To understand the current state of RE requires an understanding of the journey that brought us here. Geoff Teece outlines the changes in the subject over the past 50 years, and then gets down to fundamentals. Is the purpose of RE to teach children about the religions of the world? Is it to help children to become more tolerant? He faces up to these questions squarely, with a commendable absence of fudge.

What is religion? We know what mathematics is, but a definition of religion is not so simple, as this book points out. You might expect God to appear somewhere, but that would exclude Buddhism, a religion that is not based on belief in God. Teece sets out to arrive at a definition, and examines the arguments in a succinct and even-handed manner - one of the strengths of the book.

Given that such matters are not easily dismissed in a few paragraphs, there are times when you are left wanting more, which may be no bad thing. However, in today’s world, where religious fanaticism is such a manifest evil, I would have welcomed more discussion of tolerance. Teece posits “understanding and openness towards others” as a laudable aim, but can we tolerate intolerance? And is tolerance an absolute good, like love and peace?

This stimulating book includes chapters on planning, assessment, and the teacher’s role, but I would most recommend it for its analytical beginning and the fine detail with which it concludes. The reader gets pithy and accessible resource lists, useful addresses and internet sites.