Middle leaders play an essential role in schools but for many their position is characterised by tensions caused by 'being caught in between or sandwiched between senior management to whom they were accountable … and subordinates for whom they had some functional and often moral responsibility'. Moreover, Catholic school middle leaders face…

The Catholic school sector is under significant stress with declining enrollments and schools closing in virtually every diocese in the United States. This paper examines two value propositions for Catholic education. One is its role in providing foundational support for the development of a personal, chosen religious-spiritual identity across the…

This intrinsic multiple case study examined secondary- and university-level educators' experiences teaching with "Healing Earth," a curriculum developed by the International Jesuit Ecology Project at Loyola University Chicago, which merges scientific, social, spiritual, and ethical analyses of pressing ecological issues. Based on the…

Given that Indonesian people adhere to various religions and beliefs, respect for plurality is needed. Religious education can play an important role in developing respect for plurality. The goal of this study was to understand the role of religious education in developing respect for plurality in Indonesia. This research applied qualitative and…

Arts programs are increasingly recognized for their role in promoting student development and cohesive school communities. Yet, most Australian schools are left to navigate a landscape characterized by shifting policy goals and external providers of diverse quality and intent. Drawing on interviews with 27 stakeholders from 19 Catholic primary…

Earlier studies have concluded that the religious sphere is less open to creativity than are other areas of human activities. Also, it has been suggested that artistic freedom and creative expression are unwelcome in the domain of religious iconography. In the present study, we address this subject with regard to children's artistic expression of…

This paper charts the development of one of Ireland's first comprehensive schools located in Carraroe in County Galway. Through a systematic, historical analysis of Department of Education and diocesan correspondence, this article provides a unique insight into how official policy was reconciled at ground level. The analysis exposes the ambiguity…

In 1623, Hernando Ruiz de Alarcón, a parish priest in Atenango, Mexico, was commissioned by his archbishop to record Nahua beliefs and healing practices for the purpose of denouncing their superstitions and demonic magic. His "Treatise on the Heathen Superstitions That Today Live Among the Indians Native to This New Spain," 1629…

Over the past twenty years, Catholic elementary schools that self identify as "inner-city" have closed at a higher rate than Catholic schools in other locations. These schools have also long been associated with a legacy of effectively serving low-income students, students of color, and recent immigrant students, suggesting that the…

This study explores some of the demographic, personal, and experiential factors of emerging adults that correlate to a spectrum of moral outlooks ranging from moral universalism to moral relativism. Data was gathered from 466 volunteer undergraduate students. Respondents' demographic, experiential, and personal factors served as independent…

Issues of teacher support, retention and recruitment are not new phenomena. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has added layers of uncertainty to the industry. Fearful of exposure, infection, and not identified as an essential industry, educators across the nation were impacted. The problem of practice is couched in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic…

This paper analyses the Solidarity movement narratives, focusing on church representatives, religious issues, and symbols in the Polish history textbooks for upper secondary schools between 1991 and 2018. The analysed textbooks prove to reinforce Poland's national and religious identities, with John Paul II and the priest Popieluszko being the…

The planned integration of Catholic social teaching (CST) across the curriculum was the primary focus of the 'Identity and Curriculum in Catholic Education' (2013-2018) initiative in Catholic schools in the state of Queensland. Initial reconnaissance involved a survey of teachers' views regarding the identity, purposes and characteristics of…

Deconversion is a biographical change in which one goes from claiming adherence to a religion to departing from it. A meaning system model can help us understand the processes through which deconversion occurs. Drawing on that framework, we explored how perceiving hypocrisy in one's religious setting influences adolescent deconversion. Irrational…

The discrepancies in college enrollment based on a student's socioeconomic background challenges the upward mobility of students from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Jesuit colleges and universities, guided by Catholic Social Teaching and their own focus on social justice, are uniquely positioned to facilitate the social mobility of the…