Religion

Religion is a very powerful subject and those who know me personally know that in an actual conversation, such a serious topic would be met with a glib remark from myself, usually moving focus towards an obscure footballer (think French ex Man Utd defender William Prunier or Arsenal wing wizard Glenn Helder) to ensure nothing got that serious. In the past few weeks though religion has actually impacted on my life and career.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Geography is a dying art in Australian schools and seems to be mostly the preserve of private, fee paying schools, whereas the state system has some Geography it is not very obvious. Now to the religious link- a large number of these private schools have some element of religious affiliation, whether it be lutheren, catholic or christian among others.

So, the majority of schools where Geography is taught and jobs are more likely to arise in the subject are also religious. I am not that much of a religious person. I was christened and attended church as a young lad but quickly established a scared approach to churches where I would run off crying!Whilst applying for some of the new Geography jobs I have been finding the last few weeks, I have noticed that there is one stumbling block in the application process that I cannot overcome.

It is usually on the last page and is only a name and address but I am unable to fill it. The section that asks for a church or religious reference, from the pastor of the church you last regularly attended. Therefore that application remains unfilled and due to the fact that by not filling in the section I do not meet the selection criteria for the post, am pretty much doomed to failure in getting the post.

I have spoken to several teachers out here who have applied to or work in such schools and they have mostly said that same thing-lie. But I can't do this, it does not feel right and I would feel a cad going to morning service or preaching the virtues outlined in the position specification when the only time I have visited a church in the last 10 years is for a friend's wedding and that was only for an hour!

I did contemplate bending the truth slightly, but the specification for the roles makes it so clear that you would have to undertake a massive array of religious tasks I felt it was unfair to lie in such a situation.

Conversely it seems, getting a child into the religious private schooling sector is a far easier process. I have spoken to several parents and pupils who do not really follow the guidelines of the religious sector of the school but happily get their child into the school and continue their for the entirety of their schooling. Could it be that the money that the child brings into the school means more than the perpetuation of the faith that the school promotes?

I feel that my difficulty in getting any work, relief or otherwise this term has meant that I have become even more determined to improve my practice through whatever means necessary and this evaluative process is standing me in good stead as I work through creating resources, reading journals and teaching myself new skills that I can implement in my future teaching, all good fun!

Hope everyone is well and I am still making my flood and cyclone resources!