Studies of Religion I
1 unit course
Course Summary
Religion is an integral part of the human experience and a component of every culture.
The Studies of Religion course:
- investigates the significance of the role of religion in society.
- enables people who live in a multi-faith and multicultural society to progress from a broad understanding of religious traditions to specific studies within these traditions.
- provides a focus on religious expression in Australia and also investigates religion’s place within the global community.
There is also a second unit that you can also choose which complements this Studies of Religion 1 course. The second unit delves into more religions, including Islam, Inca (South America) and Shinto (Japan).
There are two assessment tasks in this course. For the first one, you will research a religion of your choice and present your findings in a video. For the second one, you will do a final exam.
The exam includes the following three sections:
- Section 1. Multiple choice
- Section 2. Short answer
- Section 3. Extended response
What, if any, skills are needed?
There are no prerequisites for this subject. All of the skills taught and learnt in this subject are the same as those used in other HSIE subjects as well as English.
Course Units
| Year 11 Units | Year 12 Units |
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Nature of Religion: What is the supernatural? What is spirituality? What do Aboriginals believe?
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In Year 12 we go into more depth on the same topics we cover in Year 11, zooming in deeper on the specific aspects outlined below.
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Judaism: Who are Jews? What are their core beliefs and how do they live?
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Nature of Religion - Aboriginal Spirituality
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Christianity: Who are Christians? What are their core beliefs and how do they live?
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Judaism - Hasidic Jews, Jewish marriage, Jewish sexual ethics
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Christianity - Paul of Tarsus, baptism, Christian sexual ethics
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Learning Experiences
We go on an excursion to Sydney, visiting places of worship tied to different world religions.
- Picture eating authentic Turkish delight at a Muslim mosque.
- Seeing the ornate gold objects inside a Jewish synagogue.
- Admiring the changing light of stained glass windows in a Christian Cathedral.
Career Options
This subject will support you with:
- Understanding different cultures and worldviews (so important in our world today).
- Exploring and building your own view of the world.
- Developing your personal answers to the following questions: Who am I? Is there a higher power? Why is there evil, pain, and suffering? Is there life after death?
- Developing your higher-order thinking skills.
- Communication development.
- Understanding different people and their motivations.