Humanities
ZIMSEC O-Level Family and Religious Studies
Syllabus topics
106 topics and subtopics in the 2015-2022 syllabus, examined from 1 Jan 2018.
Religions
The first group of syllabus topics (Teacher's Guide, Table 1): the concept of religion and the historical background, beliefs, practices, practitioners, rites…
- 2
Indigenous Religion
- 2.1 Nature and sources of Indigenous Religion
- 2.2 The concept of God and creation in Indigenous Religion
- 2.3 The spirit world in Indigenous Religion
- 2.4 Religious practitioners in Indigenous Religion
- 2.5 Sacred places, objects, attire and symbols in Indigenous Religion
- 2.6 Worship, rituals and sacred days in Indigenous Religion
- 2.7 Birth, naming and initiation rites in Indigenous Religion
- 2.8 Marriage in Indigenous Religion
- 2.9 Death, burial and the afterlife in Indigenous Religion
- 2.10 Moral teachings, taboos and sanctions in Indigenous Religion
- 2.11 Indigenous Religion in contemporary Zimbabwe
- 3
Judaism
- 3.1 Origins of Judaism: the patriarchs and the covenant
- 3.2 Moses, the Exodus and the covenant at Sinai
- 3.3 From kingdom to diaspora: the history of Judaism
- 3.4 Jewish beliefs
- 3.5 Jewish scriptures: Tanakh and Talmud
- 3.6 Jewish worship, the synagogue and religious leaders
- 3.7 The Sabbath and Jewish festivals
- 3.8 Jewish rites of passage
- 3.9 The Jewish home and food laws
- 3.10 Groups within Judaism
- 3.11 Jewish moral teaching
- 4
Christianity
- 4.1 The life of Jesus
- 4.2 The teachings of Jesus
- 4.3 The early Church and the spread of Christianity
- 4.4 Christian denominations
- 4.5 Christianity in Zimbabwe
- 4.6 Christian beliefs
- 4.7 The Bible
- 4.8 Christian worship, leaders and places of worship
- 4.9 Sacraments and rites of passage in Christianity
- 4.10 Christian festivals and sacred days
- 4.11 Christian moral teaching
- 5
Islam
- 5.1 Pre-Islamic Arabia and the life of the Prophet Muhammad
- 5.2 The caliphs and the spread of Islam
- 5.3 Muslim beliefs: the articles of faith
- 5.4 The Qur'an, Hadith and Sunnah
- 5.5 The Five Pillars: Shahadah and Salah
- 5.6 The Five Pillars: Zakat, Sawm and Hajj
- 5.7 The mosque, leaders and Muslim festivals
- 5.8 Rites of passage in Islam
- 5.9 Islamic law, ethics and groups within Islam
Contemporary Issues
The second group of syllabus topics (Teacher's Guide, Table 1): how religion relates to family and identity, education, gender, ethics and health, disability…
- 6
Religion, Family and Identity
The only topic whose Form 1-4 scope and sequence is printed in the Teacher's Guide (Table 2); the form of each sub-topic is taken from it.
- 6.1 The concept and structure of the family
- 6.2 Indigenous Religion and family identity
- 6.3 Names, totems and identity
- 6.4 Family values, community values and Indigenous Religion
- 6.5 Inter-dependency of families
- 6.6 Religion, Zimbabwean identity and African identity
- 6.7 Changing culture, types of families and national values
- 11
Religion and the Natural Environment
The Teacher's Guide states that this topic is covered in Forms 1-3 and not in Form 4.
About this syllabus
The ZIMSEC O-Level Family and Religious Studies syllabus (Forms 1-4) is a multi-faith, non-confessional study of religion in Zimbabwe. Learners study the concept of religion and the history, beliefs, practices, practitioners, rites and rituals of Indigenous Religion, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, and then apply religious teaching to contemporary issues: family and identity, education, gender roles, ethics, health and sexuality, disability, the natural environment, enterprise, the liberation struggle (Chimurenga/Umvukela), rights and social responsibility, and conflict management, with Unhu/Ubuntu/Vumunhu as a unifying value.
How you are assessed
Continuous assessment in Forms 1-4 carries 30% and the final examination 70%. The paper structure is not given in the document read; our working model has two written papers of structured essay questions: Paper 1 on the religions (topics 1-5) and Paper 2 on contemporary issues (topics 6-15).
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