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Study information

What is Religion?

Module titleWhat is Religion?
Module codeTHE1120
Academic year2025/6
Credits30
Module staff

Dr David Tollerton (Convenor)

Duration: Term123
Duration: Weeks

11

11

Number students taking module (anticipated)

50

Module description

This module provides you with foundational conceptual and practical skills for critically engaging with religion at university level. There are three elements to this. First, you will be introduced to subject-specific study skills (such as finding appropriate sources, referencing, and building and appraising arguments). Second, you will develop an understanding of how the academic study of religion and theology have historically developed, how they are subdivided, and where they differ in emphases and approach. Third, you will develop a knowledge of historical and contemporary debates on defining ‘religion’. This issue is considered both in terms of scholarship that wrestles with the very word ‘religion’, but also through critical consideration of a selection of diverse individual and cultural perspectives from around the world commonly labelled as ‘religions’.  

Module aims - intentions of the module

The module runs over two terms. The first term will focus first on subject-specific study skills, such as using the library and online sources related to religion, referencing, writing essays, giving oral presentations, and other key assessment types. You will gain additional information on how to obtain further learning support through your degree from various parts of the university. This first term will also provide a critical survey of how the academic study of religion and theology have historically developed, and some of the key subdivisions within each. The second term will consider definitions of the term ‘religion’ and their historical development, and how such debates apply when tangibly considered in relation to various global traditions. 

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

  • 1. Demonstrate understanding of study skills specific to university study of religion and theology.
  • 2. Show awareness of how academic study of religion, theology, and related subdisciplines relate to one another and have historically developed.
  • 3. Navigate debates on the meaning of ‘religion’ both in conceptual terms and in relation to specific global traditions.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

  • 4. Develop openness to new ideas, different perspectives, debates, and disputes regarding the nature of studying religion and theology at university.
  • 5. Assess the strengths and weaknesses of different definitions of religion.

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

  • 6. Produce effective academic writing within clear guidelines.
  • 7. Demonstrate the ability to summarise, insightfully question, and critically assess information accurately and fairly.
  • 8. Demonstrate an awareness of the module as a learning community by actively listening to the viewpoints of others, contributing sensitively and respectfully to discussion, and critically reflecting on the learning process.

Syllabus plan

The module content may vary from year to year but is likely to cover topics such as:

  • Study skills vital to university-level study of religion and theology
  • How did academic religious studies and theology develop?
  • Mapping the fields: what are the key subdivisions within religion, theology, and related fields?
  • How has religion traditionally been defined, and what are the contemporary debates?
  • Is religion a Western construct?
  • Religion, theology, and science
  • Interrogating ‘religion’ as a category in relation to selected global traditions

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Scheduled Learning and Teaching ActivitiesGuided independent studyPlacement / study abroad
662340

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

CategoryHours of study timeDescription
Scheduled learning and teaching66Classes include a mixture of lecture, whole-class discussion and small-group discussion elements.
Guided independent study234Reading and class preparation, working on independent project, and contributing to module forum (WIKIs).

Formative assessment

Form of assessmentSize of the assessment (eg length / duration)ILOs assessedFeedback method
Oral presentation7 minutes1, 7-8Written

Summative assessment (% of credit)

CourseworkWritten examsPractical exams
10000

Details of summative assessment

Form of assessment% of creditSize of the assessment (eg length / duration)ILOs assessedFeedback method
Participation and engagement10Engagement with threshold tasks throughout module8Oral
Bibliographic exercise10500 words1, 6Written
Essay301500 words1-7Written
Essay502500 words1-7Written

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Original form of assessmentForm of re-assessmentILOs re-assessedTimescale for re-assessment
Participation and engagementEngagement with threshold tasks by ref-def period8Ref-def period
Bibliographic exerciseBibliographic exercise1, 6Ref-def period
EssayEssay1-7Ref-def period
EssayEssay1-7Ref-def period

Re-assessment notes

Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

  • Bourne, Richard, and Imogen Adkins, A New Introduction to Theology: Embodiment, Experience and Encounter (London: T&T Clark, 2020).
  • Cotter, Christopher R., and David G. Robertson, After World Religions: Reconstructing Religious Studies (London: Routledge, 2016).
  • Cottrell, Stella, The Study Skills Handbook (London: Bloomsbury, 2019).
  • Fitzgerald, Timothy, The Ideology of Religious Studies (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999).
  • Furseth, Inger, and Pal Repstad, An Introduction to the Sociology of Religion: Classical and Contemporary Perspectives (London and New York: Routledge, 2017).
  • Hughes, Aaron W. and Russell T. McCutcheon (eds.), What Is Religion? Debating the Academic Study of Religion (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2022).
  • Johnson, Greg, and Siv Ellen Kraft (eds.), Handbook of Indigenous Religion(s) (Leiden: Brill, 2017).
  • Juergensmeyer, Mark, The Oxford Handbook of Global Religions (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006).
  • Lewis, James R., and Inga Tøllefsen (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of New Religious Movements (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016).
  • Martin, Craig, A Critical Introduction to the Study of Religion (London and New York: Routledge, 2017).
  • Nye, Malory, ‘Decolonizing the Study of Religion’, Open Library of Humanities, 5, 1 (2019).
  • Stausberg, Michael, and Steven Engler (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of the Study of Religion (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017).
  • Tweed, Thomas A., Religion: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2020).

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

  • ELE – College to provide hyperlink to appropriate pages

Key words search

Religion, Religious Studies, Theology, Study Skills

Credit value30
Module ECTS

15

Module pre-requisites

None

Module co-requisites

None

NQF level (module)

4

Available as distance learning?

No

Origin date

01/06/23

Last revision date

03/03/2025