A number of helpful contextual papers have been reprinted here.  Click on the links to download.

1. Attitudes in RE.  The attitudes set out are those which good RE aims to foster and develop.  They provide a basis of respectful interaction with others which ensures a positive ethos in the RE classroom.  They are taken from the Non-statutory National Framework for RE, (p13), published by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority in 2004.
2. Guidelines on dealing with difficult questions and disclosures.  Teachers of RE are sometimes concerned about how to respond when pupils ask challenging or difficult questions or when discussion seems likely to become intrusive or problematic.  A list of suggestions for dealing with such situations is taken from Religious Education: Non-statutory Guidance (2000), Qualifications and Curriculum Authority.
3. The Toledo Guiding Principles. This set of principles was developed in response to requests from the UN and other inter-governmental bodies to facilitate teaching about religions and beliefs in order to promote tolerance and understanding.  It was published by the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe in 2007. The full document may be seen at http://www.osce.org/publications/odihr/2007/11/28314_993_en.pdf
4. So, what do the Toledo Guiding Principles have to do with me?  This article by Joyce Miller was originally published in ‘Resource’ magazine and is reprinted by kind permission of RE Today Services.  It asks what teachers in England and Wales can learn from the principles and what challenges it raises for them.
5. Standards for CPD providers.  This set of standards has been developed and is supported by the Association of RE Inspectors, Advisers and Consultants. The time when continuing professional development in RE was provided by a single source, such as the local authority or the diocese, has long gone. This means the CPD market place has now opened to a variety of providers; the question is: how do schools know that they are receiving a high quality of CPD?  AREIAC promotes high quality CPD in RE and here sets out its principles which complement the National Standards for Educational Improvement Professionals published by Aspect in 2005. 
   
6. GTCE Code of Conduct and Practice. The revised Code of Conduct and Practice sets out expected standards of conduct and norms of practice for 540 000 registered school teachers in England and for teachers in training. It was approved by GTC Council in July 2009 and came into effect on 1 October 2009. 
7. Ethical Guidelines for Christian and Muslim Witness in Britain.  Members of the Christian Muslim Forum, whilst wishing to bear faithful witness to their faiths, are committed to working together for the common good. In these guidelines they recognise that both communities actively invite others to share their faith and acknowledge that all faiths have the same right to share their faith with others. There are diverse attitudes and approaches amongst them which can be controversial and raise questions. This paper is not a theology of Christian evangelism or mission or Da’wah (invitation to Islam), rather it offers guidelines for good practice.