2 min read
There is more devil in the detail of the new religious studies GCSE course than many Jewish schools had bargained for.
When the government insisted that from September, GCSE students would have to study at least two religions - rather than one as before - Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis objected. But after clarification that the second religion need take up only a quarter of the course, the murmurs subsided and the Chief Rabbi recommended Islam for schools under his aegis.
Now it has emerged that students will also have to show some know-ledge of Christianity. The changes to the course, the Department for Education explained, are "an important part of our drive to tackle segregation and ensure pupils are properly prepared for life in modern Britain".
The new content , the DfE said, "requires that students know and understand the fact that the religious traditions of Great Britain are in the main Christian, but it does not require all students to study Christianity."
If you are puzzled how anyone could show understanding of Christian tradition without learning something about it, here is what I think is meant. While students will not have to study Christianity systematically, they will have to know about Christian approaches to a few select topics.
As the exam specs of one board, Pearson, has put it, "students should compare and contrast the areas of belief and practice within Judaism with Christianity" . These areas range from contraception to the afterlife, depending on the exam board.
So how much Christianity? Not a lot, it appears. On a specimen exam paper on Judaism published by another board, OCR, there was just one question where students were expected to refer to Christian values, worth six marks out of 126. And that's one paper out of two. In other words, the required Christian content works out at little more than two per cent of the overall exam.
Some Jewish teachers still believe this to be unfair. If you choose Christianity as a main option, then you need only know about one other faith. But if you opt for Judaism and Islam, you will be required to know something about a third faith as well.
Others are taking the changes in their stride. JFS has confirmed it will teach the new course, with Islam as its second religion. A JFS spokesman said that "while the addition of Christian values was not initially expected, given our place within Christian society, it is appropriate that our students have an enhanced understanding".
The Christianity component is not the only troublesome aspect for some schools. It appears that students will also have to look at non-religious beliefs such as atheism or humanism. The same OCR specimen paper asks whether it is possible to be a Jewish humanist (worth 15 marks out of 126). The board's reference material includes organisations such as the British Humanist Association.
Secondly, some had assumed that Jewish children could learn about the beliefs and practices of another faith from a textbook without actually having to go to its scriptures. But the OCR syllabus lists passages from the Koran, for example, and expects students to cite sacred texts to back up their arguments. Not every Jewish school would be comfortable about children having to study the holy books of a different religion.
Some schools such as Hasmonean High have already decided to drop GCSE religious studies. Others are reviewing their options. But some children - or their parents - might not be terribly happy at the thought of their having to do Jewish studies at school while being denied the chance to earn a GCSE for it.