Exploring the Value of Special Religious Education in Multifaith Australia among Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews and Baha’i

This article analyses the value of religious education inAustralian government schools, including the contribution ofthe combination of Special Religious Education/Instruction(SRE/RI) and General Religious Education (GRE) to contempor-ary society. It is based on qualitative, grounded research with58 interviews representing the six major faith groups inAustralia—Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, andBaha’i, as well as drawing on McCrindle’s quantitative andqualitative data in an unpublished report co-written with theauthors. The findings show that SRE contributes to values edu-cation, religious identity development and health and well-being.  The  SRE  classes  multiculturalise  the  schools  andprovide support to students who experience religious bullyingin schools.