Scottish Catholic Observer

Parents called for more enthusiasm in the teaching of Religious Education in Catholic schools at a meeting in Carfin on January 21. Catholic parents from across the country were meeting at the annual Gathering for Catholic Parents organised by the Scottish Catholic Education Service (SCES).

Parents with children currently at school travelled to the Xavier Centre, Carfin, on January 21 for the conference, organised by the Parent Involvement Working Group, where they were given the opportunity to discuss, with one another and with representatives from SCES, issues of importance to them, and ways they can contribute to and become more involved in their child’s Catholic education.

The event aptly began with an opening prayer led by Jo Hughes from SCES, before parents gathered in small groups and were given various themes to discuss, documenting how well they felt the theme was incorporated into the education of Catholic children, areas of strength and those that needed improvement.

Parents noted that in some schools there were strong links with local parishes and a great deal of parental involvement through Faith groups and parent councils, however in other schools pupils were rarely attending Mass with their families, there was little in the way of parental involvement groups and a less enthusiastic approach to teaching Religious Education in some schools.

Feedback showed a desire to see parents being made more aware of what their children were being taught in school, parents taking children to Mass, promotion of vital resources such as SCES for parents to use, and the teaching of RE being something that feeds into all areas of the curriculum.

Parents were also given the SCES newsletter, and copies of the document The Catholic School: Developing in Faith, which helps school communities—teachers, parents and parishes—to help schools grow as communities of Faith and learning and uses the Charter for Catholic Schools in Scotland as its foundation for a set of five themes that detail the objectives of a Catholic school community.

The conference came a few weeks before Catholic Education Week 2017, the theme of which will be ‘developing as a community of faith and learning,’ an idea that was very much the focus of this year’s Gathering for Catholic Parents.

“I think it’s important to have this type of thing because we have to do what we say we’re going to do,” Jo Hughes from SCES said.

“If we say we have to support our young people by having links that cross home and school and parish, then the biggest influence for most of our young people are their parents; they know the pupils best.

“They are the people who have strong links of communication within their own schools, therefore a united approach to education for young people always ends up with young people who are happier and more successful.”

—This story ran in full in the January 27 edition print of the SCO, available in parishes.