English Baccalaurate [EBac] FAQs
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RE AND THE ENGLISH BACCALAUREATE (E-Bac) - FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
1. Is the EBac a formal qualification?
The EBac is not a new qualification in itself. It will recognise students’ achievements across a core of selected academic subjects in getting good passes in rigorous GCSEs or iGCSEs. The Government intend to recognise students’ achievement of the EBac with a certificate. This is a different position from that stated in the Education White Paper published in November 2010 which spoke of the EBac being both an award and a certificate.
2. What subjects are proposed for the EBac?
The EBac will cover achievement in English, mathematics, sciences, a language and a humanities subject. The possible languages include a modern foreign language and Welsh, Latin, classical Greek and Biblical Hebrew as well as CICs or CIE legacy IGCSEs in French, Greek and Hindi as a second language. The humanities subjects are History and Geography and do not include RE.
3. What does the government say about excluding RE from the EBac?
The government says that RE occupies a different position in the existing school curriculum from history and geography. RE is a compulsory subject throughout a pupil’s schooling; history and geography are not. There has been a decline in the study of both subjects especially geography and Mr Gove hopes that the EBac will encourage more students to study history and geography at GCSE. The core subjects specified by the EBac will allow students to study RS as a GCSE alongside these subjects if they wish to.
4. What does the RE World say in response to the Government?
We are delighted that Mr Gove recognises, supports and stresses the statutory nature of RE and the expectation that all pupils will be taught RE. We appreciate that Mr Gove loves history and wants to boost its numbers, but history is already the largest entry for full course; with geography second and RS third!
5. What is so important about RE?

Although RE is statutory, it justifies its place in the curriculum on purely educational grounds.

  • It is the opportunity to explore a major and distinctive dimension of what it means to be a person; to consider the search for meaning and value in a wondrous but also often confusing and sometimes threatening world and, to offer pupils the chance to raise and reflect on perennial questions about life.
  • In doing this, RE draws on the rich history of the major religious traditions in Britain, giving due prominence to Christianity to reflect the fact that the religious traditions in Great Britain are in the main Christian, whilst taking account of the principal world faiths, local communities and non-religious beliefs that may form the family background of many children in our schools.

The two main educational purposes to RE therefore are that pupils can learn:

1. about religions and beliefs which have influenced the lives of millions of people and heavily influenced the development of different human cultures.

2. more about themselves and their place in the world from their study of religion and belief.
6. Does the Government intend to change the law about the place of RE in the curriculum?
The statutory arrangements for religious education remain the same and the Government have said that they have no intention to change them.
7. Is the government opposed to RE in the curriculum?

The government is on record as fully recognising the importance of RE and is committed to maintaining its place in the curriculum. However, whilst religious education itself is a statutory requirement, entry into award bearing Religious Studies courses (such as the GCSE full course in RS) is not. The RS GCSE short course therefore fulfils the basic legal requirement for those students who take it but falls short of the good pass in an academically rigorous full GCSE or iGCSE courses that the EBac seeks to recognise.
8. Why and how is the EBac proving destructive for RE?
The EBac is just one of the most significant of several decisions made by government which are having the apparently unintended consequence of beginning to dismantle RE in schools. There is extreme concern about the impact of the proposed EBac on GCSE and A level religious studies. Not including full course GCSE RS as an option in the EBac means that many schools will cease to offer RS at GCSE altogether; this in turn will have a very negative impact on the number of students taking RS at A level, and therefore on the applications for theology and religious studies at degree level. This means that there will be a corresponding decline in candidates for teacher training and on teacher supply for RE, a subject which is already lacking in sufficient specialist teachers
9. What is the EDM?
The Early Day Motion (EDM1375) proposed by Stephen Lloyd MP seeks to get Parliament to debate the fact that EBac does not include RE. It recognises that the rise of religious extremism around the world and in the UK means that a good understanding of all religions is vital to a well-rounded education and it calls on the Government to recognise the importance and relevance of RE by including it as core subject in the EBac. So far 106 [May 25th, 2011] signatures from MPs of all parties have signed the EDM around 70 signatures are need to trigger the debate.
10. What is the RE Act Petition?
This online campaign has so far secured more than 110,000 signatures for a petition expressing profound concern about the exclusion of RE from the humanities options in the EBac. It also states that because Religious Education has the strong potential to increase understanding and tolerance, building social cohesion in our increasingly diverse society, the petitioner calls for RE to be included as a humanities option in the EBac.
11. What is the inquiry into the EBac?

On 9th February 2011 the Education Select Committee of the House of Commons announced a short enquiry into the E-Bac. Written submissions were invited, addressing:

  • the purpose and benefits of the E-Bac and its value as a measure of pupil and school performance
  • the choice of subjects included in the E-Bac
  • the implications of the E-Bac for pupils, schools and employers
  • International comparators for the E-Bac.

The deadline for written submissions was 8th May 2011.

Nick Gibb, the school’s Minister gave evidence on 27 April 2011 and the Committee is still taking evidence.
12. Will Ofsted use the EBac in assessing school performance?
Ofsted have indicated that the EBac will not be used for this purpose.
13. The EBac only represents a small core of subjects, so surely there is plenty of space for RS and RE?
Almost all students take English Literature, which means that the impact of the EBac will be that the size of the core is actually 7 GCSEs or 8 when you add the popular third single science. When you add subjects which must be studied, if not examined PE, PSHE and RE (core). It is difficult to maintain the argument that there is ‘plenty of time’ to study full course RS or the arts or technology for that matter
14. Will the pressure of curriculum space affect all non-EBac subjects equally

No. RS and English Literature are by far the largest entry subjects to have been left out of the EBac which means they will be affected most.