Religion and society update

The new DP religion and society course will be launched in February 2027 for first teaching in August 2027. First assessment will take place in May 2029.

Below you will find an overview of the course updates. For a technical breakdown of the DP curriculum and assessment methods for this course, read the DP religion and society subject brief.

You also can view information on the current DP world religions course.

To view all subject briefs, visit the DP curriculum page.

Overview of the new course

Religion is a dynamic force in the world—shaping and informing lives, institutions, expressions and ways of understanding ourselves and others. The religion and society course is grounded in an academic approach to the study of religion that seeks to better understand the roles religion plays in the lives of individuals and communities. The course uses religious studies methods to explore how religious individuals and communities influence and are influenced by their social, political, economic, geographical and historical contexts.

A new name

The new course represents a significant redesign of the previous world religions course. This scope of changes is conveyed through a new name, religion and society, which aims to more accurately the nature of the subject and aims of the new course.

The previous title, world religions, served the legacy course well by communicating to teachers, students and other stakeholders the academic and non-devotional nature of the course. Although the world religions paradigm continues to be a framework that is sometimes used today in education or popular culture, this framework has been criticized for its imposition of a biased viewpoint and conception of religion. The new course continues to maintain an academic, non-devotional and pluralistic examination of the subject, while the new name also reflects the curriculum focus on the study of religious individuals and communities as they are situated in unique contexts.

Course content changes

How this curriculum review meets the needs of the current teaching landscape

In the course, students explore the intersection of religion and society through situated examples of religious communities using an inquiry-based approach. Religion is not approached in an ahistorical manner, as an abstract concept or as isolated “belief systems”. Rather, through their inquiry across several religious traditions, students are empowered to critically analyze how religion intersects with the lives of individuals and societies.

Course content changes in comparison to previous course

The religion and society course is designed to equip students with understanding and skills from the field of religious studies. Foundational theories and methodologies that underpin the field of religious studies provide students with the skills and background knowledge to understand and analyze religious traditions.

In this course, students study three or four religious traditions. There is no set list of religious traditions to choose from. Teachers and students are free to choose religious traditions and examples they find most suitable for their classroom and context.

The course is organized into two parts that are interwoven, with knowledge and understandings from each section used to illustrate and reflect on the other.

In part 1, Foundations of the study of religion and society, students explore how religion and society are studied through the lens of three enduring understandings. The enduring understandings are overarching notions about methods and purposes of the study of religion from an academic approach. Students explore and come to understand these notions through their study.

In part 2, Exploring religion and society, students develop a strong conceptual understanding of religious traditions using an inquiry framework of concepts, content and contexts.

Students study four concepts: change, identity, interpretation and power. Each of the concepts is further explored through two themes, which provide required content that must be studied through the chosen religious traditions.

Content in the course is the detailed knowledge and terminology of the religious traditions studied. The course content consists of what the students learn about a religious tradition through the four concepts. Content is not predetermined; rather, it is open-ended and depends on the religious traditions chosen.

Contexts refer to the real-world situations of religious traditions. In this course, religion is not studied as abstract and monolithic phenomena. Religious identity, expression and experiences continuously shape and are shaped by the wider local and global contexts people live in. Inquiry into religious traditions, concepts and themes must be done using real-world examples to avoid generalization and essentialization of religion.

By exploring religious traditions through the inquiry framework, the course aims to develop religious literacy, wherein students develop understanding of religious traditions within their social, historical, political and cultural contexts.

Changes to the assessment model

Difference in number of papers, paper requirement changes, etc.

The course includes a completely redesigned assessment model.

External assessment

With the shift to using the concepts as the primary organizing principle of the course and not having a set list of religious traditions to choose from, the two external assessments allow students to draw on any of the religious traditions they have studied to answer questions based on the concepts.

• Paper 1: Students are assessed on their analysis of academic texts about religion, applying subject-specific knowledge to communicate claims and arguments. It consists of section A and section B. Section A is based on a short stimulus focused on an aspect of part 1 of the syllabus. Students respond to three questions using the stimulus and examples they have studied from part 2 of the syllabus. Section B is based on a short authentic text and consists of one extended response question. Students respond to the question using the text, concept(s) and example(s).
• Paper 2: students apply and synthesize their knowledge of concepts, content and real-world examples from various religious communities to analyse and evaluate diverse perspectives on religious identities, expressions and experiences. In section A, students choose two of four extended response questions focused on specific aspects of the required content from part 2 of the course. In section B, students choose one of two essay questions focused on a concept of the course.

Internal assessment

For the internal assessment, students conduct an inquiry into a topic of interest by applying one of the course’s concepts. Students demonstrate knowledge and understanding of religious traditions, analyze and evaluate diverse sources, and engage in reflexivity about the inquiry process.