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Values Education

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Special Religious Education in Australia and its Value to Contemporary Society

Abstract

This chapter analyses the role SRE plays in teaching values education and is among the central issues in pedagogic discourse and endeavours in many countries. The global debate regarding religious education in government schools has stimulated discussion in Australia around the merit of SRE and its place in contemporary Australian society. Providing SRE classes and their diverse religious backgrounds allows for a more intentional teaching and learning approach to fostering spirituality, religious belief and religious values. Values education is perceived as a pivotal means of ensuring the continuity of a society’s values (Dror “National Education” through mutually supportive educational devices: a case study of Zionist education. Peter Lang, New York, 2007). From the perspective of many educators, values education is at the heart of educational effort, going beyond technically transferring skills. Yet, on the other hand, some argue that values education is liable to result in political, religious or ideological indoctrination. This chapter will define the meaning of values education and discuss the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic values. It will outline the national framework for values education developed by the Australian government. This chapter will then analyse how SRE contributes to the Australian values framework. Research has shown that belief in a higher being, a key element in SRE, can contribute significantly to values education. This research will be examined, as well as responses from SRE educators across the states and territories, who have been interviewed through a qualitative research project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Education, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel

    Zehavit Gross

  2. Department of Hebrew, Biblical and Jewish Studies, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    Suzanne D. Rutland

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  1. Zehavit Gross
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  2. Suzanne D. Rutland
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Correspondence to Zehavit Gross .

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Gross, Z., Rutland, S.D. (2021). Values Education. In: Special Religious Education in Australia and its Value to Contemporary Society. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-67969-9_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-67969-9_4

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