The face behind the STARME emails, normally seen running around the Festival of Learning making sure everything is running smoothly. This year Steph is sharing her recent research in RME and the findings from her podcast ‘What Even is RME?’. What to expect in this Session? Following a year-long research Read more
What a joy it is to have Fiona Moss back presenting at the Festival of Learning. She presented at the Festival in 2025 and the feedback was that her presentation was packed full of ready to take away ideas, and this session is looking to be great too! What to Read more
STARME is looking for teachers and other practitioners (school leaders, researchers, community groups) doing something interesting relating to Religious Education in the early learning, primary or secondary sector and who would like to share their practice with others via an in-person session at our annual Festival of Learning event. Our Read more
Following from her session at the Festival of Learning, Fiona Moss, Culham St Gabriels, will be sharing more about Religion and World View approach to RME. This will be an interesting session to consider and understand expecially in a time of curriculum change.
Are you looking for a school trip that truly brings history, faith, and moral education to life for your students? We’re delighted to share an exciting opportunity to visit St John’s Kirk in Perth, a site of profound national significance for both RME/RMPS and History. This unique experience, kindly brought Read more
Our wonderful friends at Re:Online by Culham St Gabriel’s have asked us to share about their Primary Focus week. There will be blogs, resources, research and a live ‘in conversation’ on Wednesday May 21st 4.30-5.30 for which they can also sign up on the link below (this event will also be Read more
With Scotland becoming an ever increasingly secular society, the place for RMPS in the secondary school curriculum has become increasingly questioned. My research explores the extent of which secondary students believe RMPS contributes to their understanding of contemporary social and ethical issues in a secular society, factors which influence their perception of the subject and if students perceive RMPS as contributing to their personal development and moral reasoning.
Moral education is most effective when based on discussions and debate (Kohlberg and Hersh, 1977) but that can often be a challenge in the primary classroom. Time can be a barrier to exploring moral education topics (Clanachan and Matemba, 2015). But even as little as 10 minutes per day can be beneficial to students’ moral development. In this session, we will explore the use of dilemma discussions where free video resources will be shared that have been developed from my PhD research.
As we aspire to the safe and thriving futures we want for faith communities in Scotland, we must prioritise the education of today’s young people.
Festival events for Scottish Interfaith Week 2025 will explore the key priorities of Scotland’s youth: Education, climate, mental health, poverty and discrimination.
Our hope is to encourage young people to engage in the festival, learn about other cultures and meet people from diverse religious and belief backgrounds.
When we make space for dialogue and understanding, our whole society flourishes.
Find out about our competition for schools and ways to engage young people in the festival.
In this insightful session, Fiona Moss, Education and Programs Manager for Culham St Gabriel’s, delves into the “religion and worldviews” approach to Religious and Moral Education (RME) and Religious Education (RE). Drawing on her extensive experience, including her past roles with RE Today and the National Association of Teachers of RE, Moss outlines the origins and key tenets of this evolving pedagogical framework. She highlights its continuity with established scholarship (e.g., Robert Jackson, Andrew Wright) while emphasizing its departure from the traditional “world religions paradigm” to better reflect diverse lived experiences and changing demographics. The discussion differentiates between organized and personal worldviews, using compelling examples like the “Picturing Islam, Picturing Muslims” resource to illustrate the practical application of this approach in challenging stereotypes and fostering deeper understanding. Moss further explores substantive content and pedagogical methodologies, offering concrete examples, such as how to move beyond superficial mosque studies to a more nuanced exploration of location, voices, and diversity. The session concludes with practical advice on language use in the classroom and the importance of acknowledging the messy, overlapping nature of real-world beliefs, demonstrating how this approach empowers pupils to become responsible interpreters of diverse worldviews.