Interpreting texts more wisely: A Review of Research and the Case for Change

This chapter reviews research carried out since 2000 that identifies weaknesses in the teaching of the Bible in English schools. Religious Education (RE) lessons are not encouraging students to read the Bible wisely. This is important and significant because RE in England has changed to focus more sharply on the study of religion at examination level (DfE, 2015). That new policy could amplify existing weaknesses unless changes are made to address the issues identified. Hermeneutics, as exemplified by the Protestant scholars Thiselton, Wright and Ford, as well as official Catholic documents, offer insights into wiser explorations of the Bible. Educationalists offer similar insights around the place of interpretation in education. This chapter identifies, for the first time, the striking degree of consistency around hermeneutics and interpretation between important and influential theological and educational writers in faith and education contexts. It concludes by asking whether it is time for a more radical change to RE that moves away from studying religion and towards studying wisdom texts. It considers Understanding Christianity’s focus on ‘virtuous readers’ (Pett, 2016, pp.42-43) as an illustration of one response to the issues identified.