The professionalisation of non-denominational religious education in England: politics,organisation and knowledge

In response to contemporary concerns, and using neglected primary sources, this article explores the professionalisation of teachers of Religious Education (RI/RE) in non-denominational, state-maintained schools in England. It does so from the launch of Religion in Education (1934) and the Institute for Christian Education at Home and Abroad (ICE) (1935) to the founding of the Religious Education Council of England and Wales (1973) and the British Journal of Religious Education (1978). Professionalisation is defined as a collective historical process in terms of three inter-related concepts: (1) professional self-organisation and professional politics; (2) professional knowledge; and (3) initial and continuing professional development. The article sketches the history of non-denominational religious education prior to the focus period, to contextualise the emergence of the professionalising processes under scrutiny. Professional self-organisation and professional politics are explored by reconstructing the origins and history of ICE, which became the principal body offering professional development provision for RI/RE teachers for some 50 years. Professional knowledge is discussed in relation to the content of Religion in Education which was oriented around Christian Idealism and interdenominational networking. Changes in journal name in the 1960s and 1970s reflected uncertainties about the orientation of the subject and shifts in understanding over the nature and character of professional knowledge. The article also explores a particular case of resistance, in the late 1960s, to the prevailing consensus surrounding the nature and purpose of RI/RE, and the representativeness and authority of the pre-eminent professional body of the time. In conclusion, the article examines some implications which may be drawn from this history for the prospects and problems of the professionalisation of RE today.     

Rortian Realism

This paper motivates and defends “Rortian realism,” a position that is Rortian in respect of its underlying philosophical theses but non‐Rortian in terms of the lessons it draws from these for cultural politics. The philosophical theses amount to what the paper calls Rorty's “anti‐representationalism” (AR), arguing that AR is robust to critique as being anti‐realist, relativist, or sceptical, invoking Rorty's historicism/ethnocentrism as part of the defence. The latter, however, creates problems for Rorty in so far as his reformative views on the nature of philosophical and academic activity are meant to be foisted on an academy that ex hypothesi holds views different from these. The paper suggests we can motivate a different conception of the consequences of AR more amenable to the academy: Rortian realism, a view that makes greater concessions to realism and a kind of scientific naturalism than Rorty would like, but that for those very reasons is more likely to allow AR to prevail.     

Political Ecumenism and 1968

The political night prayers in Cologne were a project that reflected the politicization and ecumenism that occupied the Christian confessions in 1968, not only in Uppsala. They were an attempt to consistently bring public policy and faith together. A large group of organizers, influenced by the work of women intellectuals, held monthly services that dealt with current issues. They were distinguished by the information they provided and by discussions, which aimed at stimulating meditation and concrete actions. The services attracted up to a thousand participants and became well known throughout Germany. The political night prayers encountered resistance from church leaders and conservative theologians. In this project, ecumenism was realized as local political ecumenism.     

The Enduring Influence of Religion on Senators’ Legislative Behavior

Does a senator's personal religion influence their legislative behavior in the Senate? To date, empirical research has answered this question only using senators’ religious traditions, while more concurrent work implies that religion should be measured as a multifaceted phenomenon. This study tests this proposition by compiling a unique data set of senators’ religion, conceptualized and measured by three different elements—belonging, beliefs, and behavior. The study estimates the association between these three religious facets and senators’ legislative behavior on economic, social, and foreign policy issues, while controlling for their constituencies’ political and religious preferences. It finds that religious beliefs are a strong predictor of senators’ legislative behavior, while religious tradition and behavior are mostly not. Furthermore, it finds that religious beliefs are associated with legislative behavior across a wide array of policy areas and are not confined to sociocultural issues.     

The Political Psychology of Contemporary Anti-Politics: A Discursive Approach to the End-of-Ideology Era

This article advocates a discursive approach for examining political rhetoric. Such an approach is particularly useful for studying contemporary political ideology. The current political climate, especially in Britain, has been described as exemplifying a "Third Way," which is said to have replaced the old ideological division between "left" and "right" by a consensual, non-ideological politics. TThe discursive approach allow the analyst to look at the continuing dilemmas of an ideology that denies its ideological character. In discursive analyses of interviews with 20 elected local officials in the Midlands of England, the respondents (regardless of party affiliation) tended to give accounts that celebrated the development of consensual, less ideologically divisive politics. These accounts, however, were dilemmatic: As the speakers told of social change, they also stressed their own personal stability, as if they themselves existed outside the previous political climate. They also explicitly distanced themselves from the language of "left" and "right," but in this distancing a further ideological dilemma was detectable. All the local politicians were officially affiliated to a political party. In discursively subtle ways, the speakers used the left/right continuum as they distinguished between the parties, thereby showing the sort of variability that discursive theorists have noted in other contexts. The implications of such findings and of the discursive approach to studying ideology are discussed in relation to the possibilities for developing a critical political psychology.     

Attitudes Toward Affirmative Action as a Function of Racial Identity Among African American College Students

Variations in support for affirmative action were assessed in a sample of 181 African American college students in Massachusetts. These students generally endorsed affirmative action, and endorsement varied positively as a function of the belief that one had personally benefited from affirmative action. Aspects of racial identity, indexed by the Multidimensional Inventory of Black Identity, also predicted variations in attitudes toward affirmative action, over and above background factors and personal benefit. Consistent with realistic group conflict theory, the most influential aspects of identity were centrality (i.e., the degree to which group identity is central to personal identity), private regard (i.e., pride in the group), and an oppressed minority ideology (i.e., a viewpoint that emphasizes the similarities between African Americans and other oppressed groups).     

Wickedness,Idleness and Basic Income

Res Publica - This paper critically analyses the position that basic income schemes foster idleness and thereby create harm. The view is based on an alleged empirical link between idleness and...     

Advertised Australian counselling psychologists: A descriptive survey of their practice details and self perceived competence in six counselling psychology practice areas

This survey research in a field setting aimed to describe psychologists who advertised themselves in the Australian Yellow Pages as counsellors, thus providing a snapshot of advertised counselling psychologists in Australia. Data was collected using a multiple mailing survey method and resulted in a 62.2% return rate. The psychologists’ (a) demographic characteristics, (b) training and development, (c) provision of services, (d) professional involvement, and (e) their self perceived competence in working with (i) depression, (ii) anxiety, (iii) substance use, (iv) clients from non English speaking backgrounds and Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander individuals, (v) clients who are same sex attracted (gay, lesbian, and bisexual individuals), and (vi) clients using electronic mail and instant messaging were assessed. Advertised Australian counselling psychologists tend to be female, mature and Caucasian. The majority of the psychologists surveyed live in urban areas. Master and Bachelor level degrees were most often reported, a minority held doctoral degrees. The average psychologist charged $96.32 per hour, less than the Australian Psychological Society (APS) recommended fee for an hour of service. Eclectic and cognitive behaviour therapy were indicated most often as the theoretical orientations guiding psychological work. Psychologists belonged almost exclusively to the Australian Psychological Society as a professional association. Surprisingly, 2.9% of psychologists indicate not following an ethical code in their work and 3.9% failed to ensure that their work was covered by professional indemnity insurance. Advertised psychologists are thus described and suggestions are given for the further development of the profession. Regarding their self perceived competence, Australian advertised psychologists present as having self perceived strengths and areas of weakness regarding their counselling competence. This indicates that they are aware of their varying ability to work with various issues and populations. The self perceived competence of Australian psychologists in six specific counselling practice areas and suggestions for future training and development are provided.