Queensland state schools embrace a multitude of cultural, religious and non-religious beliefs. Under the Education (General Provisions) Act 2006, schools are to provide Religious Instruction (RI) if approached by a faith group seeking to provide RI and students of that faith attend the school.
RI informs students about the beliefs and values of a particular religion. It is delivered by volunteers of a faith group using instructional materials approved by that faith group. RI is required to be consistent with legislation and Department of Education policies and procedures.
All RI instructors must hold a blue card and participate in compulsory Student Protection and Code of Conduct training. RI instructors are only entitled to deliver the RI program outlined below. A school staff member will be present during the delivery of RI.
Participation in RI is not compulsory. Any student (except Prep students) may participate in RI if a parent has provided written instructions to the school.
Students are allocated to RI based on information provided by parents on the completed Application for student enrolment unless other written instructions have been provided to the school.
Note: This consent remains in effect unless the parent informs the school otherwise in writing.
A description of the RI available is provided below.
Buddhist Religious Instruction
Aims and goals: Our aim is to contribute to the spiritual well-being of every child and help them to develop the knowledge, skills and values required to contribute to a harmonious and peaceful community.
Authorised program: Buddhist Education Services for Schools is a provider of teachers of Buddhism in government schools in Queensland, representing both of the main Buddhist traditions.
The core program of BESS:
Representing Buddhism to government, media and other religious faiths
RI teaching in schools
Professional development for our volunteer teachers
Support and advice for members of our association
Lesson structure: Typically, 30 minutes each week.
For further information, including module and/or lesson descriptors visit: https://www.bessqld.org/
Christian Religious Instruction
Aims and Goals: The aim of Christian RI is to inform students about the basic beliefs of the Christian faith from a non-denominational perspective.
Participating faith groups: Local Christian Churches come together to offer Christian RI on a cooperative and non-denominational basis. These local Churches may, amongst others, include Anglican, Australian Christian Churches, Baptist, Catholic, Churches of Christ, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Salvation Army and Uniting Churches.
Authorised Program: The providers of Christian RI use authorised program resources and are committed to best-practice programs that have been reviewed by independent curriculum experts. The resources in use at Warrigal Road State School are the Beginning with God for Year 1, Connect for Years 2-5, and Big Questions for Year 6, which are all published by Christian Education Publications. Specific information about lesson structure can be found at https://cepconnect.com.au/curriculum
Lesson structure: Christian RI may involve a variety of up-to-date teaching methods including storytelling, music, drama, activity books, games, quizzes, video clips and puppet shows. Program resources are written by professional educators and are age-appropriate. Typically, lessons run for 30 minutes each week.
Islam Religious Instruction
Aims and goals: The Islamic Council of Queensland have authorised a single arrangement RI program for primary school students in our school
Introduce basic principles of Islam to primary-aged Muslim children in a fun and engaging manner
Help primary-aged Muslim children to understand and practice Islam in a multicultural and diverse society
Authorised program: Islamic RI
Lesson structure: Typically, 30 minutes each week.
Parents of students participating in these programs will be advised if a faith group requires funds to cover the expense of materials used in RI.
Other Instruction
Students who are not participating in RI will be provided with other instruction in a separate supervised location. Other instruction must relate to part of a subject area already covered in class and may include:
personal research and/or assignments
revision of class work such as creative writing or literacy and/or numeracy activities which could include online programs currently accessed by the students of that school (i.e. Mathletics, Reading Eggs)
wider reading such as independent reading appropriate to the student
Parents will be advised of any changes to the RI and other instruction programs to ensure they are able to make an informed decision on their child's participation.