Biographical Learning in Religious Education in Slovakia

In this study we explore the issue of biographical learning in religious education, specifically in the Slovak context, where the reform of primary education is currently in progress. Biographical learning is defined as working on one’s own biography and dealing with other people’s biographies. Through biographical learning, children and adolescents can identify with other people as their role models, which supports the process of forming their own identity. The aim of the study is to implement this innovative method of biographical learning in the teaching process of religious education. Biographical learning is also an important part of the religious education curriculum because it allows students to reflect on significant stages of their life journey and to learn to think about them from a faith perspective. Working with one’s own biography as well as the biography of other people enables pupils to form a cognitive, emotional and social relationship with themselves and to reflect on their lifestyle, their values and norms. The result of the study is a proposal of a method how to work with biography in religious education in schools in Slovakia. On the example of the life of Eleonora Zacharova, a native in Nürnberg (Germany), who lived most of her life in Slovakia, we will present a method of biographical learning within the Roman Catholic religious education curriculum in Slovakia with concrete suggestions for didactic implementation of biographical learning in religious education using the example of Eleonora Zacharova’s biography.