Bahá’í Religious Education Agency

In the United Kingdom, ethnic diversity and religious pluralism complicate the question of what should be taught in schools under the name Religious Education (sometimes Religious Studies) (R.E./R.S.). Each Local Authority has to have a Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education (S.A.C.R.E.), and the precise membership of this body will vary according to the religions which are seen to be organised locally. A number of these bodies include a representative of the Bahá’í community.

The Bahá’í Religious Education Agency exists to help Bahá’ís who are involved in local S.A.C.R.E.s and also to assist those teachers who wish to include the Bahá’í Faith in their lessons. The common thread is that these sorts of activity are at the interface of the education system and the Bahá’í Faith. BREA is administratively part of the Office of Public Affairs, which is itself an arm of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United Kingdom. The acronym OPA-RE is therefore also used to describe the same body, as is the term Religious Education Task Force.

The BREA logo is a rising sun, in yellow and purple, with the letters BREA.

Materials for Schools

BREA is the body which tries to provide Bahá’í materials to school teachers. In the past these have often been in the form of a pack of materials assembled from what happens to be available at the time. More recently, Warwick Bahá'i Bookshop has developed a number of items suitable for presentation to schools, or for use by teachers. These include:

Worksheets for Teachers of Religious Education - for both Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 3 (see also Warwick Bahá'i Bookshop)

The Bahá'i Faith (Vickers) - An introductory book written for 8 to 14 year-olds

The Life of the Báb, The Life of Bahá'u'lláh, The Life of Abdu'l-Bahá and The Life of the Guardian - a series of four books which would help any teacher undertaking work on the Bahá’í Faith.

Various leaflets, (see Warwick Leaflets), some of which are more appropriate for this purpose than others. Teachers of students above the age of 14 sometimes offer their students a wide range of these leaflets, to choose those which are of interest to them.

From early 2014, BREA sought to utilise these materials more thoroughly, by consulting with the Warwick Bahá'i Bookshop over the production of a more permanent pack of materials for Key Stage 2 (7 - 11 year-olds). The pack now exists, and is available from the Bookshop. BREA also seeks to promote the Bookshop's subsequent production of a pack for Key Stage 3 (11 - 14 year-olds).

A schoolteacher contacting BREA for help should receive a list of available materials.

Power Point Presentations

A number of people have produced PowerPoint presentations on the Bahá'í Faith suitable for school-age pupils, including Debbie Tibbey (Dorset) and Scott Murray (central Scotland). These are available for download from BREA's website. Ann Vickers has recently produced two introductory presentations for Key Stage 3, with accompanying worksheets. These presentations are in a form which students can use by themselves, without the intermediary of a teacher. The first presentation looks at the Faith in overview, while the second one concentrates on the internal workings of the religion.

Online Quizzes

In June and July, 2014, BREA was involved in the preparation of a set of quizzes on different aspects of the Bahá'í Faith, which are accessible on the internet. Originally set up for people preparing for public examinations on particular subjects, the quiz website has expanded into other areas of learning. The Bahá'í section can be safely promoted among the Bahá'í community as a means for expanding areas of knowledge around the Faith. A separate article on these quizzes exists at Quizzes on the internet. (See also "External links", below)

Other BREA Activities

In addition to responding to specific requests, BREA holds seminars on various aspects of Religious Education, on the role of S.A.C.R.E.s, and on papers written specially on subjects related to its work, etc. BREA sends representatives to R.E. conferences. Stephen Vickers of BREA is also a member of the R.E. Council.

BREA has also presented an award (The Joe Foster Award for Services to Education) to individuals who have performed great service in the area of Bahá’í/R.E. work. In 2007 it was presented to Sheila Williams, of Birmingham, and in 2008 to Hasan Afnan, from Brent, Greater London. (See link below.) Joe Foster was a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United Kingdom, was himself an educationalist, and spent some considerable time trying to encourage inclusion of the Bahá'í Faith in educational curricula.

Website

A new website was launched in January 2017. A team of people including Amanda Topson produced this. Jenny Lockwood and Ann Vickers were responsible for much of the writing and editing. The URL is http://re.bahai.org.uk/

The Team

• Dr. Stephen Vickers, recently retired as Chairman of the Vocational Training Charitable Trust, BREA Chairman
• Amy Behi
• Karl Wightman from the Office of Public Affairs now works with BREA

Former members still used as advisers

• Ineke Gijsbers, former Secretary
• Padideh Sabeti
• Lindsay Thorne, educationalist, specialist for children with behavioural difficulties, still advises BREA
• Rocky Grove, primary school teacher, tutor for the Open University. Rocky was the creator of the original website.
• Elizabeth Jenkerson, former staff member at the Bahá’í World Centre
• Midge Ault, primary school teacher, still advises BREA
• Debbie Tibbey, primary school teacher, still advises BREA
• Jenny Lockwood (see also UK Bahá’í Histories Project)

External Links

Contact:

• [1] Bahá’í RE Resources for Schools website
• [2] To access the Bahá'í quizzes
• [3] For details of the award recipients (link dead)