1. Introduction: Change in Religious Background of Students  The Religious background of students enrolled in Catholic Schools in the early 19 th Century was completely different to the Religious background of students enrolled now in Catholic School in the 21 st Century.  The need to change the religion curriculum in Catholic Schools is essential to address the needs of contemporary youth spirituality. Rossiter, 2010, pg. 129, explains how within the last 50 years there have been significant changes in spirituality of many young people in Australian Catholic Schools from a more traditional religious spirituality to something more secular but, the religion curriculum in Catholic Schools has not changed.  We use the term ‘Youth Spirituality’ because even though our students may not be Religious and /or Catholic they are Spiritual, as McCarthy, 2000, pg. 193, defines spirituality as, “The deepest desires of the human heart for meaning, purpose, and connection and as a deep life lived intentionally in reference to something larger”. Similarly, Palmer, 2003, pg.376, defines spirituality as, “the external human yearning to be connected with something larger than our own egos”.  Religious Education has an important place in Catholic Schools as Tirri, 2012, pg.269, mentions the importance of Religious Education as an academic field, it’s aim is to increase people’s awareness of religious and spiritual issues in human’s relations and in understanding of the world and one’s place in it. Rupp,1995, pg.269, writes the more open we are to God’s movement in our lives, the more we can connect with God.

2. Reorienting the Religion  As noted in Rossiter, 2011, ‘Reorienting the religion curriculum in Catholic Schools to address the needs of contemporary youth spirituality’, there is a growing need to alter the Religious Education Curriculum.  Bellous, 2007, pg.100, believes the classroom helps children feel fit in its environment, fit enough to flourish. Rossiter explains as many of the pupils in the Catholic Schools are not active church goers and are not involved in the parish then religious education although needs to maintain its cultural meaning and so catholic theory and practices are covered, and as Au, 2006, pg.20, notes, according to Christian Spirituality, the human heart is created with a deep yearning for God. It also needs to provide skills in addressing the spiritual and moral issues students will encounter in life.  There is a need to provide more critical interpretation and evaluation of cultural meaning.  As there is no active engagement by the students there is a need to change the direction of Catholic School religious education to a direction of trying to enhance the basic human spirituality, whether or not they are engaged with a parish.

3. Two Principle Strategies to consider  Rossiter, 2011, pg. 61, believes in order to alter Catholic Schools Religious Education two principles strategies should be considered.  Firstly, access to the individual’s inheritance of cultural religious meanings and secondly, critical interpretation and evaluation of culture.

4. First Strategy  Access to young people’s inheritance of cultural religious meaning is concerned with basic human spirituality. In order to truly understand one’s basic spirituality there is the need to learn or be familiar with own religious traditions.  Catholic Schools Religious Education contributes to student’s catholic cultural inheritance and religious identity. At the moment in the Year 10 Religious Education Celtic Spirituality unit historical facts are covered and researched. However, while this strategy is important in the religious education curriculum within Catholic Schools it also needs to be altered to provide a more problem posing content and a critical- centred, research – oriented pedagogy.

5. Second Strategy  This leads to the second strategy, critical interpretation and evaluation of culture. Rossiter, 2011, pg. 62, classifies this strategy as student’s ‘search for meaning’. Given the contemporary situation of many cultural meanings in Catholic Schools it would be morally wrong to have religious education in Catholic Schools based entirely on Catholic Cultural meaning. For many student’s religion is no longer a major source of meaning, there is the need for catholic Schools to look more critically at a wider range of cultural meanings.  Learning different cultural meanings helps students to become knowledgeable rather than promoting discrimination and racism from the unknown.  Critical evaluation and interpretation of cultural dynamics helps to promote positive judgements and social actions in the development of our young students this is further explained in the following slide.

6. Seven Points necessary in the development of a young person  Rossiter, 2011, pg. 63, outlines seven points which are addressed by critical interpretation and evaluation of culture. Rossiter believes these points are necessary in the development of a young person, especially in the development of a healthy spirituality. The seven dot points are outlined below: 1. Exploration of the shaping influence of culture on people’s thinking and behaviour. 2.Investigation of a range of contemporary social issues. 3.Identification of the influences on decisions and events, knowing the historical and political forces at work. 4.Deconstructing the components of writings so that they can be understood within their original contexts. 5.Searching for the underlying economic and commercial interests that affect a situation. 6.Highlighting justice and environmental issues. 7.Calling ideologies to account.

7. Relationship between Primary and Secondary Religious Education.  Finally, Rossiter, 2011, pg.67, mentioned the relationship between Primary and Secondary School Religious Education in Catholic Schools. Rossiter notes the success of Religious Education in Primary Schools is perhaps due to students being very responsive in religious Education.  However, when students reach Secondary level their excitement and responsive behaviour to Religious Education diminished.  Rossiter, 2010, pg. 130, mentions helping young people learn how to identify, interpret and evaluate contemporary spiritual/moral issues needs to become a prominent part of Religious Education. At the moment Religious Education does not provide any answers to their questions and hence it is viewed as irrelevant and not important. In the classroom if Religious Education is not reorientated to address the many issues occurring in the minds of the youth, students will become disengaged to what is learnt. This is so true at work, particular units involving history and scripture is a struggle to engage students, they switch off. Bellous and Csinos, 2009, pg.222, highlights the importance of Religious and Spiritual Educators creating a space that fits all spiritual styles and children feel a sense of inclusion.

8. Final Point to consider  Palmer, 1997, pg.16, believes, “Good Teachers join self, subject, and students in the fabric of life because they teach from an integral and undivided self; they manifest in their own lives, and evoke in their students.”  Finally, as Sunley, 2009, pg. 793, states, “Teachers are the gate keepers to the spiritual dimension in the classroom.” Students spiritual growth and development is influenced what is taught in the classroom by the teachers.

9. References Au, W. (2006). Discerning heart: Exploring the Christian path. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press. https://leocontent.acu.edu.au/integ/gen/0f09cb03-0dda-49cf-a2a0-516639ad43b3/1/?attachment.uuid=7ea410c3-fb18-4008-9646- 563de8d64511&_int.id=5 Bellous, J. (2007) Five classroom activities for sustaining a spiritual environment. In C. Ota & M. Chater (Eds.). Spiritual education in a divided world: social, environmental and pedagogical perspectives on the spirituality of children and young people. (pp. 99 – 111). London, UK: Routledge. https://leocontent.acu.edu.au/integ/gen/017fcf58-c9f5-4d5f-8c19-a84133059501/1/?attachment.uuid=f1db6b0f-62ce-4662-82d8- e913c033740b&_int.id=9 Bellous, J., & Csinos, D. (2009). Spiritual styles: creating an environment to nurture spiritual wholeness. International Journal of Children's Spirituality, 14(3), 213-224. http://ezproxy.acu.edu.au/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=rlh&AN=43494433&site=ehost-live McCarthy, M. (2000). Spirituality in a postmodern era. In J. Woodward & S. Pattison (Eds.). The Blackwell reader in pastoral and practical theology. (pp. 192 – 206). Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing. https://leocontent.acu.edu.au/integ/gen/7219cd69-f959-491b-9129-ae48f2c0ad91/1/?attachment.uuid=762c96e6-ff1a-416e-a5dc- 72fbc5b48a81&_int.id=4

10. Reference Continue Palmer, P. (1997). The heart of a teacher. Change, 29(6), 14-21. http://ezproxy.acu.edu.au/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/208055130?accountid=8194 Palmer, P. (2003). Teaching with heart and soul: Reflections on spirituality in teacher education. Journal of Teacher Education, 54(5), 1-10. http://ezproxy.acu.edu.au/login?url=http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA110802746&v=2.1&u=acuni&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w Rossiter, G. (2010). Perspective on contemporary spirituality: implications for religious education in Catholic schools. International Studies in Catholic Education, 2(2), 129-147. doi: 10.108019422539.2010.504019 http://ezproxy.acu.edu.au/login?url=http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/19422539.2010.504019#.U-2KicqVLDM Rossiter, G. (2011). Reorienting the religion curriculum in Catholic schools to address the needs of contemporary youth spirituality. International Studies in Catholic Education, 3(1), 57-72. doi: 10.108/19422539.2011.540140 http://ezproxy.acu.edu.au/login?url=http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/19422539.2011.540140#.U-2ZpMqVLDM

11. Reference Continue Rupp, J. (1995). Rediscovering God in the midst of our work. In R.Wicks (Ed.). Handbook of spirituality for ministers (pp.259-273). New York, NY: Paulist Press. https://leocontent.acu.edu.au/integ/gen/41a2c1bd-095c-4ac1-9d6d- 8bc684ee1a76/1/?attachment.uuid=be4b1ec7-9cf7-4175-bcde-5bdf4ceb6312&_int.id=6 Sunley, R. (2009). Relating to the Spiritual in the Classroom. In M. de Souza, L. Francis, J. O’Higgins-Norman & D. Scott (Eds.),International Handbook of Education for Spirituality, Care and Wellbeing (Vol. 3, pp. 793-808): Springer Netherlands. http://ezproxy.acu.edu.au/login?url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9018-9_42 Tirri, K. (2012). Religious and Spiritual Education as contributors to the development of the whole person. In T. van der Zee & T. J. Lovat. New perspectives on religious and spiritual education (Vol. 4) (pp. 269 – 280). New York, NY: Waxmann Publishing. https://leocontent.acu.edu.au/integ/gen/bfa38404-21f3-458e-a431- ca376a5f0877/1/?attachment.uuid=1ee633ed-d226-4623-869e-36241de605ff&_int.id=3