Religious and Moral Education (RME)

Religion has always had a part to play in the history of any culture, including Scotland, and studying RME is a way of appreciating how people from lots of different backgrounds contribute to one community.

Religious and Moral Education enables pupils to explore the world’s major religions and views which are independent of religion and consider the challenges posed by these beliefs and values. It supports pupils in developing and reflecting upon their own values.

RME is about developing respect for others and understanding beliefs and practices which are different from our own. Most importantly, everything you study in RME will be related to, or affecting, what is going on in the world right now!

RMPS – S1/2

BGE S1 course

· Who am I?

· Festivals

· Around the World in 4 Religions

BGE S2 course

· Introduction to Morality

· Animal Rights

· Christianity

· Origins

RMPS – S3/4

Core S3 course

· Islam

· War and Peace

· Evil and suffering

Core S4 course

· Medical Ethics

· Genocides/ The Holocaust

RMPS - National 4/5

Course Content

The Nat 3/4/ 5 RMPS course has 3 areas of study:

· World Religion: Islam Pupils will study some of the main beliefs and practices of Islam.

· Religion & Morality: Religion, Medicine & the Human Body Pupils will study religious and non-religious perspectives on moral issues arising from the uses of embryos and euthanasia.

· Religious & Philosophical Questions: The Existence of God Pupils will study religious and non-religious perspectives on the arguments for and against the existence of God.

· Assignment Pupils are also required to carry out an assignment. They will choose an issue relating to an area of the course content and research it in depth. National 5 pupils will then write up their findings in an exam situation. National 4 work will be assessed internally. National 5work will be externally assessed. At National 5 the assignment counts for 20% of the final mark.

RMPS - Higher

Course Content

The Higher course has three areas of study:

· World Religion: Sikhism Pupils will study some of the main beliefs and practices of Sikhism.

· Religion & Morality: Justice Pupils will study religious and non-religious perspectives on moral issues arising.

· Religious & Philosophical Questions Pupils will study religious and non-religious perspectives on the origins of the universe and the origins of life.

· Assignment Pupils are also required to carry out an assignment. They will choose an issue relating to an area of the course content and research it in depth. Pupils will then write up their findings in an exam situation. The assignment counts for 27% of the final mark and is externally assessed.

RMPS - Advanced Higher

Overview

Pupils study two units and are also required to complete a dissertation. As some of the time allocated to this course is self-study, pupils will be given a weekly study plan.

Course Content

Medical Ethics

Pupils look at three areas in medical ethics:

· The beginning of life: rights of embryos and abortion.

· The prolongation of life: ethical dilemmas of procuring and allocating organs.

· The ending of life: end of life care and assisted dying.

Philosophy of Religion

Pupils study three areas in philosophy of religion:

· The Cosmological Argument for the Existence of God

· The Teleological Argument for the Existence of God

· Atheism

Dissertation

Pupils can choose a topic from any aspect of the course and prepare a 4000-word dissertation on their chosen subject. The dissertation counts for 27% of the final mark and is externally assessed.