Religion and the Cultures of Higher Education: Student Christianity in the UK

Guest, Mathew

Abstract

This chapter is about the relationship between higher education and the religious identities of university students. Unlike some other essays in this volume, its primary concern is not with how religion is managed as a curricula topic within classroom contexts. Rather, it focuses on how the experience of university – broadly conceived - exerts an influence over the religious perspectives of students. The empirical foundation of the following discussion is research into Christian students studying at universities within the United Kingdom, although the patterns discerned there have clear resonance with tendencies in other parts of the Western world. In keeping with the sociological approach used in this research, the chapter begins with an extended overview of universities within the UK and their relationship with religious concerns, tracing historical developments and the challenges of the contemporary context. This is followed by a discussion of how we might access and make sense of the different cultures of higher education manifest within these universities. We then turn to fresh empirical evidence gathered on Christian students across universities in England.

Citation

Guest, M. (2015). Religion and the Cultures of Higher Education: Student Christianity in the UK. In L. Beaman, & L. Van Arragon (Eds.), Issues in religion and education : whose religion? (346-366). Brill Academic Publishers. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004289819_017

• Online Publication Date: Feb 4, 2015
• Publication Date: Feb 4, 2015
• Deposit Date: Nov 21, 2014
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 1, 2015
• Publisher: Brill Academic Publishers
• Pages: 346-366
• Series Title: International studies in religion and society
• Book Title: Issues in religion and education : whose religion?
• ISBN: 9789004289802
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004289819_017
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1647535