Who studies religion? Towards a better conversation between Theology, Religious Studies, and Religious Education

Abstract

This paper calls for better integration between the fields of Theology and Religious Studies (TRS) and Religious Education (RE). Positive reform in RE requires integration between educational theory, policy, and practice, but we argue that the academic study of theology and religion is too often an overlooked partner in these conversations. The separation of TRS from RE is damaging at all levels of the curriculum, undermining the rigour and critical depth of school syllabi, cutting TRS and RE specialists off from valuable intellectual discussion, and leaving university departments unprepared to properly support student progression. This destructive divergence has long been observed (e.g. Cush in Br J Relig Educ 21:137–146, 1999), but this paper proposes that the emerging paradigm of Religion and Worldviews Education (RWE) has encouraged important progress. The advent of RWE has generated new interest among RE specialists in the theory and practice of multidisciplinary TRS. It has also created space for TRS academics from many fields to engage with teachers and policymakers in productive conversations. To illustrate this argument, we highlight some examples of good practice and suggest future work through which links might be strengthened.