TeachingRE Issue 4.pdf - the Second Level Support Service

students, supplemented with handouts, power-pointpresentations, discussion, etc. Coupled with this, we tryto instill in the students a lived experience of R.E. throughmany different levels - for example guest speakers,charity work, Christian Union group, liturgical services,increased use of multi-media, for example videos fromYoutube and many other areas.Guest speakers are an important part of the R.E. coursesbecause they give the students an opportunity to engagewith people from their local communities. As we arebased in Limerick City, we are very fortunate to have awide variety of guest speakers at our disposal, forexample the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul, theGideon’s Bible, Operation Christmas Child, BuddhistCentre, Limerick Mosque etc. Villiers students and staffeach year choose many different charities to raise moneyfor and the students are very eager to get involved.Eighty seven students signed up for theTrócaire fast thisyear and raised €3,200. DuringVilliers musical ‘AnythingGoes’ raffle tickets were sold and €750 was raised forBóthar and €750 for the Church of Ireland Bishops’Appeal. The school disco raised €1,000 for the Societyof Saint Vincent de Paul and €1,100 for Self-Help. Thetrue spirit of charity inVilliers was shown when studentspaid the cover charge for the disco and donated extramoney for the two charities. It has been veryencouraging to see the growth of the Christian Uniongroup inVilliers. Meeting on Friday lunchtimes the “CU”has been a great success, with its numbers growing yearly,attracting students from a wide variety of faithbackgrounds, to explore and share their faithunderstanding.Liturgical services are an important way that studentscelebrate their faith. We hold ecumenical services wherethe student involvement is central in singing, reading andorganising the services, for example Advent service,Christmas Carol service, Assemblies and Graduationceremony. The most recent example of this is theGraduation ceremony which was very meaningful andemotional for all, as students, parents and teacherscelebrated their six years in the school. This gavestudents an opportunity to celebrate their gifts andtalents by performing the music and singing for thegraduation ceremony. The Carol service and “Grads”were particular highpoints; well attended and greatlyappreciated and enjoyed by students, parents and staff.The Christian Churches tour is a highlight of the year formany Junior students because it is an opportunity forthem to visit Churches which they have previously neverattended. We are fortunate to have so many ChristianChurches only a short drive fromVilliers in Limerick City.We have been to the Church of Ireland, Roman CatholicChurch, Methodist Church, Evangelical meeting placeand Quaker meeting place. The students are fascinatedby the similarities and differences in the Churches andthey fill out a handout on each which they refer toduring Section E of the R.E. course. These experiencesbuild bridges between local faith communities and theschool.a real eye-opener for both staff and students to exploreand experience the rich religious culture and traditionin the Islamic tradition. It is pleasing to watch studentsengage with what the Imam says. Students haveremarked that going to the Mosque really brings Islamalive for them and they get to see the rituals which theyhave previously learned about in a classroom put intoaction. Elton also organised a Hajj for all the classes topart take in. They found it an enriching experience toperform the stages of the Hajj because it made thestudents appreciate more all the rituals that are involved.It also raised a few eyebrows on the corridors! Thanksto a very generous grant from the Parent - TeacherAssociation, we have invested in various religiousartefacts. These include the Passover meal set, HinduPuja set, Muslim Burkha, and Buddhist prayer flags. Welook forward to utilising these objects and thus bringingreligious culture alive for our studentsThis is a photograph of 3rd year studentsperforming the Rak’ah, being lead by a4th year Muslim student:Walking between Safa and MarwaWe are also fortunate to have a Mosque near the schoolwhich we visit annually. This is one of the most beneficialand exciting aspects of the course because it has beenTEACHING RELIGIOUS EDUCATION ISSUE FOUR SEPTEMBER 2009 39