Religious and Moral Education

This course is designed to respect the rights of others to express beliefs, viewpoints and values which pupils may not share. Pupils will also develop the confidence to share their own beliefs, viewpoints and values with others who may not agree with them.

They will be able to identify and investigate the important assumptions which underpin their own beliefs and those of others, analyse their own beliefs, values and attitudes and those of others, review and evaluate and come to conclusions about beliefs, viewpoints and values based on the information they have available.

Staff

Mr J Cudlipp (PT)

Ms L. Northcott

Aims

The intention of Religious and Moral Education is not to commend a particular religious or moral view, but rather to encourage pupils to think about such questions as:

• What is religion?
• How do the major religions answer moral questions?
• What things do they (the pupils) do that are similar to religious activities?
• How do they decide what is the right thing to do? What other approaches, besides religious ones, are there to moral questions?

The Religious and Moral Education Department aims:

1. to promote an enquiring , critical and sympathetic approach to the study of religion;
2. to encourage pupils to reflect on their own experience of life to date;
3. to develop pupils` insights into situations which pose moral and social questions and to develop their capacity to respond to these situations in a balanced and understanding way;
4. to explore the contribution of religion to human identity and fulfillment, both as individuals and as groups;
5. to contribute to understanding the multicultural dimension of the society in which pupils live;
6. to encourage pupils to express their views in a manner that facilitates the discussion of the issue being examined.

Core RMPS Courses: S1 – S4

S1: Pupils in S1 follow a variety of topics to introduce them to What is aHuman Being?, What is religion?, Myths and mysteries, Music and Ethics, and the Values poster award.

S2: The S2 course has a human rights theme running through the whole year with a look at the moral issue of Street Children, Buddhism, Amnesty International and Human Rights, Refugees and Asylum seekers, and an introduction to Philosophy.

S3: RMPS is S3 is based around a variety of contemporary moral issues such as Capital Punishment, Racism, Censorship and Freedom of Speech, and The Holocaust.

S4: In S4, pupils have the opportunity to examine arguments for and against War, Abortion, Medical Ethics and Philosophical themes such as anger, self esteem, happiness and ethics, aesthetics and moral dilemmas.

The RMPS department also offer a variety of National Qualifications

COURSE: Psychology (Intermediate 1/2)

Course Structure

The Intermediate 1/2 Psychology course is made up of three separate units:

• Understanding the Individual (Intermediate 1/2)
• Investigating Behaviour (Intermediate 1/2)
• The Individual in the Social Context (Intermediate 1/2)

Psychology has become a very popular subject in society and is definitely for people who wish to further their understanding of human behaviour. The Intermediate 1 and 2 Psychology Course aims to meet this demand for an introduction to the subject.

A range of five key topics are studied from six core domains:

• Developmental Psychology
• Cognitive Psychology
• Physiological Psychology
• Social Psychology
• Psychology of Individual Differences
•  Research Methods

The aims of Intermediate 1/2 Psychology are to:

• stimulate candidates’ initial interest in psychology, by providing an overview of the discipline, and the opportunity to study a selection of specified topics
• develop a basic understanding of psychological theories, concepts, research studies, research methods and applications
• develop knowledge of psychology within its historical context
• promote an appreciation of the importance of scientific methods and research evidence, which form the basis of psychological knowledge and applications, and the importance of ethical considerations within the discipline

It is anticipated that candidates will have little or no prior knowledge of the subject, therefore the Course serves as an introduction to the discipline of psychology, including basic research skills.

The Course provides suitable preparation for the Intermediate 2 Course in Psychology or other subjects. The Intermediate 1 Course may offer preparation for employment or career advancement.

Higher/Int 2 Philosophy

The term "philosophy" means "love of wisdom." In a broad sense, philosophy is an activity people undertake when they seek to understand fundamental truths about themselves, the world in which they live, and their relationships to the world and to each other.

Those who study philosophy are continually engaged in asking, answering, and arguing for answers to life’s most basic questions: What is reality? How can I claim to have knowledge when my senses are deceived? Does God exist? What is the purpose of life?

1. Critical thinking: how to recognise, construct, dissect and evaluate arguments.
2. Metaphysics: Is there a rational basis for belief in God? This unit looks at two philosophical arguments put forward for the existence of God (Teleological and Cosmological arguments) and the Agnostic argument.
3. Epistemology: the study of knowledge-can we ever claim to know anything? Looking at the various ways in which we can claim to have knowledge and how this is discussed in the writings of the famous French philosopher Rene Descartes.
4. Moral Philosophy: Two major philosophical theories are presented, Utilitarian and Kantian ethics, and these are used to demonstrate how people make moral decisions.

Aims

The Course aims to allow candidates to:

• develop critical thinking skills which are of importance in all areas of human life and discourse.
• develop knowledge and understanding of philosophical techniques, issues, positions and concepts which are relevant in many areas of human life and experience.
• develop analytical and evaluative skills which will allow them to examine the reasoning and assumptions on which the positions and theories they study are based.
• present their own ideas and opinions in a reasoned and structured manner.
• gain insight from the ideas and opinions of others which may conflict with their own.
• engage personally with a range of important questions and issues in order to inform their own ideas and opinions in a way which contributes to personal and social development

Course websites