Workshop 4 focused on Faith and Religion regarding our students and the intersection with race, gender, disability and socio-economic factors. At first, I thought faith wasn’t relevant to my day-to-day practice as I hadn’t thought about it much in the past. However, from further research, it is just as important a conversation to have as race, gender and disability. Considering my positionality as a white, atheist female, I used resources to reflect and analyse how faith interacts with aspects of an individual’s identity. I want to ask how faith impacts a student’s studies and how can we as practitioners help create a more inclusive environment.
From observing data from Dashboard, we know that 29% of students at UAL have disclosed they are religious with the top three religions being Christianity, Islam and Buddhism. This was a very eye-opening statistic to learn as it’s a larger percentage than I thought, considering faith wasn’t something I would factor into my teaching. Educational institutions must respect and accommodate all faith-based needs of students and staff to create an inclusive environment. Similarly, as previously discussed in blog post 1 about disability, society creates barriers surrounding faith and religion. This is done via the media “painting entire communities with the same brush” as stated in Challenging Race, religion and Stereotypes in the Classroom. “No one community is a monolith”, each one contains people with different experiences and perspectives. Encouraging students to critically analyse media representations and fostering empathy can help combat fearmongering and prejudice. “Tensions are based on a lack of knowledge and understanding about each other’s lives” (H. Jawad, 2022). The intersection of faith and race presents unique challenges, particularly for Muslim women. Their dress and religious practices can attract negative attention and reinforce harmful stereotypes, not experienced by Muslim men who are not as visibly obvious as women with hijabs meaning they have to navigate religious, racial and gender biases.
“Religion brings people together, a sense of community, discuss culture and a shared identity” (‘Faith: what does it mean to be a young person of faith today?’). It is important to factor in faith into one’s teaching practice. It can play a huge role in a student’s life and with that makes up their identity. Religion fosters a sense of community and shared identity but can also bring stigma, especially among young people of faith. Educators must understand the impact of faith on students, recognise religious observances and practices such as fasting and be flexible with deadlines to create a supportive learning environment. This respect enhances students’ academic success and well-being. As student attendance at UAL is at its all-time lowest, it makes it even more important to factor in religious holidays and events to allow all students to participate fairly.
Socioeconomic status greatly affects access to sports and physical activities, often considered luxuries in economically disadvantaged communities. In areas where basic needs are unmet, and safety is a concern, physical activity and well-being may be viewed as privileges. Wealthier Muslim-majority countries might offer better sex-segregated sports facilities, but poorer or non-Muslim-majority countries often lack these provisions, demonstrating disparities influenced by both economic status and faith. As well as sporting and physical activities this is often seen within the arts which can be viewed as a subject for more privileged people who have time and access to equipment and resources.
Overall, it is vital to consider faith and religion when teaching. It is a factor that is heavily engrained in many people’s lives and can determine many things in how they live and study and will be an aspect of my student’s identity I think of in the future.
Jawad, H. (2022) Islam, Women and Sport: The Case of Visible Muslim Women. [Online]
Trinity University (2016) Challenging Race, Religion, and Stereotypes in the Classroom [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CAOKTo_DOk]
Coventry UK City of Culture 2021 (2021) Faith: what does it mean to be a young person of faith today? [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDYy0U7WtkM]