Cathal BarryNew Curriculum awaiting Vatican approval
Religious education in Ireland is set for a major shakeup with the country’s first ever curriculum for Catholic pre-schools and primary schools on the way.
A draft of the new curriculum, prepared by religious education expert Anne Hession, has been sent to Rome and is currently awaiting approval from the Vatican.
Changes are expected to be made to the draft, which has already been approved by the Irish Episcopal Commission for Catholic Education and Formation, before a final document is published.
For the new curriculum to come in to force the Vatican will have to grant formal approval known as recognitio.
While it is not clear when the Holy See will finish vetting the text, Msgr James Cassin, Executive Secretary of the Irish bishop’s Council for Education, said he is “hopeful” that it will receive approval soon.
“It has been sent to Rome for approval,” he told The Irish Catholic this week. “Obviously we are hoping it will be approved as soon as possible but we just don’t know when at this point,” he said.
The Irish Catholicunderstands that catechetical specialist Elaine Mahon is now drafting the new Religious Education programme on behalf of publishers Veritas for Junior and Senior Infant Classes at primary level so it is ready to be rolled out in schools as soon as approval is received from Rome.
Curriculum needed
Welcoming the possibility of the new curriculum, Bernadette Sweetman, Research and Development Officer at the Irish Centre for Religious Education, said a Religious Education Curriculum has been needed at primary level “for a long time”.
“It bolsters the status of religious education as an academic subject, as well as being a significance contribution to the holistic development of the child,” she said.
“I hope that having such a comprehensive and clear curriculum will also help non-school based groups, such as parish or diocesan level teams to create suitable complementary materials for our children’s education,” she added.