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Teaching Philosophical and Religious Studies ‘Beyond boundaries’

Teaching Philosophical and Religious Studies ‘Beyond boundaries’. Wednesday 9 June 2010 Birmingham City University. Introduction to the Subject Centre for Philosophical and Religious Studies. Founded in 2000 to provide discipline-specific support to teachers and learners in UK higher education

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Teaching Philosophical and Religious Studies ‘Beyond boundaries’

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  1. Teaching Philosophical and Religious Studies ‘Beyond boundaries’ Wednesday 9 June 2010 Birmingham City University

  2. Introduction to the Subject Centre for Philosophical and Religious Studies • Founded in 2000 to provide discipline-specific support to teachers and learners in UK higher education • ‘Philosophical and Religious Studies’ (PRS) encompasses: • Philosophy • Theology • Religious Studies • History and Philosophy of Science, Technology and Medicine • Biblical Studies • Staffed by subject specialists • Funded by UK HE funding councils and HEIs

  3. The Subject Centre for PRS • Part of the Higher Education Academy, which includes a network of 24 Subject Centres: • http://www.heacademy.ac.uk

  4. Subject Centre for PRS: what we do • Provide a forum for sharing expertise • Events • Publications • Our website: http://prs.heacademy.ac.uk • Support new developments • Project funding • Development work on new initiatives • Provide a ‘voice’ for PRS in UK HE policy issues

  5. Subject Centre events • Conferences and workshops • Courting Controversy: Teaching Theology and Religious Studies in the 21st Century(8-9 July, Leeds) • Aspiring Academics Workshop (27 October, Edinburgh) • Philosophy and Public Policy: Making an Impact (2010/11 seminar series, London) • Contributions to other PRS conferences • Departmental workshops on request • Event materials published on website

  6. Subject Centre publications • Journal - Discourse: Learning and Teaching in Philosophical and Religious Studies • Learning and teaching guides: • Student employability guides (2nd edition, 2009) • Faith guides (series, 2005-2010) • Approaches to Ethics in Higher Education: Teaching Ethics Across the Curriculum (2004) • The Challenges of using the World-Wide Web in Teaching the History of Science (2003) • Doing Philosophy: A Practical Guide for Students (2007)

  7. SC support for new developments • Project funding • 140 projects funded to date • 2010/11 funding opportunities to be announced • Development work on new initiatives • ‘Education for sustainable development’ • ‘HumBox: an inspiring collection of free humanities teaching resources’http://www.humbox.ac.uk

  8. ‘PRS beyond boundaries’: background • Previous Subject Centre work includes: • Interdisciplinary projects: • ETHICS: EthicsTeaching HighlightedinContextualised Scenarios (or Case Studies) • Education for sustainable development • ‘Faith literacy’ • Workshops on teaching PRS subjects in interdisciplinary contexts: • Critical thinking • Cognitive science • Spirituality

  9. ‘PRS beyond boundaries’ programme • Aim: to provide support for academics teaching PRS subjects in non-PRS contexts • A point of contact with other PRS academics • Tailored resources • 2008/9 scoping study – findings include: • PRS subjects are taught in a very wide range of contexts • Much diversity, but some common themes: • Ethics • Cultural / area studies • Spirituality and faith • Challenge of developing PRS teaching without a ‘core’ department – “it can be a lonely task” • Report and case studies available from website:http://prs.heacademy.ac.uk/projects/beyond_boundaries

  10. The Poppletonian, 13 May 2010 A nasty smell of logic A major clean-up operation has begun in our university after the unexpected discovery of some remaining fragments of Philosophy. Although the high research-rated Poppleton Philosophy Department was closed down last year in accord with Hefce'sSmash the Humanities policy document, it appears that small deposits of logic and reason have remained lodged in the crevices of a number of other degree courses. Announcing the clean-up, our Director of Curriculum Development, Janet Fluellen, pointed out that such elements had no place in a modern business-facing university. “Quite frankly”, she told The Poppletonian, “whenever I hear the word 'philosophy', I reach for my gun”. Laurie Taylor column, Times Higher Education

  11. ‘PRS beyond boundaries’: what next? • 2010 colloquium event • Additional case studies, other resources (=?) • Special interest group(s)? • Suggestions welcome! Contact us: • Dr Clare Saunders, Senior Academic Co-ordinator • Subject Centre for Philosophical and Religious Studies • School of Humanities, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT • Email: clare@prs.heacademy.ac.uk • Tel: 0113 343 1166 (direct); 0113 343 4184 (general) • Website: http://prs.heacademy.ac.uk

  12. Teaching PRS ‘Beyond Boundaries’: A Colloquium • To discuss the distinctive challenges and opportunities of teaching ‘PRS beyond boundaries’ • To explore how these might be addressed most effectively • To network with and learn from colleagues in comparable situations • To share experiences, ideas, and effective practices • To inform and influence future support for ‘PRS beyond boundaries’ teaching and teachers

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