“I am different; I am not Catholic” : alternatives to religious education in Maltese schools

Abstract

Being passionate about diversity, particularly with regards to religious diversity in schools, the researchers investigated the situation in Maltese schools so as to evaluate how students opting out of the Religion lesson were being catered for at the time of the study. In addition, the researchers also looked into what was proposed in the National Curriculum Framework (NCF) (2012), with particular reference to the Ethics Education Programme. Literature search about alternatives adopted by other countries was also conducted. Since literature about the Maltese context was in its early stages, the researchers interviewed key persons, including the Minister for Education and Employment, Hon. Evarist Bartolo, so as to gain a better insight into the developments that were taking place with regards to the Ethics Education Programme in Maltese schools. After gathering data from literature and key persons in the field, the researchers were in a better position to critically analyse the Ethics Education Programme, as well as providing recommendations with regards to how this programme, in their opinion, could have been implemented more successfully so as to truly meet the needs of all the students. This is because, as Hon. Evarist Bartolo stated, “The issue will be that Catholics will have a choice, while the others won’t”, implying that this programme would still present difficulties for some students.