Don’t Teenagers have Souls?
Report of FE Chaplain’s Annual Conference
July 10th - 12th 2007
A brave title that originated as a question put to Alan Murray in the context of provision of/or lack of provision of entitlement to spititual, moral, social and cultural development in FE Colleges. Thankfully the question was not asked in isolation, as it might have been in the past, but is part of the change of attitude there has been over the recent past to the question of the spiritual needs of students in governement and educational circles.
It was great to hear the QCA make reference to the work of the RE Council and especially the recommendations they have made concerning the need for provision for all 16 - 19 year olds. We had an update of the work ‘All Faith’s and None’ jointly funded by the Jerusalem Trust and the LSC and directed by Alan Murray and Andrew Wright. This is an exciting project aimed at supporting and resourcing spiritual and moral development of student of all faiths, those of no religious belief and those who are challenging their faith background. Still very much in the planning stage it was easy to see that this is a major piece of work that is incredibly complex but it was also a great opportunity for the participants in the conference to make some positive comments.
The conference also welcomed input from young students and they should be congratulated for their contribution. Christian and Muslim students prepared statements as to what was important to them in their faith. The detail and use of technology showed that this was not something they had put together at the last moment but had spent time preparing. Later they were ready to try and answer questions from the floor and did very well. Professor Denise Cush also brought the voice of young people to the conference in the presentation of her research into teenage Wicca and Paganism and its importance for engaging with young people and shaping provision for SMSCD.
It was fantastic to be able to roll out Breathe for the chaplains to see, experience and hear how it can be used in colleges. Once seen there is definately no need to persuade people to have a closer look and so it is no suprise that bookings have been made.
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