REL 2130 #Interfaith: Engaging Religious Diversity Online
April 15, 2021
Interfaith America is a national non-profit working towards an America where people of different faiths, worldviews, and traditions can bridge differences and find common values to build a shared life together.
Upon completion of this six-hour course, you are eligible to earn a professional certificate in Digital Interfaith Leadership from Interfaith America. Once you have completed all course lessons, please start a Live Chat to notify an advisor that you have completed the course. Your advisor will review your work and confirm that you fulfilled the course requirements. Upon confirmation of your completion of the course, your advisor will provide you with instructions for claiming your certificate and syncing the course badge with your LinkedIn profile, so the world can see that you are a certified Digital Interfaith Leader.
On your way to earning a certificate in Digital Interfaith Leadership, you’ll build your expertise across the following lessons:
Bridgebuilding Online. Explore case studies of powerful online interfaith bridgebuilding. Learn helpful tools for your own bridgebuilding.
From IRL to URL. Why should we engage in interfaith leadership online? What changes and what stays the same when interfaith work is brought into digital spaces?
How Will YOU Lead Online? There is a great need for online leadership, but there is no one way to lead. Reflect on your values, priorities, and goals to craft your own distinct leadership style.
Religion and the Internet 101. Learn about the Internet’s genesis and evolution, how it is has impacted religious communities, and some intrinsic challenges to online interfaith leadership.
Faith, Facts, and Truth Online. Learn about the ubiquity and danger of misinformation online and develop skills for identifying it. Identify trusted sources for religious information online.
Disrupting Hate Online. Learn best practices for disrupting hate online. Better understand how hate, disinformation, and discrimination manifest online.
Building Online Community. Examine two case studies and reflect on the necessary elements for building community online.
Being Safe Online. Assess and learn to mitigate personal risk online.
Achieving Impact Online. Articulate a vision for your online interfaith leadership. Who is your audience? What do you want to achieve?
Choose Your Platforms. Explore how other online interfaith leaders have utilized different digital platforms for diverse goals. Reflect on which platforms might be best suited to your particular goals and style.
Self-Care Online. Online engagement can produce spiritual and emotional stress. Learn tools for recognizing harm online, taking care of yourself, and accessing support.
Syllabus
High School, College, Graduate, Professional Development
Scholarships Available
For a limited time, we are delighted to offer full scholarships for learners interested in boosting their digital interfaith leadership skills. Enter scholarship code #Interfaith100 in the Bookstore cart to receive a full scholarship.
Special Thanks
Interfaith Youth Core extends special thanks to the Expert Advisory and Student Advisory Councils who helped make this curriculum possible. Many thanks to our professional advisors Josie Alquist, danah boyd, Heidi Campbell, Cheryl Contee, Jeremy Nickel, Amanda Quraishi, Chris Stedman, and Aden Van Noppen, and to our student advisors Angie Benitez-Garcia, Farhan Islam, Aliia Matthew, Maya Reinfeldt, Hannah Silver, and Nijha Young. Onboarding support was provided by 1791 Delegates and The Foundation for Religious Literacy.
Civic Education for a Common Good
We apply the U.S. Department of Education’s Consensus Statements about Constitutional Approaches for Teaching about Religion
▸ Our approach to religion is academic, not devotional;
▸ We strive for student awareness of religions, but do not press for student acceptance of any religion;
▸ We sponsor the study about religion, not the practice of religion;
▸ We expose students to a diversity of religious views, but may not impose any particular view;
▸ We educate about all religions, we do not promote or denigrate any religion;
▸ We inform students about religious beliefs and practices, it does not seek to conform students to any particular belief or practice.
We apply the American Academy of Religion’s “Religious Literacy Guidelines”
▸ “Religious Literacy Guidelines for College Students.” American Academy of Religion, 2019.
▸ “Teaching About Religion: AAR Guidelines for K-12 Public Schools.” American Academy of Religion, April 2010.
We apply the National Council for the Social Studies C3 Frameworks for Religious Studies
▸ College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for Social Studies State Standards, “Religious Studies Companion Document for the C3 Framework.” Silver Spring, MD: National Council for the Social Studies, 2017.
For Educators
Educators (and others) are welcome to use the #Interfaith curriculum in any way that you would like. You might integrate content from the curriculum into your own courses. You might utilize just a lesson or two, or choose to use the full curriculum. We welcome your creativity.
Educators (and others) have two options for accessing the curriculum:
- Access the full curriculum in PDF format here. This document includes the full course content, along with a preceding curriculum guide.
- Ask students to access the course directly (and learn asynchronously) here at ReligionAndPublicLife.org. If you would like to view and manage your students’ participation, we are happy to assist in setting up a faculty account for you on the platform. Start a live chat (by clicking the live chat icon at the bottom right of your screen) to request help setting up a faculty account.
