Powers of knowledge in secondary religious education curricula of Sweden, England and Finland

What might the powers of knowledge in religious education (RE) be; what knowledge and abilities does RE provide to pupils in lower secondary education? These questions are asked through this study of curriculum contexts in England, Sweden and Finland. The three iterations of the subject are similar enough to compare—yet different enough for the character of each to emerge when they are juxtaposed and ‘mirrored’ in each other. This comparative approach allows us to explore what kinds of powers RE, represented in written curricula, aims to foster in each context. This is simultaneously an exploration of the nature and raison d’etre of RE as a school subject. The purpose of RE is examined via analysing lower secondary curriculum documents with the theoretical lens of powerful knowledge. Overall, the curricula focus mostly on providing information about religions and worldviews. However, this knowledge is used for developing powers that were identified as having different emphasis in each context. The Finnish curriculum emphasizes students’ personal and ethical development, the English curriculum has the strongest weight on academic knowledge and the Swedish curriculum concentrates on developing students’ intercultural competence and understanding of societies.