The Religion and Education Section of the Mid-Atlantic region of the AAR has just released its call for papers.
This section invites proposals that respond to this year’s regional conference theme: Out of Place: Migrants and Race, Tribalism and Fear, Within and Without as it connects to religion, schooling, and education. Schools and other educational spaces are not insulated from global tensions, shifts, and conflicts in politics, economies, and cultures. In fact, these issues are echoed and often amplified through education. Educators are tasked with guiding and forming students for their future roles as citizens and leaders, and it would be irresponsible to ignore the influences and intersection of religion with many forms of education. Given this contemporary landscape, what are the normative commitments of education about religion in academic and non-academic settings? What are the content, skills, values, and dispositions that constitute the learning objectives of the academic study of religion in K-12 schools, higher education, and community settings? Should religious studies education promote efforts to establish common ground among disparate groups? How can the intersection of the classroom and the study/learning of religion assist in reframing conversations about migrants and race? Should the academic study of religion seek to create compassionate leaders devoted to justice and equity? Does our current political and cultural moment require a reconceptualization of the goals for religious studies education?
Proposals might address the following themes:
• Education about the intersections of religious and other identities
• Teacher preparation to teach about religion and conflict
• Impacts of education about religion at multiple levels: students, families, schools, and communities
• Content, skills, values, and dispositions that guide religious studies education and/or that constitute the learning objectives of education about religion
• Pedagogies in the religious studies classroom to interrogate and dismantle oppressive structures
• Religious studies education and social justice
• Religious studies education for interfaith or inter-religious understanding
• Approaches to education about religion from insider and outsider perspectives Paper proposals on other topics relating to religion and education will also be considered.
Submit proposals to:
• Janice McLean-Farrell (Co-Chair), New Brunswick Theological Seminary, mclean-farrell [at] nbts [dot] edu.
• Kate Soules (Co-Chair), Boston College, soules [at] bc [dot] edu.
• Benjamin Marcus (Co-Chair), Religious Freedom Center, bmarcus [at] freedomforum [dot] org