Here you go! This section is also found on the GCSE page under the ‘Death and the Afterlife’ unit. Both interviews need you to input the usual password. Get in touch if you are unsure.

Many thanks to the people involved for their kind participation.

1. A Christian Minister from Birmingham.

Untitled from whatisyourworldview.com on Vimeo.


Here are my personal board notes on the interview! Click on them to see a full size version.

2. Arka Funerals Interview which provides an interesting/contrasting extra dimension for your discussions:

Arka Eco-Funerals Interview from whatisyourworldview.com on Vimeo.

Tags: Death and the Afterlife Unit, GCSE

We had none other than Joseph from the Old Testament in the classroom along with his brothers to tell us all about his life of suffering and how it was used for the saving of many lives - including his own undeserving family.

An amazing story.


Thanks to Jo, Sam, Ralph and Connor for participating in my nonsense!

Tags: Good and Evil Unit, podcast

wiyw podcast 20 - 22ndOct08

10set2 yak attack on Good and Evil.



Also available on the audio podcasting page!

Tags: podcast, Good and Evil Unit

Here you go!

wiyw podcast 18 - 21stOct08

9D have a free-ranging chat about the Nature of God unit. They are happy, they know it and they clap their hands.



wiyw podcast 19 - 21stOct08

10set1a have a jawbone about the Good and Evil unit. So much to discuss, so little eardrum security.



Also available on the audio podcasting page!

Tags: podcast, Nature of God Unit, Good and Evil Unit

For a couple of years I have been using a really helpful interview that explains some basic (but very important) stuff about the Bible. Finally the world of technology has caught up and it is happily sitting online for you to enjoy. You will need the password to watch (just get in touch to find out).


About the Bible from whatisyourworldview.com on Vimeo.

It is usually found sitting on the Bible page of the Christianity section.

As ever, any feedback or thoughts on the material covered are warmly welcomed.

Tags: Nature of Belief Unit, Nature of God Unit, GCSE

The lesson I did on how Christian people might respond to suffering is now linked here. You can also find this on the suffering and evil page under the ‘Questions that this topic raises about God...’ section.

Yes folks - if you are in year 10 you have just a few weeks before the grand final. If you are in year 9 then you will be starting this unit before we reach the end of the year. For this reason, I have been working extra hard to provide some decent materials for this elusive of units. I travelled into remote villages armed with nothing but a miniDV camera and microphone. A cleaning lady walking along a street almost ended my life with her mop. Crazy times.

The equality page is now up. You will need in-class assistance with the DVD interview.

UPDATE!
There is also a downloadable printable one page summary of the material covered in the DVD interview. It includes a new invention called the 'GEDIT' box. It is just simply amazing.

Tags: Equality Unit

If these aren't immediately easy to you then you need to do some work before the exam.

Paper 1


Unit 1: Nature of God
1. List 6 characteristics of God.
2. What does the term 'Trinity' mean?
3. What reasons do christians give for believing in God?
4. Give two opposite arguments.
5. What does the word 'revelation' mean?
6. How important is the Bible for Christians and why?
7. List three things from the Bible that affect the way christians live.
8. How do christians believe that God has intervened in the world?
9. List three miracles of Jesus.
10. List three experiences of God that Christian might have.

Unit 2: The Nature of Belief.
1. What ways do christians worship?
2. How does prayer work for a christian?
3. Is fasting compulsory for christians? Why bother?
4. How do christians use food to help them worship?
5. What does the term 'nature of belief' actually mean?
6. How does a building help a christian to worship?
7. Does music or art help? How?
8. Why is a symbol a good and bad thing for worship/belief?
9. What is contemplation?
10. Why is this the least popular unit of the lot?

Unit 4: Death and the Afterlife
1. What do christians think happens to you when you die?
2. What is a soul?
3. What is Heaven like?
4. What is Hell like?
5. Which aspects of God's character make him a judge?
6. Is it as simple as do good: go to Heaven/do bad: go to Hell?
7. List 8 things that might happen at a christian funeral.
8. How does the idea of a harvest help people at a christian funeral?
9. List 3 benefits of having a funeral in general.
10. List the three main ideas about what happens when you die.

Unit 5: Good and Evil.
1. What does the Bible say about the devil's relationship to God?
2. Give four responses that a christian might make to suffering.
3. What questions might someone have if they faced suffering?
4. How does prayer work when you are suffering?
5. Give two specific examples from the Bible of people who face suffering - both have the letter J in their names.
6. Why should a christian bother being good?
7. Give three examples of how a christian should act 'goood'.
8. Why would a christian have a problem with train-bunking?
9. How does the Holy Spirit relate to any of this?
10. What does any of this have to do with Jesus? Be specific.


Paper 2

Unit 6: Relationships
1. Are there any specific instructions in the Bible about how men and women should be if they are married to each other?
2. Give two or three points of view on the different roles that men and women should play in a marriage.
3. What is a covenant?
4. How does a Christian wedding reflect the main ideas of Christian marriage?
5. Which R word is essential to most questions of christians and divorce?
6. Why?
7. Give three views on divorce that are held by real christians.
8. How many types of contraception are there?
9. What are the main teachings that Christians have about sex and why?
10. Which forms of contraception do Christians disagree with and why?

Unit 7: Medical Ethics
1. Which two S words can be related to most of this unit?
2. Explain the types of fertility treatment that are available for people to use.
3. Why would or wouldn't a Christian want to have fertility treatment?
4. What are the stages of development for an unborn child?
5. Which words do pro-life campaigners not feel happy to use?
6. Give two arguments on both sides of the abortion debate.
7. List four types of euthanasia.
8. What might be an alternative to euthanasia and why?
9. Why might a christian be interested in the rights of animals?
10. How might a Christian differ in their view of animals to others?


Unit 8: Equality
1. List 5 types of inequality,
2. Which Bible teachings can be used to combat racism?
3. How might a woman find help from the Bible to support the argument for equality?
4. What do Christians think about their faith in relation to other religions and worldviews?
5. What is ecumenism?
6. Is ecumenism regarded as a good thing by all christians?
7. How does any of this unit relate back to Jesus?
8. Explain what forgiveness and reconciliation have to do with how a Christian relates to other faiths.
9. Give three major differences between the Christian faith and one other major world religion.
10. What is evangelism and why bother?

Unit 9: Poverty and Wealth
1. What causes poverty?
2. What example does Jesus provide when it comes to considering the poor?
3. Give three Bible texts that deal directly with the issue of money.
4. What two conclusions can you draw from those texts about a christian view of money?
5. Give two specific examples of modern day christian giving.
6. What jobs are right or wrong for Christians?
7. Is it simply a question of what job you do, or is there more to it?
8. What kind of difference would becoming a Christian make to your idea of future possible careers?
9. Evaluate the giving that you participate in against someone like Eric Harmer: what would he think of you?
10. Is gambling good or bad? Why?

Tags: revision guide

Just head over to the various pages when you want - they will help you with some good links etc for this unit.

Tags: Medical Ethics Unit

The podcast page has these goodies all waiting for you to devour...

Eric on responding the UK/Sussex-related poverty.


Jen on global poverty, including some material on modern slavery.


For those interested in doing the leg work, here is the pdf worksheet to download and fill in.

Tags: Poverty and Wealth Unit, podcast

The podcast page has this stuff on it:

Penny on how becoming a Christian affected her thinking on marriage and purity.


Rev Phil on marriage, three broad views of divorce and reconciliation.


For those interested in doing the leg work, here is the pdf worksheet to download and fill in.

Tags: Religion and Human Relationships unit, podcast

Here it is.



Your homework is to make sure your own copy of it is completed. Hey - why not colour it in?

Tags: Poverty and Wealth Unit

That's right my delightful class people.

By the time you read this, you will have undertaken the notorious Bib-Nav course and have the following references written down from the lesson:

Matthew 22v36-40 James 2v1-13
1Timothy 6v6-10 James 4v13-16
1Timothy 6v17-18 Philippians 2v4-11
Matthew 19v16-29 2Corinthians 9v6-8

An online Bible is available for use here.



a. Please get yourself a copy of each text.
b. Read them.
c. Make some marks on the page - which are the relevant parts?

And by 'relevant parts' please remember that the four aims of the course are these:

1. The causes of hunger, poverty and disease;
2. Christian teaching about concern for the poor and about the right uses of money;
3. Giving to charity in Christianity;
4. Christian teaching about moral and immoral occupations.

Tags: Poverty and Wealth Unit

All the best with the exam on Friday. Don't forget to come and chat if there are any problems or anxieties. I will be expecting you to also hand in your A3 revision sheets to demonstrate your abundant preparation...

See you then.

Tags: revision guide

We may be laughing in the picture, but it is a heavy topic, so be careful...

The fourth unit on the GCSE (see this page) is all about what happens when you die, whether there is a body/soul difference, and also what happens at a funeral. This is the audio from a Skype video interview I conducted recently with a Christian minister from Birmingham. (Thanks John!)

Tags: Death and the Afterlife Unit

Independent learning is when you don't wait about for the teacher to put the bib on and spoon feed you. I will be encouraging all year 9s and 10s to adopt the practice of self-help so that you can get further in the short time available.

There are now more comprehensive notes to download on the GCSE page for units 1, 2 and 4.

Tags: Nature of Belief Unit, Death and the Afterlife Unit

After quite a lot of work (sorry Mrs Rama - I remember who you are, honest!), the DVD interview with Ross Ciano is now completed. The audio is up on the podcast page if you are interested in a cut-down audio-only version. Best to wait for the DVD in class. Many thanks to all concerned who helped me get this done - not least the Year 7 boys.

Tags: podcast, GCSE, Nature of Belief Unit, Nature of God Unit

Here is the 'BIG CHECKLIST' - a downloadable document for you to look at and tick off everything you think has been covered in each of the units. It is a useful way of asking yourself 'Mmmm has my teacher really been earning their mortgage/skateboarding/gadget-getting/charity-donating money?'


Be nice if you do spot any gaps - asking is always preferable to ninja-attacks in corridors. And anyway - I have 'oo-na-gee' so don't try anything.

The original link is on the revision section of the GCSE page.

Tags: GCSE

This is a real scoop people! I managed to get some time with the two key figures in how the GCSE is devised, marked and run. In this podcast episode I ask them about good and bad responses to exam questions and whether examining people they live under the ground...



Subscribe to the WIYW podcast on iTunes:

Tags: podcast, GCSE

This sheet provides you with some guidance on how to approach the three questions in each section. The original section is on the GCSE page here.

Tags: GCSE

The awesome Delta bunch bring this unit to a close (find it in the school section on the podcast page) with a remarkable and memorable recording in the chapel. Go people. I really enjoyed the laughing.


'Goodbye dirt!'

Tags: Nature of God Unit

Please please please don't judge me as a teacher (or anything else) by this recording. It was fun, but what will I be doing in the jobless gutter when people finally listen to this? As ever it is found in the school podcast section on this page.

Tags: Nature of God Unit

Homework:
Finish the A3 sheet and don't forget these reflection questions.

Reflections section:

What things have you learnt from this unit - things that might actually help you in your life to deal with suffering and evil?
Have any views been radically different from your own?
What do you think about where evil comes from?

Tags: Good and Evil Unit

What better way of preparing for the near future revision times: preparing A3 revision sheets and having a fantastic discussion in class that will then be used for a podcast! Please get your notes together and complete any undone homeworks before we wrap up this half term.

Extra help?
If you need any help getting stuff finished then please just ask ask (although preferably out of class - why not use this contact page?).

Even more help?
Why not get this book and download these notes. Lots of people have and even more people are doing it. They are finding that it gives them good skin and a greater life expectancy. Some of them even smile a bit more, although this hardly helps if you suffer from great ugliness.

hey it's a joke - don't take me to court over it...
PS. Thanks for the birthday well wishers and respect to KA who has probably already looked at this page AND printed it out AND laminated it for a rainy day...

Tags: Good and Evil Unit, Nature of God Unit

We covered this topic in class and concluded that for Christians:

1. God has shown them what right and wrong is about through revealing it in history and Bible writings.
2. Behaving in a good/moral way and rejecting evil is a way of saying thankyou to Jesus who died to open up the doors of heaven.



Homework:
To read some or all of the 'sermon on the mount'* and bring back 7 quotes or specific examples that Jesus gives for Christian living.

*this a famous section of the Bible and lives in Matthew chapter 5 to 7.

Tags: Good and Evil Unit

The notes for GCSE revision can be found on this page. These are useful for doing a bit of your own reading up on any of the units, and also if you haven't got the book yet.


Nice sculpture (but not very safe).

Tags: revision guide

After a fantastic 95% pass rate from the bunch at Durrington I would like to say thanks for being such a fun class even when things occasionally felt a little bleak. May you have a brilliant future and keep in touch.

Rama

Tags: durrington

Newly uploaded: a very basic overview of the GCSE course.

This book is very useful for the course.

Tags: GCSE, revision guide