Spiritual knowledge in Queensland curriculum documents: A framework for analysis

© Australian Curriculum Studies Association Incorporated 2015. It may surprise teachers that spiritual knowledges have been embedded as a mandatory element in a number of educational policy documents. This article provides a methodology for making an elusive term like spiritual more transparent. This article presents four propositions to explain a complex process of recontextualisation where spiritual knowledge is funnelled from real world contexts and compressed into official policy documents which guide educational outcomes. The theoretical framework proposed in this article was used to investigate how and where the word spiritual entered official educational policy in Queensland, Australia. The study explored the mandatory Queensland syllabuses, known as Key Learning Areas, in use in the first decade of the 21st century, along with relevant teacher support material. Content analysis of Key Learning Area subjects located the word spiritual 226 times in the curriculum documents. Discourse analysis revealed competing spiritual Discourse models at work in these policies. In locating shared meaning for spiritual terminology, this research found that spirituality may be an attempt to capture the very essence or key rationale for educating young Australians. From this study it is evident that the proposi-tions may have implications for understanding any specialised teaching words or phrases that appear in official policy.