A religious school is a school that either has a religious component in its operations or its curriculum, or exists primarily for the purpose of teaching aspects of a particular religion.
For children
A 2002 study in the United States found higher academic performance in children attending religious schools than those attending secular institutions, including when controlling for socioeconomic status.
A school can either be of two types, though the same word is used for both in some areas:
Religious teaching
Institutions solely or largely for teaching a particular religion, often outside regular school Catholic Biblical Association Cheder (Jewish) Confraternity of Christian Doctrine Hebrew school (Jewish) Madrasa (Muslim) Sunday school (Christian) Talmud Torah (Jewish)
General education
Institutions providing general education but run by a religious group, or in some way giving extra weight to a particular religion Bais Yaakov (Jewish girls school) Cathedral school (Christian) Catholic school Chabad (Jewish) Christian school Faith school UK term Jewish day school Lutheran school (Christian) Madrasa (Muslim) also general education in some places Parochial school USA in particular, former UK Separate school Canada
For adults
Bible college (Christian) Madrasa (Muslim) Yeshiva (Jewish)
See also Bias in curricula Religion and children Religious education Religions Secular education
Sources