A case study of primary students’ perspectives of engagement in interreligious learning and teaching: a community of learners

ABSTRACTThis case study explores the perceptions of students regarding their engagement in interreligious learning and teaching in one Australian Catholic Primary School. The study probes the learners’ understandings of what interreligious learning and teaching looks like in their context and how it might relate to their understandings of their evolving religious identity. The students were interviewed in groups and qualitative content analysis was used to uncover themes that emerged from the data. The key themes, Religious Education learning, diversity, voice and agency, and identity were brought to the fore. These themes are discussed in light of the school’s Enhancing Catholic School Identity (ECSI) data and the school’s approach to Religious Education. Utilising the multicultural/multifaith reality in this school context enabled the learners to engage with a plurality of religious and non-religious worldviews. Employing a pedagogical model operationalised in other learning areas, learners in Religion can engage respectfully in dialogue, critique perspectives and come to new or nuanced understandings. The study revealed learners were empowered to bridge the gaps between them through a felt sense of belonging to their school community and the enhancement of their understandings of the Catholic tradition through knowledge of, and dialogue with, other traditions.KEYWORDS: Interreligious learning and teachingreligious educationdiversityreligious identity Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Ethical approvalAll procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of James Cook University, Human Research Ethics Committee, ID H8146. Ethics approval also granted from Brisbane Catholic Education Reference No. 450.Informed consentInformed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.Notes1. The name of the school has been used at the written request of the school Principal.Additional informationNotes on contributorsToni FoleyToni Foley is the Assistant Principal Religious Education at Our Lady Help of Christians School, Cairns, Australia and completed her PhD at James Cook University. Her research interests include, religious identity, interreligious teaching and learning, pedagogy and wellbeing. Toni is currently exploring perceptions of interreligious and religious identity: interplay of learning and teaching.Maree DinanThompsonMaree Dinan-Thompson is Professor and Deputy Vice Chancellor Students, Division of Student Life at James Cook University. Her expertise lies mainly in the field of curriculum development and change, and assessment, relative to the discipline of Health and Physical Education. Her primary and secondary school teaching was spent in Catholic Education schools, and she has worked on research projects that been of benefit to Catholic education.Nerina CaltabianoNerina Caltabiano is an Associate Professor of Psychology in the College of Healthcare Sciences at James Cook University. Her expertise lies mainly in the field of social psychology, and more recently in educational psychology. She is currently investigating wellbeing in carers. She has worked on research projects that have been of benefit to Catholic education.