and political perspectives and leads to a discussion of the dimensions of social capital that are found in effective and sustained partnerships.

Learning at the Interstices; Locating Practical Philosophies for Understanding Physical/virtual Inter-spaces

Virtual worlds are relatively recent developments, and so it is tempting to believe that they need to be understood through newly developed theories and philosophies. However, humans have long thought about the nature of reality and what it means to be “real.” This paper examines the three persistent philosophical concepts of Metaxis, Liminality and Space that have evolved across more than 2000 years of meditation, contemplation and reflection. Our particular focus here is on the nature of the interface between the virtual and the physical: at the interstices, and how the nature of transactions and transitions across those interfaces may impact upon learning. This may, at first, appear to be an esoteric pursuit, but we ground our arguments in primary and secondary data from research studies in higher education.

A Video Analysis of Intra- and Inter-professional Leadership Behaviours Within “The Burns Suite”: Identifying Key Leadership Models

Objective Leadership is particularly important in complex highly interprofessional health care contexts involving a number of staff, some from the same specialty (intraprofessional), and others from different specialties (interprofessional). The authors recently published the concept of “The Burns Suite” (TBS) as a novel simulation tool to deliver interprofessional and teamwork training. It is unclear which leadership behaviors are the most important in an interprofessional burns resuscitation scenario, and whether they can be modeled on to current leadership theory. The purpose of this study was to perform a comprehensive video analysis of leadership behaviors within TBS. Methods A total of 3 burns resuscitation simulations within TBS were recorded. The video analysis was grounded-theory inspired. Using predefined criteria, actions/interactions deemed as leadership behaviors were identified. Using an inductive iterative process, 8 main leadership behaviors were identified. Cohen’s κ coefficient was used to measure inter-rater agreement and calculated as κ = 0.7 (substantial agreement). Each video was watched 4 times, focusing on 1 of the 4 team members per viewing (senior surgeon, senior nurse, trainee surgeon, and trainee nurse). The frequency and types of leadership behavior of each of the 4 team members were recorded. Statistical significance to assess any differences was assessed using analysis of variance, whereby a p < 0.05 was taken to be significant. Leadership behaviors were triangulated with verbal cues and actions from the videos. Results All 3 scenarios were successfully completed. The mean scenario length was 22 minutes. A total of 362 leadership behaviors were recorded from the 12 participants. The most evident leadership behaviors of all team members were adhering to guidelines (which effectively equates to following Advanced Trauma and Life Support/Emergency Management of Severe Burns resuscitation guidelines and hence “maintaining standards”), followed by making decisions. Although in terms of total frequency the senior surgeon engaged in more leadership behaviors compared with the entire team, statistically there was no significant difference between all 4 members within the 8 leadership categories. This analysis highlights that “distributed leadership” was predominant, whereby leadership was “distributed” or “shared” among team members. The leadership behaviors within TBS also seemed to fall in line with the “direction, alignment, and commitment” ontology. Conclusions Effective leadership is essential for successful functioning of work teams and accomplishment of task goals. As the resuscitation of a patient with major burns is a dynamic event, team leaders require flexibility in their leadership behaviors to effectively adapt to changing situations. Understanding leadership behaviors of different team members within an authentic simulation can identify important behaviors required to optimize nontechnical skills in a major resuscitation. Furthermore, attempting to map these behaviors on to leadership models can help further our understanding of leadership theory. Collectively this can aid the development of refined simulation scenarios for team members, and can be extrapolated into other areas of simulation-based team training and interprofessional education.