The Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction Program in the Québec Education Program Preschool Education Elementary Edu

1. The Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction Program in the Québec Education ProgramPreschool EducationElementary Education Approved Version August 2001 Secrétariat aux affaires religieuses Ministère de l’Éducation du Québec

2. GENERAL CONTEXT OF THE QUÉBEC EDUCATION PROGRAM 1980-1997 Numerous briefs from the Conseil supérieur de l’éducation Report on school learning profiles The Estates General Report on Education Report on Curriculum Reform: Reaffirming the Mission of Our Schools Educational policy statement: Québec Schools on Course

3. The Québec Education Program • Cross-curricular competencies • Broad areas of learning • Preschool education program and the subject areas for elementary education

4. Cross-curricular competencies • Intellectual competencies • Methodological competencies • Personal and social competencies • Communication-related competency

5. Cross-curricular competencies • Intellectual competencies: • to use information • to solve problems • to exercise critical judgment • to use creativity

6. Cross-curricular competencies • Methodological competencies: • to adopt effective work methods • to use information and communications technologies

7. Cross-curricular competencies • Personal and social competencies: • to construct his/her identity • to cooperate with others

8. Cross-curricular competencies • Communication-related competency: • to communicate appropriately

9. Broad areas of learning • Health and Well-Being • Personal and Career Planning • Environmental Awareness and Consumer Rights and Responsibilities • Media Literacy • Citizenship and Community Life

10. Educational aims of the broad areas of learning • Health and Well-Being • to ensure that students adopt a self-monitoring procedure concerning the development of good living habits related to health, well-being, sexuality and safety • Personal and Career Planning • to enable students to undertake and complete projects that develop their potential and help them integrate into society • Environmental Awareness and Consumer Rights and Responsibilities • to encourage students to develop an active relationship with their environment while maintaining a critical attitude towards exploitation of the environment, technological development and consumer goods

11. Educational aims of the broad areas of learning (cont.) • Media Literacy • to develop students’ critical and ethical judgment with respect to media and to give them opportunities to produce media documents that respect individual and collective rights • Citizenship and Community Life • to ensure that students take part in the democratic life of the classroom or the school and develop a spirit of openness to the world and respect for diversity

12. Preschool Education • Preschool Education competencies • to perform sensorimotor actions effectively in different contexts • to affirm his/her personality • to interact harmoniously with others • to communicate using the resources of language • to construct his/her understanding of the world • to complete an activity or project

13. Elementary education curriculum • Subject areas • Languages • Mathematics, Science and Technology • Social Sciences • Arts Education • Personal Development

14. Languages • English Language Arts • Français, langue seconde (programme de base) • Français, langue seconde (immersion)

15. Mathematics, Science and Technology • Mathematics • Science and Technology

16. Social Sciences • Geography • History • Citizenship Education

17. Arts Education • Drama • Visual arts • Dance • Music

18. Personal Development • Physical Education and Health • Moral Education • Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction • Protestant Moral and Religious Education

19. Catholic Religious and Moral InstructionA bit of background . . . Prior to 1983 Catechism 1983 Catholic religious instruction adopted an objective-based approach 1987 Catholic religious and moral instruction

20. A bit of background . . . (cont.) • Catholic religious and moral instruction in Cycle One (grades 1, 2 and 3) adopted a competency-based approach • Report on Curriculum Reform: Reaffirming the Mission of Our Schools The Estates General Report on Education Educational policy statement: Québec Schools on Course

21. A bit of background . . . (cont.) 1999 Report on the task force presided over by Jean-Pierre Proulx: Religion in Secular Schools: A New Perspective for Québec Parliamentary commission on the place of religion in the school 2000 Bill 118 amended the place of religion in the school

22. The dynamics of the Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction program Great questions of humanity To appreciate the living Catholic tradition To take an enlightened position on situations involving a moral issue Personal realities Socio-relational realities The student in search of meaning ISSUES

23. Context for learning the competencies • By looking at issues associated with the search for meaning that involve: • personal realities • socio-relational realities • great questions of humanity

24. Context for learning the competencies (cont.) • With the support of: • the learning community • audio and visual media • cultural frames of reference: 1 Bible stories  2 Catholic rituals  3 stories about historical Catholic figures  4 stories about contemporary Catholic figures  5 aspects of diversity 

25. To appreciate the living Catholic traditionKey features of the competency • to explore stories taken from the living Catholic tradition • to analyze stories from the living Catholic tradition, in order to shed light on his/her search for meaning • to consider aspects of religious diversity and humanist thought in order to develop his/her thinking • to take a position on specific elements of the living Catholic tradition

26. To take an enlightened position on situations involving a moral issue Key features of the Competency • to define the moral issue • to consider different frames of reference • to examine options and their possible effects • to justify his/her choice in the light of a frame of reference

27. Essential knowledges • Learnings related to issues that touch on: • personal realities • socio-relational realities • the great questions of humanity • Strategies • for appreciating the living Catholic tradition • for taking an enlightened position on situations involving a moral issue

28. Essential knowledges (cont.) • Strategies (p. 321-322) • for appreciating the living Catholic tradition • how to raise a question about meaning • how to grasp the essentials of a story, and how to tell it • how to construct a personal response • how to look up a reference in the Bible

29. Essential knowledges (cont.) • Strategies (p. 322-323) • for taking an enlightened position on situations involving a moral issue • how to define the moral issue • how to consider different frames of reference • how to look at options and their possible effects • how to justify one’s choice

30. Themes in Cycle One • Personal development • Human dignity, p. 314 • Suffering, p. 314 • The inner life, p. 315 • Socio-relational development • Love, p. 316 • Sharing, p. 316 • Religious celebrations, p. 317 • Great questions of humanity • The origin of life, p. 319

31. Themes in Cycle Two • Personal development • Self-esteem, p. 315 • The individual and the sacred, p. 315 • Socio-relational development • Belonging, p. 317 • Rejection, p. 317 • Nonviolence and peace, p. 318 • Great questions of humanity • Death, p. 319 • The environment, p. 320

32. Themes in Cycle Three • Personal development • Self-actualization, p. 315 • The exercise of freedom, p. 316 • Socio-relational development • Welcoming difference, p. 318 • The service of the common good, p. 319 • Great questions of humanity • The truth of the Bible, p. 320 • The value of life, p. 320 • The existence of God, p. 320

33. Number of themes according to the focuses of development • Personal development 7 • Socio-relational development 8 • Great questions of humanity 6 • Total: 21

34. Distribution of themes • Cycle One 7 themes • Cycle Two 7 themes • Cycle Three 7 themes

35. Distribution of knowledges versus cultural references Bible stories 40% Catholic rituals 6% Stories about historical Catholic figures 15% Stories about contemporary Catholic figures 6% Religious and humanistic diversity 33% Total: 100%

36. Connections between Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction and the cross-curricular competencies(example) • To appreciate the living Catholic tradition • cross-curricular competency: to use information • to gather information • to recognize various information sources • to put information to use

37. Connections between Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction and the cross-curricular competencies (example) • To take an enlightened position on situations involving a moral issue • Cross-curricular competency: to solve problems • to analyze the components of a situational problem • to formulate possible solutions • to test a solution • to adopt a flexible approach • to evaluate the procedure used

38. Connections between Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction and the broad areas of learning (example) • To appreciate the living Catholic tradition • Broad areas of learning: Citizenship and Community Life • Educational aim: • To ensure that students take part in the democratic life of the classroom or the school and develop a spirit of openness to the world and respect for diversity

39. Connections between Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction and the broad areas of learning (example) • To take an enlightened position on situations involving a moral issue • Broad areas of learning: Citizenship and Community Life • Educational aim: • To ensure that students take part in the democratic life of the classroom or the school and develop a spirit of openness to the world and respect for diversity

40. Connections between Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction and English Language Arts (example) • With regard to narrating Bible stories and stories about historical and present-day Catholic figures • To use language to communicate and learn • to use language (talk) to communicate information, experiences and point of view • to use language (talk) for learning and thinking • to apply his/her knowledge of linguistic structures and features • to interact in collaborative group activities in a variety of roles • to self-evaluate his/her language development

41. Connections between Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction and English Language Arts (example) • With regard to narrating Bible stories and stories about historical and present-day Catholic figures • To represent his/her literacy in different media • to apply appropriate strategies for constructing meaning • to follow a process to respond to media texts • to construct his/her own view of the world through the media • to follow a production process in order to communicate for specific purposes to a specified audience • to self-evaluate his/her development as a viewer and producer of media texts

42. Connections between Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction and Social Sciences programs (example) • With regard to the pluralistic view of the Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction program • To be open to the diversity of societies and their territories • to situate societies and their territories in space • to perceive the main similarities and differences between societies and between territories • to define some causes and effects of the differences • to take a position on the observed strengths and weaknesses of societies and their territories • to justify his/her view of the diversity of societies and their territories

43. Connections between Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction and Arts Education programs (example) • With regard to Bible stories and stories about historical and present-day Catholic figures • Drama • To interpret short scenes • to become familiar with the dramatic content of the scene • to apply elements of the language of drama, performance techniques, styles of theatre and elements of drama • to bring out the expressive elements of the scene • to apply the rules for group performance • to share his/her interpretation experience

44. Connections between Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction and the Arts Education programs (example) • With regard to the aspects of Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction program that concern Visual Arts: cathedrals, icons, churches, sacred objects, etc. • Visual Arts • To appreciate works of art, traditional artistic objects, media images, personal productions and those of classmates • to examine a work of art, a traditional artistic object, media images, a personal or media visual arts production for elements of content • to examine a work of art, a traditional artistic object or media images for sociocultural references (Cycles Two and Three) • to make connections between what he/she has felt and examined • to make a critical or aesthetic judgment • to share his/her appreciation experience

45. New features of the 2001 Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction program • In brief, the new program is characterized by: • a particular focus on the search for meaning • a set of issues related to personal and socio-relational realities as well as the great questions of humanity • two subject-specific competencies developed in a complementary and integrated fashion • an emphasis on narrating stories

46. New features of the 2001 Catholic Religious and Moral Instruction program (cont.) • essential knowledges (learnings and strategies) clearly identified • a minimum of 72 hours per cycle of proposed content • close links with such subject areas as Personal Development, Languages, Arts Education, Social Sciences and Science and Technology • citizenship education • an increase in cultural awareness