SDHTA Annual Conference 2014: “Lead, Enable, Serve” The Rt Revd Dr Richard Cheetham Bishop of Kingston Chair of Southwark Diocesan Board of Education SDHTA Annual Conference 2014 Lead, Enable, Serve What’s beneath the iceberg? Collective Worship and School Ethos Rt Revd Dr Richard Cheetham Bishop of Kingston and Chair of SDBE

Southwark Diocesan Board of Education Our Vision To promote Christian education and enable church schools and education chaplaincy to be at the heart of the mission and ministry of the Diocese of Southwark in the 21st Century

Some current challenges in Education Funding and control of education Academies, Free Schools, LEAs, DBEs, DfES Aim of good education British values C of E / Muslim / Jewish etc schools in the state system RE for a plural world / National Society report Place of collective worship

SDHTA Annual Conference 2014: “Lead, Enable, Serve” The Rt Revd Dr Richard Cheetham Bishop of Kingston Chair of Southwark Diocesan Board of Education Collective worship - the tip of the iceberg? Common values Philosophy of education Beliefs Plural society Individualism

Church & Education in 21 st Century UK Sociological perspectives: the changing place of religion Religion as private, individual choice Religion as contested (multiple world views) Religion as controversial (especially post 9/11) Pervasive vague spirituality Young people – Generation Y

Church & Education in 21 st Century UK Philosophy of Education Traditional – education as induction into “truth” / transmission of tradition Liberal – education to produce free thinking people. Knowledge based entirely on experience and reason Post-Liberal – challenges ideas of an overarching rationality, and exclusion of religion to a private, subjective domain

Church & Education in 21 st Century UK Theological issues Knowledge and belief distinction Relativism and absolutism “Truth” claims Common moral values – source?

Pluralism Religious “Truth” Freedom of the individual Nature of education Individualism & community Multi-faith society Common values Tolerance Privatisation of belief Collective worship

Inclusivity: “that unity thing” Freedom of choice and personal integrity: “this individual thing” The heart of an act of collective worship: moral, spiritual or religious Influence of the teacher: “an awesome responsibility” 4 major themes in the data

The understanding of religious belief which underlies collective worship Individual Freely chosen Relative Pragmatic Religious belief as “an individually chosen, private, practical guide to living”

What’s beneath your iceberg? What is your collective worship saying about the deep beliefs, values and ethos of your School? Explicitly? Implicitly?