Catholic Schools In England Research Articles

Why and how the publication of the Pastoral Liturgy Directory turned 2023 into a seismic year for RE in Catholic schools in England and Wales

Why and how the publication of the Pastoral Liturgy Directory turned 2023 into a seismic year for RE in Catholic schools in England and Wales

Context, challenge and professional wisdom - stories of contemporary school chaplaincy

ABSTRACT This article explores the role of the chaplain in Catholic schools in England and some of the contemporary challenges. There is a focus on two issues in particular: the celebration of liturgy and the participation of non-Catholic children and the inclusion of LGBTQ+ children in the Catholic school. This article draws out some of the tensions between the pastoral sensitivities around participation in liturgy and the directives of the Prayer and Liturgy Directory and the complexity of the legal and pastoral inclusion of LGBTQ+ children.

Headteachers in Catholic schools in England: contemporary challenges. A follow-up research study: part 2

This paper is a follow up to a previous article published online in this journal (Fincham; 2019) in which the writer describes the first phase of research into contemporary challenges facing headteachers in Catholic schools in England as expressed from the perspective of headteachers within one diocese. It was evident from the first phase that leaders in Catholic schools are subject not only to pragmatic concerns about funding and recruitment but also to both implied and overt challenges to Catholic identity and integrity, which are tested by pressures of social media, which have an impact upon the mental and emotional health of young people, and a pervasive secular mind-set, which impinges on faith practice in families and in the community. It was noted that the reduction in the number of priests in Catholic dioceses in England has also often left the school as the single focus of the Catholic community, which has implications for sustaining spiritual capital. The first phase of the investigation examined responses to an open question in which headteachers at a Catholic diocesan conference were invited to indicate their three most pressing challenges. The responses were subject to a process of Thematic Analysis (TA), as a result of which five pre-eminent issues were identified. The opportunity was also taken to investigate the extent to which spiritual capital was being renewed in Catholic schools. These ‘categories of discourse’ informed the face-to-face interviews that were conducted with five primary headteachers and four secondary headteachers in the second phase of the investigation. The data gathered enabled the researcher to ascribe meaning to headteachers’ unique experiences.

Life to the Full: Sustaining the Catholic Curriculum

Catholic schools. has articulated There are concerns that the curriculum of Catholic schools has been increasingly dominated by pressures to conform to a programme of education legitimised by an intrusive secular state and designated as a ‘national curriculum’. Accordingly, the curriculum of Catholic maintained schools is regulated within a standardised framework that is directed by government. Contentiously, it has been asserted that, as a result, the curriculum in Catholic schools in England has effectively been ‘de-Catholicised’. This claim has been contested. For example, it is maintained that the matter is more nuanced than this and the situation cannot be interpreted in such an unequivocal way. However, it might well be asked: what should a Catholic curriculum look like? In the face of this question, leaders in Catholic schools are encouraged to consider renewing and restoring a distinctive curriculum by permeating it systematically with the principles of Catholic social teaching. Ultimately, the writer argues, the curriculum of Catholic schools should provide students with an understanding of the teachings of Jesus Christ.

Headteachers in Catholic schools in England: contemporary challenges. A follow-up research study: part 1

Headteachers of Catholic schools in England in the early twenty-first century are facing unprecedented challenges in exercising their role. In addition to concerns about funding and recruitment, leaders in Catholic schools are subject to challenges about Catholic identity and integrity, which are tested by pressures such as social media that have an impact not only upon the mental and emotional health of young people but on faith practice in families and in the community. Traditionally, the Catholic school community comprised a balance across the home, the parish and the school. However, pressures on home life and the reduction in the number of priests have often left the school as the single focus of the Catholic community. Catholic education, moreover, has been open to challenges from what Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Connor called ‘aggressive secularism’, which questions the very existence of Catholic schools. In this paper, the writer explores contemporary challenges for headteachers in Catholic schools as expressed from the perspective of headteachers in one diocese in England. The research was conducted in two phases. In the first phase of the investigation, an open question was distributed at a diocesan conference of Catholic headteachers and deputy headteachers, inviting participants to indicate their three most pressing challenges. A phenomenological approach was adopted, and, through a process of Thematic Analysis (TA), five pre-eminent issues were identified.

Convent Schooling for English Girls in the ‘Exile’ Period, 1600–1800

Following the Reformation, Catholic families seeking to educate both sons and daughters in their faith faced many challenges. The penal laws proscribed the creation of Catholic schools in England and forbade parents to send children abroad for education. However, such was the determination to provide Catholic schooling that families were prepared to break the laws and meet the expense of fees and travel. The convents established schools for several reasons. For some orders it was part of their religious purpose to educate girls, others saw it as a means of educating future members, and all needed to secure their convents financially and be self-sufficient. Schooling provided varied significantly. This article, drawing mainly on manuscript sources from convents and some of the families with daughters attending convent schools, considers the scope of the provision of girls' education in the ‘exile’ period and offers some preliminary insights into the experience of pupils.

The spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils in Catholic schools in England

Schools in England have a statutory duty to contribute to the spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) development of children. This paper reviews its historical background before considering the judgements of Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) inspections undertaken in the three academic years 2008–2011 of this aspect of the responsibilities in both primary and secondary schools. There are variations in the inspectors’ assessment of pupils’ spiritual, moral and cultural development across different school sectors and phases. The proportion of Catholic schools judged to be outstanding or good in this aspect of pupils’ learning is noticeably higher compared to that of ‘other’ schools in both primary and secondary phases. Secondary schools are judged as more effective than primary schools in both sectors. While this paper does not attempt an exhaustive analysis of the nature of SMSC development or critique its understanding by Ofsted, it does review the ways in which Ofsted inspectors come to their conclusions and the significance and limitations of their findings. It then speculates upon the possible reasons for their judgements and suggests areas for further study.

The right to ‘bricolage’: Catholic pupils’ perception of their religious identity and the implications for Catholic schools in England

The present article highlights one of the challenges faced by the Catholic Church in maintaining the Catholicity of Catholic schools in England, that is to say, the students’ construction of a fragmented Catholic identity from elements of the Catholic faith tradition. The article explores Catholic students’ perceptions of their Catholic identity. The author applies the French sociologist Danièle Hervieu-Léger’s theories concerning religious identity – the concept of religion as a chain of memory and religious bricolage – to data generated in interviews with a small sample of students in three English Catholic secondary schools. This article will outline Hervieu-Léger’s understanding of religious identity; explore students’ perceptions of their Catholic identity; examine these through the lens of Hervieu-Léger’s theory; and conclude with possible implications for religious education, Catholic schools and future research.

Bridging worlds: ethnic minority pupils in Catholic schools in England

Aggregated attainment data for each of the four Key Stages of the National Curriculum during 2006–07 are used to compare the performance of schools having differing proportions of ethnic minority pupils on roll. The data are for all maintained primary and secondary schools that completed the 2007 Annual Schools’ Census. There are noticeable differences across the phases between schools in the Catholic and non‐Catholic sectors. The average levels of pupil attainment in Catholic schools tend to be higher than in other institutions, the differentials between the sectors increasing the greater the proportion of ethnic minority pupils on roll. The significance and limitations of the findings are discussed and areas for further study suggested.

Headteachers in Catholic schools: challenges of leadership

In spite of their academic and social success, Catholic schools in England have been subject to a variety of challenges and changes in recent years. This paper draws on the findings of an investigation based on interviews that the writer carried out among a number of headteachers working in Catholic schools in the Midlands and south-east England. The intention of the investigation was to elicit their views about the leadership challenges they face in their experience of headship. In considering the challenges that headteachers in Catholic schools face, the writer concludes that it seems they encounter significant and increasing tensions in attempting to fulfil the faith mission of the Catholic Church within a prevailing secular culture and a competitive educational environment.

Contextualising Catholic school performance in England

Despite there being significant numbers of state maintained Catholic schools in England, they have, until recently, proved to be of interest only to a minority of researchers. Government initiatives to promote greater scrutiny and accountability through the publication of school test and examination results have generated interest in their academic performance from proponents and critics. Early attempts by government to compare school performance using ‘raw’ examination and test scores were severely criticised. Newly introduced ‘Contextualised Value Added’ measures, when correctly applied, have largely overcome the deficiencies of earlier datasets. This paper presents new CVA performance data provided by Ofsted that may help the debate about Catholic school effectiveness to progress. Possible reasons for the CVA findings are explored and further areas for research are suggested.

A Few Hard Facts and a Great Deal of Conjecture: Catholic Schools in England

THIS PAPER PRESENTS new evidence from national contextualized school performance data showing that, after taking into account those factors known to affect pupil achievement, state-maintained Catholic schools in England appear to be more academically effective than similar non-Catholic institutions. Using an American analysis of the nature of school communities, it then speculates on possible causes of the observed superior levels of performance.

Diversity, deprivation and the common good: pupil attainment in Catholic schools in England

Despite there being significant numbers of state maintained Catholic schools in England, they have until recently proved to be of interest only to a minority of researchers, usually those directly involved in their promotion. New Government initiatives encouraging further diversity in the provision of schools have proved controversial and, in reopening the religious debates of the 19th and early 20th centuries, have prompted interest in the academic performance of Church schools. This paper takes a longitudinal approach in reviewing information already in the public domain, as well as presenting new evidence based on national examination performance data. Standards of academic attainment at Key Stage 4 in Catholic schools compare favourably with national norms. Such schools are particularly effective with more socially disadvantaged pupils and, as such, appear to offer much to the common good of society. Further areas for research are suggested.

Academic standards in Catholic schools in England: indications of causality

In terms of absolute or 'raw' examination and test scores, those maintained schools in England designated as Roman Catholic by the Department of Education and Skills appear, on average, to achieve higher scores than the mean of non-Catholic schools. Similar findings have been reported about Catholic schools in other differing educational systems, most extensively in the US. A range of possible causes has been advanced to explain the findings though there is little empirical research to determine causality with any certainty. The main source of evidence derives from studies in the US. While they can offer some useful insights they relate to a different educational culture. This paper attempts to contribute to and evaluate the current debate about possible reasons for the high levels attainment of pupils attending Catholic schools in England. However, in the light of the limited available evidence it is, inevitably, somewhat speculative.

So Far, So Good: levels of academic achievement in Catholic schools

Summary Recent evidence from Diocesan and Office for Standards in Education inspections under the Education Act 1992 seems to suggest that while pupils in Catholic schools in England and Wales obtain high levels of academic success at Key Stage Two and Key Stage Four compared with those attending other schools in the maintained sector, their achievements in Advanced level examinations are lower than one would expect. The article points to evidence of a similar long‐standing pattern of performance of pupils in Catholic schools and speculates on some possible causes of the phenomenon. The contents of this article are the personal responsibility of the author and must not be taken as the official view of the Archdiocese of Birmingham.

Catholic Schools in England and Wales

Catholic Schools in England and Wales