Course structure

The course is divided into four sessions:

• Session 1: Engage

  This session explores the theme of religious diversity in Europe and the attitudes of young people towards it. It suggests an approach to gathering initial insights into the ideas of your participating young people. It then introduces the RETOPEA ‘clippings’ collection of online resources and provides guidance on its use in teaching and discussion.

  You should allow 3 hours study time for this session.

• Session 2: Plan

  This session focuses on supporting young people in planning their films. You will view examples of films that have already been made in pilot workshops and consider different styles of documentary film-making. You will think about how to help young people turn an initial concept into a viable series of sequences and script for a film.

  You should allow 3 hours study time for this session.

• Session 3: Create

  Session 3 emphasises how the purpose of the exercise is to stimulate consideration of matters of religious toleration and peace. In that context, it provides practical advice on organisational, creative and technical aspects of supporting young people to make films. You are advised on the basic ethical and safety awareness you will need to instil in your participating young people.

  You should allow 3 hours study time for this session.

• Session 4: Reflect

  This session emphasises the importance of feedback and discussion if participants are to gain full benefit from the experience. It summarises the experience of the RETOPEA project team in running pilot workshops and then suggests approaches to facilitating reflection in your own group of young people.

  You should allow 2 hours study time for this session.

Note that there is no need to complete a session in one sitting. The four sessions are used to organise the learning material and the associated quizzes and you should feel entirely free to pause part way through a session and resume later if that best suits your own schedule.

The course includes practical resources, marked ‘IN PRACTICE’. These are highlighted on the relevant pages and should be revisited when you are ready to run your own workshop. A downloadable summary sheet for quick reference [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)]   will also be provided.

Each session will include short films of young people at the four different stages of the project: engage, plan and create and reflect. These films are also designed to be a stimulating resource for you to show young people in your own RETOPEA workshop.

Activity 1

RETOPEA has created an animation to explain the concept of the docutube and engage the interest of young people right from the outset. Watch the film yourself, and as you watch consider how you might use it with your own group of young people. Use the note-taking box to write down your ideas.

Download this video clip.Video player: Video 2

Show transcript | Hide transcript

Transcript: Video 2

[MUSIC PLAYING]

NARRATOR:

Can you tell a story about the past that speaks to the present? I hear you asking, why would I do that? Let me explain by telling you a true story, a story from the past that has something to say about your streets, your community, your sports, or your hobbies. A story about diversity, people who are different, and a man with a passion for the values of religious toleration. The story takes you back in time 400 years ago to a place called Massachusetts on the East Coast of America. The people here have recently arrived from England.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

They're known as Puritans. They want to establish what they see as an ideal Christian society. But in building their ideal pure society, they're intolerant towards people who don't share their religious beliefs and practices. One person who disagrees with this is Roger Williams.

By winter 1636, Roger Williams is no longer welcome. He's facing arrest. He needs to escape. It's a long journey through the deep snow and harsh cold.

Eventually, thanks to some friendly Indigenous people, Roger got the chance to start a new settlement. It would become the colony of Rhode Island. Roger wanted this new colony to be different, different from Massachusetts, different from the Old World in Europe, a society where there is freedom of conscience. Roger Williams thought of this new society as a ship.

On this ship, in theory, there could be people of different religions, different types of Christians, Muslims, atheists, Jews. They were all welcome. They shared the ship. It was a ship where there was justice and fairness. Everyone had a choice about when they prayed and who they prayed to.

The captain of the ship could belong to any religion. In the 17th century, very few people believed a society could be like this. But Roger Williams did. And he pioneered a new approach to religious freedom.

There. I've told you a story, a story about diversity and toleration and what society might be like. What does that story trigger your thinking about? Why not make a film about it?

In this project, you will relay ideas from history to your streets, your community, your sports, or your hobbies? You'll become a historian, a film maker, and a blogger all in one. All it takes is a little imagination.

Like Roger Williams, you, too, will go on a voyage of discovery. Go to retopea.eu. It has all the tools you'll need to think about history in a new way and make your film. Bon voyage.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

End transcript: Video 2

Download

Video 2

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

To use this interactive functionality a free OU account is required. Sign in or register.

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).