La clase de Religión en los colegios públicos de Bogotá: Estado de la investigación

Abstract

This article presents a review of the state of the research about the characteristics of Religious Education classes (Educacion Religiosa Escolar, or ERE in Spanish) in state-run schools in the city of Bogota. Through this review, we try to establish the extent to which Religious Education classes comply with the relevant legal regulations, respect the Colombian State's principles of laicism, and meet the needs of a society going through a religious pluralisation process. We conclude that current regulations are contradictory and, in practice, impossible to comply with. In most cases, Religious Education is Catholic in character, which can lead to instances of religious discrimination. A high percentage of the teachers who give these classes do not have the requisite training or certifications as specified by the law.