Module manager: Olivia Porter
Email: O.C.Porter@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable
Year running 2026/27
THEO2301 Studying Religion in Context
This module is not approved as a discovery module
How do we study religion? What methods allow us to understand religious beliefs, practices, and social impact? This module is designed to answer these questions and prepare you for the challenges of independent research. It provides an essential foundation for your final-year project and for any future academic or professional work involving research. The module introduces you to the diverse ways religion has been studied, from the perspectives of theology, philosophy and sacred scriptures to social scientific methods such as ethnography, interviews, surveys, and digital research. You will explore the strengths and limitations of these approaches and learn how they have been applied critically and ethically in real-world contexts. Alongside methodological understanding, the module develops practical skills: how to formulate research questions, design a project, decide on appropriate methods, and present scholarly work clearly and persuasively. By the end of the module, you will not only understand the theoretical debates about researching religion but also have the confidence and competence to undertake your own research project.
The primary objective is to equip you with the theoretical understanding and practical skills necessary to design and conduct independent research on religion. The module aims to introduce you to a range of methodological approaches used to study religious beliefs and practices, their philosophical and ethical dimensions, and their social impact, and to identify appropriate methods to research different kinds of questions or enquiry in religion.
Through lectures, seminars, and hands-on activities, you will critically evaluate the strengths and limitations of these methods and learn how they have been applied. In addition to developing methodological knowledge, the module is designed to build core research competencies, including formulating research questions, designing projects, undertaking a literature search, collecting and analysing data, and presenting findings in a clear and academically rigorous manner.
These learning activities collectively will prepare you for your final-year dissertation and foster transferable skills in critical thinking, problem-solving, academic integrity, and digital literacy, ensuring readiness for both academic and professional environments.
On successful completion of the module, students will be able to:
1) Critically evaluate and apply key methodological approaches used in the study of religion, assessing their strengths, limitations, and applicability to different research contexts.
2) Design an appropriate research question and related methodology, suitable for a final year project, to investigate any aspect of religion.
3) Identify, evaluate, and synthesise relevant scholarly sources to support the development of informed analysis of topics within the study of religion.
Skills Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the module students will be able to:
4) Communicate research ideas clearly and concisely, using appropriate academic language and conventions
5) Apply standards of academic integrity, including when and how to appropriately acknowledge and reference the work of others in research design and written work.
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lectures | 10 | 1 | 10 |
| Seminars | 9 | 1 | 9 |
| Practicals | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Private study hours | 180 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 20 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200 | ||
Individual components of the portfolio of work are completed as exercises and discussed in seminars with verbal feedback. Students can also submit an assessment plan for written feedback OR a section of the piece of work.
Students should read and reflect on (i) the feedback they received in previous summative assessments, (ii) the PRHS marking criteria and (iii) the specific guidance provided on the summative assessment in this module, and identify for themselves the type of formative feedback that will be most beneficial for them.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Portfolio | Portfolio | 100 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Resit by the same task, with a different research question if already attempted.
Check the module area in Minerva for your reading list
Last updated: 30/04/2026
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