As an effective tool used within the evocative method of phenomenological inquiry, this article details the use of the written anecdotes of Godly Play storytellers in Australia to understand children as a means of grace. The phenomenological framework out of which the evocative method emanates is described, and four examples from the author's…

While there is growing international interest in meditation and mindfulness initiatives in schools, little research has focused on exploring the impact of such practices on students' spirituality. This paper reports data from a mixed method study involving primary school classes engaged in the regular practice of Christian meditation between Years…

Understanding students' perceptions of Christian education is essential for schools seeking to make changes that enhance opportunities for students to understand and engage with Christian faith. This study introduces and describes the validation of an accessible survey that probes students' perceptions of the Christian culture of their school and…

This paper attempts to move beyond a critique of historically dominant ways of thinking about teaching and learning relationships to offer a conceptualization of relational pedagogy from a theological perspective. It offers commentary on the potential of relational pedagogy for Christian faith-based schools informed by the scholarship of German…

This systematic quantitative literature review explores the use of story in early childhood religious education to inform the research question "What are the pedagogical benefits of using story in religious education in the early years of primary school?" Searches were conducted across multiple databases and individual journals for…

Objectives: To examine the effect of spirituality and spiritual training on resilience in primary caregiver parents of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Methods: A cross-country pre- and post-test-based experimental design has been used. The sample of this one-year-long study comprised 1687 parents of children with ASD in 15…

Ongoing global issues relating to the decline of the popularity of institutional religions, the rise of numbers of non-religious persons, and new models of spirituality in superdiverse societies have resulted in the need to reconceptualise religious diversity as worldviews diversity, and to critically examine increasing calls for the provision of…

Drawing on data from the 2011 Australian National Church Life Survey (NCLS), this study was designed to assess peer and parental influence on frequency of church attendance, attitude toward church, and attitude toward Christianity among a sample of 6256 young churchgoers between the ages of eight and 14 years, attending a range of denominations,…

Australia is a culturally, religiously and linguistically diverse country, however, learning about the religious dimensions of this superdiversity is inadequately reflected in the national school curriculum, notwithstanding recent attempts to address this at the state level in Victoria. Debates regarding the role of religion in school have raged…

Alphacrucis College, Australia, has developed a Clinical Teaching Model (CTM) as an option within the initial teacher-training awards. The Alphacrucis College model intentionally combines the pre-service teachers' spiritual formation with their professional development. This article reports on an evaluation of the CTM students' experience compared…

Based on a single-group one-year long evaluation study with 1,625 gifted children aged from 225 schools in 15 cities, this article examines whether participation in a spiritual education program increases their emotional intelligence. Results showed that gifted children's emotional intelligence scores were higher post--spiritual education program…

This paper considers the challenges faced by contemporary Catholic Education systems with particular reference to the contrast between the prevailing neo-liberal agenda and gospel values. It explicates this contrast from the perspectives of current critiques of the influence of the new manageralism in education and relevant literature on Catholic…

Christian-based youth ministry in many Western countries is being conducted in difficult circumstances. How might denominations, parishes, and youth workers best approach youth ministry? Theologian Arthur Canales (2006) proposes eight different models of youth ministry. Drawing on Canales' typology, this article considers youth ministry among the…

This article provides a summary account of the book, "A Mission to the Heart of Young People: Catholic Curriculum", published in Australia in 2012. To preserve the true mission and religious integrity of Catholic schools in the face of secularism and "national economic requirements", it is argued that Catholic schools must…

For dance educators engaged in teaching choreography in Christian tertiary institutes, encouraging students to develop foundational compositional skills whilst exploring personal expression of the Christian faith is undoubtedly a challenging objective. In 2005, a Christian tertiary education provider in South Australia enrolled six female dance…