Primary school students’ perspectives on questions that bridge science and religion

Findings from a survey study in England

Bibliographic Data

ID11159703
AuthorsBerry Billingsley (0000-0002-7974-4904, Canterbury Christ Church University UK, corresponding author), Manzoorul Abedin (0000-0001-6616-0953, Canterbury Christ Church University UK), Mehdi Nassaji (0000-0002-7651-6156, Canterbury Christ Church University UK)
Year2020
Volume46
Issue1
Pages177-204
Publication date2020-02-01
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueBritish Educational Research Journal (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0141-1926 • E-ISSN: 1469-3518
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/berj.3574
OpenAlexW2972574528
LanguageEN
References cited41

This article describes the development of a questionnaire to discover primary school students’ perceptions of science, religion and the relationships between them on a range of topics that are known as Big Questions. The questionnaire was administered in 16 primary schools in England with over 750 students aged 10–11. The findings indicate that students in this age group have begun to consider how science and religion relate and that while there is a diversity of positions, a significant proportion perceived science and religion to conflict. Analysis of responses also indicated that primary school students’ epistemic insight was limited in relation to their understanding of the nature of science and, in particular, the idea that science has limitations. The basis and potential consequences of such views are considered and recommendations for teaching practice are presented, together with ideas for future research. It is anticipated that the study will inform teachers and curriculum planners developing approaches and guidance materials in science and religious education

Bridge (graph theory) · Curriculum · Diversity (politics) · Mathematics education · Nature of Science · Pedagogy · Perception · Relation (database) · Science education · Sociology · Education and Critical Thinking Development · Evolution and Science Education · Medicine · Psychology · Religious Education and Schools

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