This paper discusses the integration of faith, culture and life in Catholic schools, offering keys to understanding and pedagogical orientations. First, based on magisterial documents, the text identifies three features that characterise this integration: a comprehensive understanding of knowledge, a testimony offered through the lives of…

The question: 'Education: Commodity or Public Good?' (Grace, G. 1989. "Education: Commodity or Public Good?" "British Journal of Educational Studies" 37 (3): 207-221. doi:10.1080/00071005.1989.9973812) is more prescient than ever, and this paper probes the ways in which Catholic school teachers experience market-oriented…

This paper discusses educational insights drawn from a mixed-methods study in Religious Education (RE). The study involved 238 teachers and school leaders, working in 65 Catholic schools in Western Australia (WA). The focus of the study was the educators' perceptions of a large-scale, standardised assessment (LSA) called "The Bishops'…

The personal formation of students is an important goal in Religious Education in secondary schools in the Netherlands. This article, which is based on the design research of my PhD dissertation, examines how a contemplative approach to reading stories can, according to Religious Education teachers, contribute to the personal formation of…

This study uncovers the meanings that secondary teachers working under the religious structure of Jesuit institutions attach to their work. I draw on theoretical insights coming from organisational behaviour. I use cases of teachers who worked or work in Catholic high schools run by the Society of Jesus, also known as the Jesuit order. I…

Catholic schools and colleges are finding it increasingly difficult to maintain and sharpen their distinctiveness in a climate of secularism, indifference to religion and the shortage of practising Catholics. This article argues that one method of bolstering Catholic schools' mission integrity is to highlight one important feature of its identity…

This article is intended to contribute to the debate about the nature of a Catholic philosophy of education by exploring the philosophical issues involved in the apparent conflict between scientific and religious knowledge claims. The claim that modern science has rendered religious truth claims unreasonable appears to be influential among…

Exemplary religious education (RE) teachers were identified by school based RE leaders and interviewed as part of an ongoing study of the implementation of a new senior high school religious education program in Catholic schools in NSW, Australia. Contextualisation was provided by examining dominant social influences utilising Dobbelaere's concept…

The importance of religious questioning in establishing and maintaining religious affiliation is well recognised. Questions and how teachers respond to them is also a critical aspect of strong pedagogy and is an important part of teacher training and formation. Many curriculum documents in religious education assume that student questions are an…

What are the linguistic resources for teachers who pray in contemporary Catholic school classrooms? This article considers the intersections of prayer and language practice, and makes central two arguments. The first is that educational prayer--a particular type of teacher-led extemporaneous prayer in Catholic schools--is a linguistic phenomenon,…

The relationships between RE leaders in Catholic education and their schools and their religious communities may be ambiguous. RE leaders often appear disconnected from both 'ordinary' teacher issues and 'ordinary' leadership issues because of their religious responsibilities. In this innovative research project, the authors have explored RE…

The article focuses the use and reflection of explanatory videos in pedagogical contexts from an interdisciplinary perspective and with regard to teacher reflection and production processes in a joint primary school pedagogical study (with a focus on mathematical learning processes) and Catholic religion education study (with a focus on secondary…

Environmental problems caused by waste and exploitation of natural resources can be exacerbated by a lack of awareness and concern for the environment. One of the contributing factors is the lack of utilization of learning resources and environmental-based media in education. This study aims to develop and validate a teaching module based on the…

Students with blindness and low vision (BLV) are less likely to choose mathematics as a subject in the senior secondary years which may negatively impact future employment opportunities. Using a longitudinal qualitative methodology, three interviews were recorded with a student who is legally blind over a six-year period. Findings suggest that…

This article examines why liberation theology needs to be a core resource in religious education settings, especially in Catholic secondary schools. It will first touch on key tenets of liberation theology and the reasons why it was silenced and underused. It will then analyse poverty in the Jewish tradition as an interfaith resource and…