Teaching Global Religion and Societies in High Schools - Essay Example

Teaching Global Religion and Societies in High Schools Letter of Transmittal Street Address ZIP of recipient Title Street Address City, State ZIP Dear [Name]: Teaching global religions and societies in high schools The scope of this report covers the need to review the modes of teaching religious studies especially in high schools. It focuses on scholarly views of religious practices and societal issues. The report is intended to aid the review and implementation of a global religions and societies. It addresses issues associated with the existing methods of teaching religious education. However, the intensity of the research behind this report is limited by the availability of comprehensive resources to intensify this research. It is therefore recommended that further research is done to consolidate the findings of this research as well as those provided by other scholarly sources. This report should be implemented with utmost effectiveness. Sincerely, Signature Your name Title Table of Contents Informative abstract 4 Background of the Research 5 Secondary Research Findings 6 Methodology 7 Research Results 9 Implementation of the Findings 10 Conclusion 11 Recommendations 11 References 13 Informative Abstract This report explores different scholarly views regarding global religious studies. It compares these views in an annotated bibliography of several sources. It focuses on the weaknesses in the current teaching methods used to teach religious education. Upon successful exploration of these weaknesses, the report gives recommendations by different researchers to eliminate these weaknesses. The report focuses on global religions and societies as suggested by its title. Background of the Research The American Academy of Religion (2010) indicates that there is high illiteracy of religions due to lack of proper teachings on the importance of religious studies in schools. It goes further to show that most students do not take religious studies seriously due to poor teaching. It emphasizes that most teachers do not have ample knowledge of guiding students to see the importance of religious studies. According to this source, religious studies are meant to assist students explore different views of societies regarding religions. Teachers should guide students to appreciate the importance of religious studies instead of influencing them to follow particular views of particular religions. Influencing students to follow and adopt particular religious leads to hatred of other religious. It was further discovered by The American Academy of Religion (2010) that faith-based expressions taught in religious studies should introduce students to understanding the impact of religion on economic, social, political matters. The students will then recognize the impact of religion on these matters deepening their understanding of the religious matters. If students understand the role of religion in the society, they will intensify their explorations on global religions and cultures. In the process, they will appreciate global religious diversity. Therefore, the students will avoid extreme stereotypes of particular religions and instead accept religious diversity (American Academy of Religion, 2010). There is massive support for non-devotional approach to teaching religious studies in schools which is constitutional and influences students to be open-minded in their religious studies explorations. It explains that this approach enables students to identify different global religious and cultural practices and explore their importance in the society. The source further explores the role of religious studies in the elimination of racial and cultural discriminations globally. It also eliminates hatred and racial discriminations in schools since students are enlightened on the importance of appreciating and accepting the existence religious and cultural diversity. The source is thus credible to use in this research because of its in-depth and relevant coverage of the topic (American Academy of Religion, 2010). Secondary Research Findings Emerich (2009) explored different worldviews of religion that have enormous influence on social and cultural matters globally. She focuses on the importance of incorporating religious studies in all disciplines. As the author explains, including religious studies in all disciplines will help reduce conflicting ideas of science, metaphysics and ethics with religion. Conflicting ideologies about religion and other disciplines reduces the enchantment of students into religious studies hence the widespread illiteracy in religious studies. This is what the author emphasizes. However, the author recommends explorations of different ways to incorporate religious studies in other disciplines that serve as alternatives to her propositions. For instance, the author proposes that religious studies taught in schools can have comprehensive topics that tackle interdisciplinary relations especially when it comes to religion and other disciplines (Emerich, 2009). According to many researchers, contemporary lifestyles have led to a highly secularized society hence the continuous disenchantment of people from religious practices. She indicates that students have adopted these lifestyles from the society which is the reason why they do not take religious studies taught in schools seriously. This is the reason why she emphasizes on the importance of guiding teachers to devise effective ways of teaching religious studies (Emerich, 2009). Emerich (2009) emphasizes that religious studies are vital to students and the society at large. This source also recommends use of non-devotional teaching methods that do not influence students to adopt particular denominations but instead understand religious practices in the world. She advises teachers to further their research on global religions and societies so that they can captivate students while teaching religious studies or while talking about religious issues to students. She recommends further research global religions and re-enchantment of nature across all academic and societal disciplines. Therefore, it is a relevant source to use because of its enhanced guidance on global religions and societies (Emerich, 2009). Methodology Feinberg (2014) explains the essence of teaching religious studies in public schools of the United States. He discusses different ways of implementing new methods of teaching religious studies. The author argues that religious studies should be emphasized public schools to create a culture of valuing religious and cultural diversity. He explains that if students are guided into understanding the important of religious diversity in the world, then they will spread the same message in the society. The author notes that many people developed a wrong perception regarding the ruling by Supreme Court against devotional studies taught in schools. He believes that the ruling was on the basis that devotional studies make students to ignore the importance of diversity. Devotional studies do not support cohesion of religions hence causing contemptuous of religious and cultural diversity among students as well as in the society (Feinberg, 2014). The source explores different weakness in the current religious studies offered by public schools in the United States. These weaknesses include lack of the cohesive aspect that should be emphasized in religious studies. Religious studies taught in schools concentrate on specific religions thus giving learners an impression of the superiority of these religions over other religions. The students develop a scornful attitude towards some religious hence the increasing religious divides all over the world. Another weakness in religious studies taught in schools is that religious studies teachers do not have good skills to change the conflicting views about different religions by students. Most teachers teach religious studies just like any other academic discipline despite the fact that religious studies contain very sensitive issues that are based on faith (Feinberg, 2014). The author highlights the necessity of teaching learners historical accounts of different religions so that they can be enticed to study deeper. The studies should also explore the relations of the different religions and societies that existed or exist globally. The students can develop the urge to go extra mile in researching about religions and cultures practised in the world. Teaching students about one religion limits their ability to explore other religions because it shows them that other religions are less important. This is the reason for little appreciation for cultural diversity among students and the society. The source contains important information about religious studies which make it credible for this research. Research Results Locklin et al (2012 have problematized the teaching of world religions calling for its abandonment. They recommend complete restructuring of academic syllabuses that cause students’ into misinterpretation of the teachings. The source explains different categories of world religions that are taught by schools as religious disciplines. It argues that current religious studies taught in schools promote plurality of traditions practised by religious without bringing out the specific attributes of the religions and their practices (Locklin et al, 2012). Locklin et al (2012) indicate that religious studies taught in schools cause the transference of the religions to the learners instead of giving them the power to explore the diverse religious practices of world religions. The students are taught to embrace particular religions instead of understanding these religions. In the end, they end up appreciating particular religions and loathing other religions which is against the essence of religious studies. According to the authors, this is the reason for historical discriminations of certain religions that are not comprehensively understood by learners. The authors argue that teachers insist on the importance of the religion they teach rather than the discipline itself (Locklin et al, 2012). Another problem of religious studies offered in schools as identified by scholars is the promotion of some religions while ignoring the existence of other religions. This limits the knowledge of students to only one or a few religions. Therefore, the learners do not get the opportunity to compare different religions. The authors indicate that religious studies should be comparative to broaden and deepen students’ understanding of religious practices across the world. The contemporary religious studies taught in schools are accused of being biased to particular regions by many scholars. Locklin et al (2012) analyse the diversity of world religions laying emphasis on the importance of showing similarities and differences in world religions. Social, cultural and religious diversities should be taught in schools. The authors note that in schools with diversity in terms of race and religion experience problems in religious studies since learners have different views on education due to their backgrounds. For this reason, religious studies cannot be taught effectively due to strong ties to initial knowledge about specific religious by students. This is the reason why the authors insist on a harmonized mode of teaching religious studies that can be applied everywhere. The studies will not raise biases associated with current methods of teaching religious education in schools. The authors explain that current methods of teaching religious studies create the impression a devotion among learners prevents them from exploring other religions (Locklin et al, 2012). Implementation of the Findings Milenovic (2013) explores various tasks and objectives that should be considered while effecting religious studies in schools. The author of this article indicates that implementation of these objectives will have massive impact on learners perception of the importance of religious studies taught in their schools. Moreover, the source explains the need to train religious studies teachers to effect the proposed changes to religious studies. The teachers should be persons with comprehensive knowledge of different religions. This way, the teachers will change the attitude of learners towards religions thus achieve core objects stipulated by the discipline (Milenovic, 2013). The implementation of core objective of religious studies can give students the opportunity to compare and contrast different world religions. Milenovic explains that this will give the learners the chance to question certain religious practices thus do more research on these practices. The religious studies should also refine the similarities and differences of religions so that the students can easily grasp religious diversities in the world hence appreciate them. The author indicates that this should be the aim of religious studies where prejudicial way of viewing certain religions is eliminated in schools and the society. Milenovic (2013) recommends an interactive mode of teaching religious studies through utilizing religious and cultural diversity. Experiential activities are encouraged in teaching religious studies since they increase the reality of the teachings as noted by the author. The author explains the essence of using a global approach to teaching religious studies since some religions are more prevalent in one region than they are in other regions of the world. Therefore, the author calls for wider explorations of religions so that students can have a comprehensive coverage of global religions in their studies (Milenovic, 2013). Conclusion From the findings of different researchers, it is clearly evident that there is need to restructure religious education taught in schools. All these sources have identified problems with the current content of religious studies taught in schools. Emerich (2009) emphasizes the importance of teaching the interrelations of other disciplines with religious studies that often have conflicting ideas. Locklin et al (2012) explain the existence of great religions in the world that hinder students from learning global religions due to the popularity of these religions. It is thus clear that current religious studies are dominated by limitations that prevent open-mindedness of students. Recommendations It is strongly recommended that a new curriculum of teaching religious studies should be put into place. The curriculum should eliminate all the limitations identified by the annotated sources. It is also advisable that the proposed mode of teaching religious studies be implemented in high schools where age and development of learners favours religious studies. The proposed mode of teaching religious studies in high schools should be taught by retrained teachers. Consequently, it is recommended that the whole religious studies be reviewed as per the views of different researchers who have identified almost similar problems with the current methods of teaching religious studies. References American Academy of Religion,. (2010). Guidelines for Teaching about Religions. Retrieved 3 November 2014, from https://www.aarweb.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/Publications/epublications/AARK-12CurriculumGuidelines.pdf Emerich, M. (2009). International Society for the Study of Religion, Nature and Culture: “The Re-Enchantment of Nature across Disciplines”. Worldviews: Global Religions, Culture, and Ecology, 13(2), 239-241. Doi: 10.1163/156853509x438616 Feinberg, W. (2014). An Assessment of Arguments for Teaching Religion in Public Schools in the United States. Religious Education, 109 (4), 394.doi:10.1080/00344087.2014.924773. Locklin, R., Tiemeier, T., & Vento, J. (2012). Teaching World Religions without Teaching “World Religions”. Teaching Theology & Religion, 15(2), 159-181. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9647.2012.00784.x Milenovic, Z. (2013). Achieving the Objectives and Tasks of Religious Teaching in Schools Inclusive. Methodological Horizons, 8 (18), 129-141. Read More