Christian
Symbols and Motives in Educational Programmes
Marie Bízová
Department of Czech
Language and Literature
Christian Symbols and Motives in Educational Programmes is the topic of my thesis. I would like to learn how children in basic shools (class 8 and class 9) know christian symbols and how czech educational programmes influence and support spiritual education.
In my presentation I would like to speak about some conference papers I published and that will used in my thesis.
The basic problem is what it is symbol and how we can define this term. The word is very ofen used but its meaning is not always the same. I prefer conception that symbols have spiritual substance. (Symbol?! Olomouc 2005)
In these days the Czech republic remembers the first unniversary of the entry to Europion Union. This organization has some common bases. It is not only economy, politics which unit members of Europian Union. It must have also cultural and spiritual base. It could be christianity which has associated Europe since the Middle Ages to the present. Spiritual situation is different in our republic and in the rest of Europe, where Christianity plays more important rule in the society. (Christian Symbols in „new Europe“, Ostrava 2004)
In 2006 Czech teachers will have to teach according to the Genaral Educational Programme. I found out how christian symbols and motives are presented in this new educational programme. In connection with this problem I observed some readers. I wanted to know how this readers fulfil thesis about religious education of the Genaral Educational Programme. (Christian Symbols and Motives in select readers, Liberec 2005)
The prayer is one of the religious symbols. It connects together people of different religious and also people who have never been members of any religion. I made my own questionnaire about prayer for pupils of class 8 and class 9 of some basic schools. I wanted to know how children understand prayer, if they pray sometime, what they think about some thesis about prayer and they also should make their own prayer. Children without difference are able to make a prayer. Their oppinions are also very similar although there were many pupils who have never prayed. (Prayer in conception of Pupils from 8 and 9 class, Banska Bystrica, 2005)