Course information
Religious Studies
Reading Blue Coat School - Wokingham
01189441005
Holme Park, Sonning Lane, Berkshire, RG4 6SU
Course summary

The course is open to candidates of any religious persuasion or none, but is designed to promote an enquiring, empathetic and critical approach to the study of religion. Half the course is a study of Christian and Islamic beliefs and practices. The second half is a study of four themes, which are explored from Christian, Muslim, and secular perspectives. Starting in Year 9, all pupils will cover the following units: Component 1: The study of Christianity: beliefs, teachings, and practices Beliefs and teachings: the nature of God, sin, the person of Jesus, salvation, resurrection, eternal life. Practices: various types of worship, prayer, sacraments, pilgrimage, celebrations, role of the Church both social and spiritual, mission and evangelism, the experience of the worldwide Church (including persecution), the work of one Christian charity. The study of Islam: beliefs, teachings, and practices Beliefs and teachings: six Articles of Faith in Sunni and the Five Roots in Shi’a, the nature of God, angels, afterlife, authority, prophethood, Qur’an and other holy books, Imamate of Shi’a Islam. Practices: Five Pillars, jihad, Ten Obligatory Acts of Shi’a, Shahadah, Salah, Sawm, Zakah, Hajj, festivals. Component 2: The study of four themes from Christian and Muslim (and secular) perspectives: Theme A – Relationships and families: marriage, divorce, gender roles, sexuality Theme C – Religion, peace, and conflict: violence, pacifism, war, just war theory, terrorism, nuclear weapons Theme E – Religion, crime and punishment: factors in the causes of crime, mental illness, different types of crime, aims of punishment, types of punishment, treatment of criminals, forgiveness, death penalty Theme F – Religion, human rights and social justice: prejudice and discrimination, rights and responsibilities, equality, wealth, poverty, charity

Entry requirements

To qualify for the Sixth Form at Blue Coat, we expect you to attain at least eight GCSEs at grade 5 or above. Ideally two of these grades must be at grade 7 or above, a further four grades at grade 6 and two at grade 5. In addition, all students are required to have passed both English Language and Mathematics at grade 5 or above.

How you'll be assessed

Each component equals 50% of the total marks for the Full GCSE Course. Component 1 will be examined in one paper of 1 hour 45 minutes. Component 2 will be examined in one paper, also of 1 hour 45 minutes. We expect all pupils to complete the Full Course. There is no coursework. Each question on the examination paper is divided into five parts, 1 to 5, and should be completed by the pupil in 26 minutes plus extra time, if required. This course will be assessed by external examination at the end of Year 10.

School Info

About Education Provider

RegionSouth East
Local AuthorityWokingham
Ofsted Rating
Gender TypeCo-Educational
ISI ReportView Report
Boarding FeeUnknown
Sixth Form Fee£19,965
AddressHolme Park, Sonning Lane, Berkshire, RG4 6SU