Page 158 - TWO OF A KIND • Erik Renkema
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CHAPTER 7
Our final finding addresses the content of the moments of contemplation and celebrations. In these practices of religious education, we see an explicit focus on the Christian tradition. This focus is appreciated by teachers from both non- affiliated and Christian backgrounds. According to the respondents this way this tradition can be explored more in depth. They also motivate this focus because of the preferences of parents. The prioritization of Christian sources is not only expressed in collective moments of contemplation, but also in the practice of segregated moments of contemplation and celebrations like the feasts of Christmas and Easter. Respondents indicate that this explicit attention for Christian tradition is a deliberate policy, which is valued by parents.
We mention two theoretical perspectives that question the focus on one specific religious tradition in religious education.
First, we mention the perspective of the plural society in which students are educated. Most western societies are religiously plural (Jackson 2006) and are faced with the challenge and the opportunity to handle this plurality (Rautionmaa and Kallioniemi 2017). Schools play a role in this challenge (Ipgrave 2004), in teaching students to deal with this diversity with respect and understanding (Miedema and Ter Avest 2011; Elias 2010; Keaten and Soukup 2009; Rautionmaa and Kallioniemi 2017). This means that, “i(I)n order to truly take account of plurality as a basis for integrative RE, any attempts to make particular religious traditions the general framework of integrative RE have to be avoided” (Alberts 2007, 357). Similarly, Sutinen et al. related their disapproval of educating students in one specific religion to their critical view on separated classes, which “is not very suitable for societies where one of the main problems is increasing social cohesion” (Sutinen, Kallioniemi, and Pihlström 2015, 330). We also recognize this appreciation of educating students in a variety of traditions in our empirical data: especially the transfer of knowledge about different worldviews and religions is mentioned by the teachers. This view of the respondents seems inconsistent with the focus on the Christian tradition in religious education, as it is practiced and motivated by the respondents.
Second, the student’s dialogue with a variety of religious sources is seen as a valuable contribution to his or her identity development (Roebben 2000; Elias 2010; Orteza Y Miranda 2010; Rautionmaa and Kallioniemi 2017). When a student is exposed
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