Matthew Martin of the St Mary’s English Department visited Rathmore Grammar School in Belfast this week to discuss writing strategies for postive exam performance in the subject of Religion. This visit was part of a project building on work done previously with St Paul’s High School in Bessbrook in which Religion A-Level studens were being trained to work as peer tutors with one another.

Maeve Wright, the head of Religion at Rathmore, invited Matthew in as part of an effort to further develop students’ critical capacity in the study and formation of theological, cosmological and existential arguments. She commented:

When dealing with such large, abstract concepts as the existence of God and

philosophical arguments concerning fundamental ethical principles, it is all too

easy for A-level students to lose their grasp on why these discussions are important

and meaningful for them. Matthew’s talk today broke those topics down into the basic

steps of building and critiquing an argument as they write.

Matthew noted that the Rathmore students were exceptionally attentive and engaged throughout, contributing thoughtfully at every opportunity. This is just the first in a series of meetings planned on this topic.