Welcome

Welcome to The Cloisters, the blog of the St Andrew’s Foundation, the home of Catholic Teacher Education in Scotland.

The aim of The Cloisters is to stimulate reflection, discussion and scholarship in the field of Catholic Education and Catholic Religious Education both in Scotland and further afield.

Much as the monastic cloisters once did, this blog hopes to provide a space of meeting, encounter, and dialogue. It seeks to provide a forum for staff, students, and alumni, as well as teachers, parents and clergy to articulate a vision of Catholic Education, and to circulate fresh ideas, good practice and areas for growth. 

We warmly invite and encourage contributions as well as comment and discussion. Please be respectful and constructive in your comments. Comments that are offensive or inappropriate will be deleted by the moderators.

Latest from the Blog

The National Discussion (Part 3)

Section C: Subsidiarity and the preferential option for the poor Scotland’s schools – historic and contemporary mission to the poor There is a rich history of Catholic schools in Scotland’s mission to the poor which can shed light on issues of poverty for all of Scotland’s schools today.  The historical mission to the poor is sometimes…

The National Discussion (Part 2)

Section B: The spiritual, philosophical and cultural roots of education and their expression in curricular choices Rationale A growing number of thinkers now argue that since the advent of the “postmodern condition”, there are no more ‘strong’ philosophical reasons to refuse religion or to refuse science. Both, it seems, can co-exist, especially if religious traditions…

The National Discussion (Part 1)

A response for Scottish Education, steeped in the wisdom and tradition of the Catholic faith. Introduction Recently, the Scottish Government launched the ‘listening phase’ of the National Discussion on Education and invited children and young people, parents and carers, and educators to give their views about what the education system should look like for the…