International Perspectives and Practices for Religious Education in Early Childhood

Dear Colleagues,

I am writing to invite your contribution to a Special Edition of the Religions journal, titled “International Perspectives and Practices for Religious Education in Early Childhood”. Religions is ranked as a Q1 journal, and as you are renowned for your research in this area, I would love to have your involvement in this issue.

Internationally, the way in which the term ‘religious education’ is understood and practiced is widely varied. When religious education is considered in the early childhood years, it can become even more complex. This Special Issue seeks to address a gap in current literature on the ways in which religious education is both understood and practiced in the context of early childhood around the world. Although often context-specific, there is much to be learned from understanding religious education globally. Religious education is best understood as a process of interpreting the nature of religion and its beliefs and practices (Cullen, 2019; Sullivan, 2017). The educative nature of religious education is mostly agreed upon (Gellel, 2019). However, there is also the formative aspect of religious education, which for some is a necessity and for others is described as a ’hope’ (Groome, 2019). The nexus between formation and education is made more explicit in the early years of development as children learn holistically (Robinson et al. 2018); they experience their learning and do not necessarily separate learning ‘about’ something with ‘experiencing’ it and ‘living’ it. This issue seeks to explore research such as that in the area of young children’s religious understandings, early years religious education, perspectives of teachers and children around religious education, models and theories of religious education that relate to the early years, research on the intersection between faith and knowledge in early-childhood religious education, and research on pedagogies for religious education in the early years. These are some examples, and I welcome you to share your ideas for a paper with me if you think your work may be a fit for this issue.

If you are able to contribute to the issue, which I hope you can, I request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, you initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 400–600 words summarizing your intended contribution. Please send it to my email ([email protected]). If you do this, I can ensure a good fit within the scope of the Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer-review.

I am excited about this opportunity and hope you will consider submitting your work as a contribution.

References

Cullen, S. (2019). The religious education of the religious teacher in Catholic schools In Global Perspectives on Catholic Religious Education in Schools Volume II: Learning and Leading in a Pluralist World (1st ed. 2019.). (2019). Springer Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-6127-2

Gellel(2019). Rethinking Catholic religious education in the light of Devine pedagogy In Global Perspectives on Catholic Religious Education in Schools Volume II: Learning and Leading in a Pluralist World (1st ed. 2019.). (2019). Springer Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-6127-2

Groome, T. H. (2000). Educating for life: A spiritual vision for every teacher and parent. Crossroads.

Robinson, Treasure, T., O’Connor, D., Neylon, G., Harrison, C., & Wynne, S. (2018). Learning through play : creating a play-based approach within early childhood contexts. Oxford University Press.

Sullivan, J. (2017). A space like no other. In M. Shanahan (Ed), Does religious education matter, 7-24. Routledge.

Dr. Christine Robinson
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• early years religious education
• early childhood religious education
• religious education pedagogies
• religious education theories and practices in early childhood
• teacher perspectives of religious education in early childhood