Review article
The role of religious education in public schools in Poland
Elżbieta Osewska
; Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw
Abstract
For centuries Poland has retained a unique property of a guardian of Christianity. The Roman Catholic Church has become a defender of Poland and Catholicism, especially in the time of communism and Soviet regime. The Roman Catholic Church made a major contribution to the development of parish catechesis and patriotic education during the Soviet occupation. Today, primarily the Church, and also religious education, is facing the changes in European culture which create new challenges. In order to respond to them in the best possible way, a process of external and internal evaluation of religious education in schools in Poland seems to be necessary. Religious education cannot be analyzed outside the context of school, since public school is the basic framework. The author of this article explains the role of religious education in public schools in Poland in the context of historical, political, social, economic, cultural and educational changes. First, she refers to religious education in Poland from a historical point of view. Then, she points at conditions for religious education, its nature, aims, changes and challenges. To make it possible for the young people to face the new challenges and get ready for new situations, it is necessary to make some changes in religious education, first of all to restore the dignity and uniqueness of human being created in the image of God, to accept theological concepts and the role of dialogue in the process of learning, to introduce learning for life associated with everyday situations, to increase the opportunities for personal development and growth in faith for students of all ages, to invigorate the development of the student’s identity, to seek for new ways of communication, to develop critical thinking, to promote moral upbringing, to explore new models of cooperation with family and other educational institutions.
Keywords
religious education; Poland; public school; challenges
Hrčak ID:
147638
URI
Publication date:
29.10.2015.
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