YEAR 9 OPTIONS

GCSE
Religious Studies

  • Examination board: Eduqas

This is an optional subject which all students will study for 3 hours per week.

The course is aimed at anyone who wants to develop their understanding about the world in which we live. If you have ever had questions or opinions on world issues, the Religious Studies classroom is the ideal environment to share and discuss these. If you want to develop your skills, analyse current issues and enjoy gaining a GCSE, then this course is perfect for you. You are not required to have any religious background to study Religious Studies, it is developing your understanding of the multicultural world we live in and applying this to ethical issues. You will be challenged with questions about belief, values, meaning, purpose and truth, enabling you to develop your own attitudes towards religious issues.

You will also gain an appreciation of how religion, philosophy and ethics form the basis of our culture. You will develop analytical and critical thinking skills, the ability to work with abstract ideas, leadership and research skills. All these skills will help prepare you for further study.

The course is split into three components:

Component 1: Religious, Philosophical and Ethical Studies

  • This is broken down into four topics: Issues of Relationships (relationships, sexual relationships and issues of equality: gender prejudice and discrimination), Issues of Life and Death (the origin of the world, the origin and value of human life and beliefs about death and the afterlife), Issues of Good and Evil (crime and punishment, forgiveness and Good, evil and suffering) and Issues of Human Rights (Human Rights and social justice, prejudice and discrimination, and issues of wealth and poverty).

Component 2: Study of Christianity

  • This is broken into two topics: Christian beliefs and teachings (The nature of God, creation, Jesus Christ, Salvation, and the afterlife) and Christian Practices (Forms of worship, the sacraments, pilgrimage and celebrations, Christianity in Britain and the role of the church in the local community and the worldwide church).

Component 3: Study of Islam

  • This too is broken into two topics: Muslim beliefs and teachings (The foundations of faith, the nature of God, Risalah: prophethood, Malaikah (angels) and Akhirah (afterlife)) and Practices (The five Pillars of Sunni Islam, Jihad: striving for rights, festivals and commemoration and the Ten Obligatory Acts of Shia Islam).

The course is 100% examined with no course work. There will be three exams at the end of Year 11.

  • Component 1: 2 hour exam worth 126 marks
  • Component 2: 1 hour exam worth 66 marks
  • Component 3: 1 hour exam worth 60 marks

After studying GCSE Religious Studies you could study A-level Religious Studies at Bourne Academy Sixth Form.

The skills that you develop from Religious Studies allow you to move in a variety of potential job opportunities such as; Business (especially international), Education, Counselling and Social Work, Journalism, Law and Medicine. A number of our students find that studying Religious Studies at GCSE and A-level have eased their transition into degrees reading Medicine and Law.

Translate »

Some features of our websites require (cookies). By enabling these cookies, you help us to offer you a better experience. For more information please view our Cookie Policy