How do you incorporate religious diversity in private/ Catholic grammar schools?

How do you incorporate religious diversity in private/ Catholic grammar schools?

I am the product of Catholic school education; I attended Catholic grammar school, a Catholic high school run by the Sisters of Mercy, and was educated at a Catholic-Jesuit University. Though my experience has been one that has offered great insight into other world religions, it is sometimes difficult for Catholic school educators to engage discussions regarding other religions. Many times, teachers are uninformed or uneducated about world religions, do not feel confident in their background in the subjects, or they feel there is no demand for religious diversity in the classroom. Additionally, parents expect religion classes to cover “typical” topics. While this is sometimes the case, it is critical that private/ Catholic grammar schools educators offer opportunities to inform their students about other world religions.

King and Wang specifically address an idea that is relevant to this topic; they explain that it is important to develop instruction and learning opportunities that a relative to the experience of the learner (2007). Using this theory, educators in private/ Catholic grammar schools can prepare lesson plans and learning opportunities that can teach world religions and incorporate the context of Roman Catholic religion. For example, a class can learn about a holiday like Passover in the Jewish faith and celebrate Passover before or after a religion lesson on the story of Moses. Similarly, while learning about Lent in religion class an educator can draw comparison to Ramadan, the Moslem holiday which includes fasting, reflection, and prayer.

King and Wang also note that promoting open dialogue in a classroom creates more diverse views (2007). Therefore, by presenting lesson plans that incorporate world religions, students will have more opportunity to learn and discuss. Though young, students in grammar school will benefit form these lessons in two ways: (1) by learning and respecting other religions and cultures and (2) learning to formulate thought process for discussions early on

The educator’s responsibility is always to offer insight and instruction to students to the best of his/her ability. Additionally, the educator has a responsibility to continue to learn him/herself in order to create the utmost learning environment for the student. Therefore, educators in private/ Catholic grammar schools and the archdiocese that house these schools should encourage learning of world religions by providing workshop and class opportunities. In this way, the spread of knowledge, understand, and tolerance can flow more freely and through creative educational environments.