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Upper KS2 units of study
90
Cornwall Agreed Syllabus for RE
2025–2030
© RE Today 2025
Unit U2.11
What does it mean to be Humanist in Britain today?
The
principal aim of RE
is to explore what people believe and what difference this makes to how they live, so that pupils can gain the knowledge,
understanding and skills needed to handle questions raised by religion and worldviews, reflecting on their own ideas and ways of living.
Learning outcomes
(intended to enable pupils to
achieve end of key stage outcomes):
Ways of knowing
e.g.
Suggested content for learning:Teachers can select content from these examples
, and add more of their own.
Teachers will enable pupils to achieve some of these outcomes, as appropriate to their age and stage, so that they can:Make sense of belief:
•
Identify some data ar
ound numbers of non-
religious people and specifically Humanists using,for example, Census data
•
Identify some of the core values that motivatesome Humanists to strive to make the world abetter place
•
Give examples of reasons why Humanists valuescience and why they r
eject the existence of God
Understand the impact: •
Give examples of ways in which Humanists puttheir beliefs and values into practice
•
Give evidence and examples to show somediffer
ences in how people can be non-religious,
including Humanists and others
Make connections: •
Think, talk and ask questions about whatmotivates Humanists to do good in the world, inthe absence of religious teachings or rules, andwithout belief in a higher power or an afterlife
•
Make connections between belief and behaviour intheir own lives, in the light of their learning.
NOTE: these outcomes ar
e amended, to reflect the
change of key question and suggested content.
•
Review the Census 2021 data (see p. 150) and notice the number of people who say they have no r
eligion in response to the question: ‘What is
your religion?’ Sociologists call these people ‘Nones’ – they are not saying what they believe or how they live, but simply that they do not regardthemselves as having any religion. In England and Wales in 2001 this was 15%; in 2011 it was 25%, and in 2021 it was 37% – 22 million people.The non-religious worldviews of these 22 million people will be extremely varied, including a range of beliefs and ways of living that may includereligious or spiritual elements. However, a number of these ‘nones’ will identify as Humanists, holding a Humanist worldview. Note that scholarssometimes distinguish between Humanists (who may have deliberately chosen to identify as Humanist, joining an organization like Humanists UK,and agreeing with core Humanist codes of belief and ethics) and humanists (who may have similar beliefs and ethics but without the affiliation withsuch groups).
•
Building on prior lear
ning (see units 1.9, 1.10, L2.11, L2.12 and U2.10) recall what pupils know already about Humanisms and Humanists (e.g.
Happy Human symbol; baby naming, wedding and funeral ceremonies; the golden rule; activism in terms of looking after the environment). IntroduceHumanism using this animation from Humanists UK https://understandinghumanism.org.uk/res_films/one-life-live-it-well/
•
Humanists believe that the world and human beings have natural origins. Explor
e what this means, connecting with the scientific account in Unit
U2.2. Explor
e why Humanists argue that science is the best way to find out mor
e about how the world and people work. Link with science lessons,
and examine the role of reason in science, in observing the world, posing a hypothesis, designing an experiment to test it, and analysing the data tosee if it proves or disproves the hypothesis. Talk with pupils about what kinds of questions might be answered in this way (e.g. At what temperaturedoes water boil? What happens when ice cream is taken out of the freezer? How can we cure this illness?) and those that can’t (e.g. How are youfeeling right now? What is the right thing to do in this situation? Is there a god?). One can still use reason to address these questions, even if theyare not scientific questions.
•
Humanists r
eject the idea of knowledge being ‘revealed’ by a supernatural being. Consider some reasons why Humanists reject the existence of
God (e.g. brought up in non-religious home, cannot find evidence for god, suffering proves there cannot be a [good] god, ancient beliefs do nothelp make society better or people happier, people just believe in God as a comfort, religions are made up by humans, religions are often causesof conflict, science – not ancient myths – provides the most reliable route to knowledge, etc.). Which do pupils think is most compelling? Talk witha Humanist to find out about their beliefs and ways of living, including r
oles Humanists sometimes perform as celebrants, for example (https://
humanists.uk/education/schoolspeakers/)
•
Humanists believe that this is the one life we have, so we should make thoughtful choices about how to live, in a way that helps us and othersto flourish. Ask pupils for their suggestions for the best guidelines to achieve this. Compar
e with some Humanist codes, such as the Amsterdam
Declaration (https://tinyurl.com/yb4t88wm ) or ReThink prizewinners www
.atheistmindhumanistheart.com/winners/
•
Connect with lear
ning from Unit U2.10 and ask pupils to reflect on which values they share with Humanists – remembering that distinction between
H/humanists: e.g. freedom, truth, happiness, reason, empathy, love, justice, curiosity, equality, friendship, peace etc. What actions would pupils expect of people who have these values? How far do pupils’ personal worldviews r
eflect a humanist worldview, if not a Humanist worldview?
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