​Curriculum Overview

Year 7 at Marymount College is the beginning of a new part of life’s journey for students where they learn about the beliefs, values and practices of Christian communities, past and present. In the unit Where It All Began students explore cultural and historical influences on these communities and change and continuity over time. They learn about the foundations and history of the College in the Franciscan tradition as it has evolved here on the Gold Coast in Queensland. They discover ways in which communities of believers, past and present, express their understanding of God and God’s relationship with human persons. The Old Testament stories of the Patriarchs, the common beginnings of faith shared by Christianity, Judaism and Islam, the structure of the early Church communities and the Church communities in Australia are areas of focus. Ways of belonging to the Church community, in particular, the Marymount College community, are explored.

Through the unit The Power of Words students investigate the idea that words reflect the audience, purpose and context of their human authors and the concepts of ‘The world behind the text, the world of the text, the world in front of the text’ are reinforced. In particular, they develop their understanding of the Apostles Creed and Nicene Creed. The unit Doing Good provides students with an opportunity to examine Church teaching and basic principles of Christian morality that influence the way Christians live out their faith, individually and communally. The importance of Moses and the Exodus account, the Decalogue and the elements of the Church’s teachings on The Common Good and personal gifts for the service of others are studied. In the unit Sacraments and Sacramentality students explore how the Church s​upports the faith journey through Liturgy and Sacraments. The elements included are a study of the Church Liturgical seasons, initiation rites and Christ’s Paschal myste​ry.

Throughout the four units students examine ways in which believers nurture their spiritual life through prayer and ritual. By developing their understanding of prayer in the Christian tradition through an exploration of Lectio Divina and Ignatian Meditation, the Examen, reflective journaling, praying with icons and art and the College prayer, the Peace Prayer of St. Francis, students are able to enhance their own prayer life and participate authentically in their faith community.

YEAR 7 RELIGIOUS EDUCATION SCOPE AND SEQUENCE OVERVIEW.pdf

​​Curriculum Overview​

Year 8 at Marymount College is a continuation of the journey of individual exploration of personal gifts, talents and faith, and a time for the awareness of development, challenge and change. In the unit Covenant students are introduced to the theme of covenant, as a unique relationship between God and God’s people, through an exploration of the actions and messages of some Old Testament prophets. They explore the Christian belief in God’s saving plan for all creation and ways in which all believers are part of God’s saving plan through their faith and action in the world.

Through the unit Movers and Shakers, st​udents discover the significant challenges and changes in the Church from c.650 CE - c.1750 CE and the influence of significant people, groups and ideas at a time of reform, when many believers questioned the Church regarding its nature and role in the world. They develop their understanding of the many ways in which the Church is present and active in the world today and how prayer traditions such as The Liturgy of the Hours, meditative and contemplative prayer, were developed during the monastic era.

In the unit Unity and Diversity, students engage with a variety of images and words that express the mystery of the Trinity. They learn about the preaching, achievements and challenges of the earliest followers of Jesus, as described in The Acts of the Apostles. Students explore the action of the Eucharistic Liturgy, including participation in the liturgy, the significance of Baptism and the mystery of the Trinity as a fundamental belief that unites all Christians and the idea that all Christians are called to give witness to the ecumenical spirit throughout the world. In the unit Mission Matters students investigate Jesus’ mission through the critical study of the scriptures, the overall meaning of mission and the link between Baptism and the Christian call to mission. They study the Catholic Social Teachings, the cardinal virtues and the Church’s invitation for individuals to get involved and further the mission of Jesus as a response to emerging moral questions.​

Throughout the four units students continue to develop their understanding of prayer in the Christian tradition through an exploration of The Liturgy of the Hours; meditative prayer, including praying with scripture; and meditative prayer practices, including centred breathing and attending to posture, the practice of the College prayer, the Peace Prayer of St. Francis, enhancing their own prayer life and ability to participate authentically in their faith community.​

​YEAR 8 RELIGIOUS EDUCATION SCOPE AND SEQUENCE OVERVIEW.pdf

​​​​​​Curriculum Overview​

In Year 9 at Marymount College students learn about the priestly, prophetic and kingly work of Jesus Christ in the unit Making Sense of Jesus. They learn about the Incarnation, Resurrection and Ascension of Jesus as foundational beliefs of Christianity. Students develop the ability to apply Biblical criticism for the purpose and message of biblical text through the introduction to form criticism and narrative criticism. Through the unit Learning From the Past their understanding, interpretation and use of a range of Biblical texts is extended through the application of the three worlds of the text. Students explore the charisms of Jesus, Mary, St. Francis and Mary MacKillop as they are lived out in the Marymount College community and beyond.

In the unit Let There Be Light students develop their understanding of the experience of sin throughout human history and some ways in which the Church responded to the presence of good and evil in the past. Students learn about the divergent understandings of God (Allah, God, G*d) in the monotheistic reli​gions (Islam, Christianity, Judaism) and their common practices of prayer, almsgiving and fasting. They consider sources of inspiration, strength and guidance for believers today, including Catholic social teaching, the three forms of penance (prayer, fasting and almsgiving), Scripture, the celebration of the Sacraments of Healing (Penance and Anointing of the Sick), and personal and communal prayer experiences.   

The unit Restoring The Balance provides the students with an opportunity to explore the level of injustice in the world and to analyse what the ‘calling’ for Christians to care really looks like. Ways in which believers live their Christian vocation are discovered. Students continue to develop their understanding of prayer in the Christian tradition through an exploration of the writings of Christian spiritual fathers and mothers, prayers for forgiveness and healing, Christian Meditation and meditative prayer practices, including praying with labyrinths.

​Curriculum Overview​

​Year 10 students at Marymount College are exposed to the various ways in which humans have understanding of God or the ‘Other’. In the unit The Mystery of God students become aware that these understandings are ultimately beyond human language, concepts and stories. These understandings include the human experience of the created world; the valuable insights of the major world religions (Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism and Buddhism) as reflected in their core beliefs and practices; the different representations of God in Old Testament and New Testament texts by various human authors in different historical, social and cultural contexts. Students study the Christian spiritual writings that search for the mystery of God in the midst of world events and the course of human history. They also participate in personal and communal prayer where they engage with God in the created world through contemplation and the simple awareness of the presence of God.

Through the unit Responding To The Signs Of The Times students explore how the Church has responded to the range of unprecedented threats to human ecology facing Australia and the Modern World from political ideologies. They study various sources including the teaching of Jesus, the principles of Catholic Social Teaching and the reasoned judgements of conscience that are carefully formed and examined. Students are posed with the question: “Do I have the courage to care?” The unit Making Amends, Moving Forward provides an opportunity for students to examine aspects of science, technology, materialism and consumerism and to develop critical understanding of the various sources that guide the Church’s action in the world today. They examine the Eucharist as the primary and indispensable source of nourishment for the spiritual life of believers, who carry on Jesus’ mission in the world. Students consider the question: “Are we heading in the right direction?”

In the unit Religious Voice In The World students consolidate Church teachings as they articulate their own understanding of the nature and purpose of human work, informed by the principles of Catholic social teaching and the relevant early Church teachings of St. Paul. They look at the Church’s role in the modern world and how they can contribute to making the world a better place. Students respond to the question: “How can I step up to the mark?” Students continue to develop their understanding of prayer in the Christian tradition through an exploration of Centering Prayer; prayers for justice, peace and the environment, including the Prayer of St Francis, the Magnificat and the Canticle of Creation; and meditative prayer practices, including praying with the help of nature.

​Year 11 Study of Religion Curriculum Overview

The aim of Religious Education at Marymount College is to provide Christian education in the Catholic tradition to students so that they may participate critically and authentically in faith contexts and wider society. The ‘Study of Religion’ course, as a Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority subject, can help students become more effective global citizens by developing their knowledge, skills and values, and developing their understanding through critical inquiry, debate and reflection, and empathetic engagement with the standpoint of others. Students explore and critique the role religion has played and continues to play in the world. They learn about religion by:

• looking at it as part of complex social, political and cultural dialogues
• engaging in conversation and debate
• developing knowledge, analysis and critical thinking
• exploring justice issues such as equity, gender, ethnicity, inclusivity

The senior secondary curriculum builds on the prior learning in Prep to Year 10, allowing students to use, consolidate and expand on what they have learned. Whilst incorporating the core components of The Nature and Significance of Religion, Australian Perspectives and World Religions, the four interrelated strands of Sacred Texts, Beliefs, Church and Christian Life also underpin the senior secondary curriculum, identifying core content that is to be taught and that students should learn.

In Term 1 of Year 11 students explore Ultimate Questions and Sacred Texts. They investigate the beliefs about origins of the universe, questions of meaning and purpose and learn about how formal religions such as Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and Judaism understand big issues related to life and death, the afterlife: heaven, hell, nirvana as examples. They study the texts of Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Buddhism focusing on the purposes of the texts and the impact of these on the lives of the adherents. In Terms 2 and 3 students study the topic Ritual where they learn about rites of passage in the world religions and the significance of ritual in Judaism and Buddhism. A field trip to a reformed synagogue and Buddhist temple shape the nature of the ethnographic investigation undertaken. In Term 4 students have the opportunity to discover Religion and the Arts and to examine and evaluate the role that various art forms have played in the past and in the contemporary world in the context of world religions.

YEAR 11 STUDY OF RELIGION SCOPE AND SEQUENCE 2022 .pdf

​​​​​​​Year 12 Study of Religion Curriculum Overview

​The aim of Religious Education at Marymount College is to provide Christian education in the Catholic tradition to students so that they may participate critically and authentically in faith contexts and wider society. The ‘Study of Religion’ course, as a Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority subject, can help students become more effective global citizens by developing their knowledge, skills and values, and developing their understanding through critical inquiry, debate and reflection, and empathetic engagement with the standpoint of others. Students explore and critique the role religion has played and continues to play in the world. They learn about religion by:

• looking at it as part of complex social, political and cultural dialogues
• engaging in conversation and debate
• developing knowledge, analysis and critical thinking
• exploring justice issues such as equity, gender, ethnicity, and inclusivity.

Overview of the Year 

In Term 1 of Year 12 students explore Religion-State Relationships focussing on the social, cultural and political implications of religious belief and practice and the creative tension between the nation-state and religion. Through the Term 2 topic, Ultimate Questions students investigate the questions of destiny, facing suffering and death and the religious beliefs about living, dying and eternity. They also build on the Year 11 study of Ritual by researching pilgrimage and ritual tourism in the context of a world religion. In Terms 3 and 4, students examine various aspects of the topic Religion, Values and Ethics. Through the ethical frameworks of religious traditions, students discover the sources of these ethical codes, the actions of individuals and/or groups, the faith that motivates these actions and the impact of such actions on the community. They investigate the role that religion has to play in facing global issues and challenges, in the framework of ethics and non-violence/peace. Students also study contemporary ethical issues such as euthanasia and capital punishment in the context of world religions.

• In Term 1 Year 12 the elective, Religions of the World is studied. Key beliefs and practices, history and development are explored. Many aspects of the traditions are also treated in the other electives. 
• In Term 2 the elective Good and Evil investigates the idea of how society defines good and evil, how this understanding has been shaped by religion and the universal idea of suffering. Students will have the opportunity to reflect on the teachings of the Catholic Christian tradition about the reality of good and evil experienced by human beings. They will explore the essential ingredients of truth, beauty, goodness and evil and how these are expressed in everyday life.
• In Term 3 the Sacred Stories elective gives students opportunities to explore and appreciate the power of story and how it captures, recalls and preserves the life experiences of people no matter what age, period, culture or belief. This unit focuses on how, throughout the ages religion and in particular the Catholic Christian religion, has fulfilled the innate need of humans to hear and tell stories and to have a story to live by.
• In Term 4 the elective Meaning and Purpose gives students the opportunity to explore for themselves the  big questions  of human existence which humans have pondered for all time: "Who am I?" "Where did I come from?"  "Why am I here?" "Where am I going?"  All religions in some way or other, attempt to explain concepts of origins, purpose and destiny. Students consider these questions by examining how religion has an interplay with philosophy and science.​