DL writes:
I really want to develop RE in the school I've recently joined as head of RE but it's clear that the headteacher is at best passive towards RE and at worst doesn't want it to thrive and won't support it beyond the absolute minimum. What shall I do?
Terence replies:
This is one of the worst possible scenarios for the head of RE, when a headteacher seems to have some sort of personal gripe about religion and appears not to want RE in the school. At a recent national conference I addressed, it was quite clear that this was a real problem in a minority of schools - and if you're working in one of them it can severely hamper your job performance and enjoyment. At worst it can force you out of the job altogether. Some suggestions:
- Avoid confrontation, which in this case could become very unpleasant. It would be a matter of power in which you would almost certainly lose, unless the head acted unprofessionally or illegally and you took formal action against them. Going to war with one's headteacher is not a course of action one should willingly take!
- First, be sure that the head knows what RE is and is not like in 2007. They may still be in reaction to bad or heavily confessional RE from their own schooldays and if, for instance, you take them on an outside visit with a group of children, it may open their eyes to some of what modern RE is about.
- Arrange a one to one interview rather than catch them on the hop and send an advance briefing paper about where RE is and where you would like it to be in the school. Use this as an opportunity to explain clearly how the whole school would benefit from good RE and its potential contribution to citizenship, ECM, spiritual development and multicultural education. Ask for the head's help in developing specific aspects of this and if they seem reluctant, ask why.
- Cultivate another person on the senior management team who is favourable towards RE. If you feel you can do it, ask them confidentially how they would recommend approaching the head and what specific steps you should take to get a better deal for RE.
- If you are in an LA with a specialist RE adviser, pick their brains on how to move forward (if you don't have to pay a large fee from your department budget!). They can sometimes pour oil on troubled waters and persuade reluctant heads to resource RE better by making an 'audit visit' to the RE department and presenting a report. Even the most reluctant head may be more reluctant to be known as the worst school for RE in the LA.
- Work with - or if necessary, create! - a local cluster of school RE departments to compare resources and facilities, establish areas of co-operation and future planning. Then document it in such a way that a school that was way out of line in provision - yours! - would be visible in the documentation. Then see your head and tell them you're worried about how the school is being perceived from outside...
- Make sure if you can that pupils, parents and governors are enthusing about RE and asking for more, e.g. for AS level if provision does not already exist. Consumer demand can be a potent force in today's education system!
- Start an RE club in the school. It can provide evidence of the subject's popularity and can allow for full length DVDs, extra-curricular visits to places of worship etc.. It can remind you, if you're feeling demoralised, that RE is a subject pupils enjoy! This sort of enthusiasm can strengthen pupil and parental demand for more RE within the system and not merely as an extra-curricular option. The more people who are knocking on the head's door and asking for bigger and better RE, the better.
It takes time to change ingrained prejudice, so it's wise not to expect dramatic, overnight change. What you have to do is to move forward a step at a time. But don't wait for years and years, because by doing that you would be colluding with the preservation of bad RE. In a few situations, sadly for the children in your school, you may have to cut your losses by leaving and moving to a different school where you and RE are appreciated. But before you do - find out if the head is moving first!
Terence Copley - May 2007
