Abingdon News No.56

20 January 2021 Why study P&T? They are fascinating and very topical subjects and help us to develop a better understanding of different world views and philosophies. P&T broaden horizons and provoke intrigue and interest and, unlike many subjects, they are not necessarily exact, there isn’t a right or a wrong answer. Philosophy tries to answer one of the oldest questions in the world: why are we here ? Even with all the technological advantages of the 21st century there is still an innate human need to know ‘why?’. This hasn’t changed for millennia. We also examine topics such as consciousness: how we know we exist. Theology covers the major religions and issues from peace and conflict to business and medical ethics. We also look at Philosophy of Religion and Developments in Christian Thought. What do you hope the boys learn from P&T? I want the boys to be open minded, to question and develop their listening and debating skills. Our aim is to get boys to form their own opinions and to reason and not to be afraid to change their mind when presented with evidence. Boys also learn to be analytical in how they approach their work and develop their essay writing skills. All of these skills are important in the 21st Century workplace. How popular is P&T? P&T is compulsory up to and including the Third Year and around a half of the year group go on to take the GCSE in Religious Studies. In the Sixth Form we offer Philosophy and Religious Studies as separate A levels but you cannot study both. We currently have 12 boys taking Religious Studies and 21 studying Philosophy - so I would say they are popular subjects and for good reason! Our results are excellent. In 2020, at GCSE we gained 84% 9-7 grades, and in both RS and Philosophy at A level, 80% of passes were A*-B grades. Can you study P&T as part of the Other Half? The P&T department is involved in a range of Other Half activities from the Eco Committee to the Christian Society. We also have a departmental magazine, The Axiom , that boys can get involved with. We run trips to look at different cultures in places such as Istanbul where East meets West. Do boys go on to study P&T at university and further education? Both subjects are a very good foundation for university degrees and are highly regarded. The issues covered by the subjects at A level are very relevant to today’s society and workplace. Boys go on to study both subjects as individual degrees and also many related subjects such as PPE or joint honours. They are very good preparation for employment, and careers are wide-ranging from advertising and law (via law conversion) to the Foreign Office. P&T degrees are also held in high regard in the United States. And finally, what is the answer, why are we here? There is unfortunately no reason why there has to be a ‘why’. A person of faith would say we are here to follow the word of God, an atheist may say to live the best life we can. Ultimately the notion of ‘why’ is a human construct and not always applicable philosophically, some would say we should just accept that there is no answer. Alternatively, to quote the computer ‘Deep Thought’ in Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy , the answer is simply ‘42’! Tom Eames-Jones is in his third year as Head of the Philosophy and Theology Department at Abingdon, having previously taught at St Albans School. The department has four members of staff including the School Chaplain. Taking a look at Philosophy and Theology