Variation in students' experience of tutorials in religious education at Australian Catholic University

Purpose: To explore the variation that occurred in pre-service teachers’ understanding and experiences of tutorials in religious education at Australian Catholic University. Methodology: A convenient sample of ten 4th Year Bachelor of Education (Primary) pre-service teachers were interviewed using a semi-structured interview guide and asked about their understanding of the role of the tutorial in religious education. Analysis: Phenomenographic analysis was applied to the interview transcripts of these ten pre-service teachers. Findings: The analysis revealed five qualitatively different ways of understanding the role of the tutorial in religious education. These conceptions were related to each other by way of a hierarchical inclusive relationship. They were found to pertain to different student understandings in terms of the relationship of the tutorial to the lecture, the work undertaken in preparation for the tutorial, discerning implications of the tutorial content and activities for teaching in the classroom context, and the quality of learning expected to take place within the tutorial itself. A tentative implication for learning and teaching includes an evaluation of the ways in which tutorials in religious education are structured to include a greater focus on problem-based learning and critical thinking.