Overview
The importance of Religious Studies (RS) cannot be understated. Mercia’s high-quality provision allows pupils to develop knowledge of world religions and to make sense of the cultures in the world around them. The course of study provokes challenging questions about meaning and purpose in life, beliefs about God, ultimate reality, issues of right and wrong, and what it means to be human.
GCSE RS equips pupils with knowledge and understanding of a range of religions and world views, enabling them to develop their ideas, values and identity. Pupils learn about the part that religion has to play in some of the key social and moral issues of the present day. This is rooted in the study of religious scripture, looking at the Old and New Testaments and the Qur’an. Excitingly, this provides pupils with the knowledge that they need to engage in theological discussion, and to move on to discuss the historical dimensions of religion in both the past and present.
The course spans the two years allocated and is taught in a logical, coherent way. This allows pupils to develop and refine a strong understanding of Islam, Christianity and each religion’s attitude to a wide range of social issues. The chosen course feels very familiar to pupils, given their exposure to both Abrahamic faiths and other moral/ethical questions, notably during Year 9.
Year 7
- Judaism: origins and belief
- Judaism in the modern world
- Christianity: origins and belief
- Christianity in the modern world
- Island: origins and belief
Year 8
- Islam in the modern world
- Sikhi: origins and belief
- Santana Dharma (Hinduism): origins, beliefs and practices
- Buddhism: origins, beliefs and practices
- Comparison of the six major world religions: exam skills
Year 9
- Ethics and application to real-world issues
- Philosophy of religion
- Non-religious world views
- Religion, human rights and social justice
- Sociology of religion and world views
Year 10
- Christianity: beliefs and teachings
- Christianity: worship and practices
- Islam: beliefs and teachings
- Islam: worship and practices
Year 11
- Relationships and families
- Religion and life
- Religion, peace and conflict
- Religion, crime and punishment
Exam board
AQA