Christian education

What is Christian education?

Many people have heard of Christian schools but what
does it mean to have Christian education and a Christian school? Is the education any
different? Whether its learning how to run a 400m race, learning how to spell rendezvous, or
learning to factorise a polynomial, all knowing has its ultimate meaning and purpose when
framed by Gods big picture story anchored in Jesus.
All forms of education will have a particular perspective on life. It may not always be
obvious or overtly stated, but it will shape how things are understood and spoken about, how
things are done, and what is chosen to be taught. This might be in the form of assumptions about
the nature and origins of the world, or it might be evident through suggestions about the purpose
of life and indeed what it means to be fulfilled as a human. No form of education is neutral as it
will always be providing a particular lens through which the student sees the world and their
place in it.

A different perspective
Christian education invites young people to see and understand the world through the
perspective of Gods truth. The Bible becomes the lens in which students view what they are
learning. The lens focusses their thinking on ultimate trutha biblical vision for life where the
world is created and sustained by God; where God has acted in history to deal with the
distortions of creation caused by human rebellion; and where history is advancing towards a new
creation in which all things are reconciled to God through Jesus who is not only the climax of the
biblical story but is also the focal point of the lens.


History of Christian education
Degrees
M.A.
This Area of Concentration is available to students
affiliated with any of the GTU Member schools.

Alumni

Judith Bishop (Ph.D. '04), Associate
Professor, Womens, Gender and
Sexuality Studies, Mills College
Devorah Schoenfeld (Ph.D. '07),
Assistant Professor, Theology, Loyola
University Chicago
Overview
Historical studies provide a means for developing an understanding of the Christian religion
through critical historical investigation into the unity, diversity, and development of the Christian
community from its origins to the present. In asking how Christians in other places and eras
acted and believed, one acquires analytical skills to evaluate present actions and beliefs. Specific
strengths include ancient and eastern Christianity, medieval Jewish-Christian relations,
Reformation, Christian missions, and American religious history.

What is Sunday School?
A Functional Definition of Sunday School
Sunday School is an essential disciple-making strategy of the Church. As such, Sunday School
has proven its effectiveness by teaching biblical principles and godly living to people at every
age and stage of life.
In order for Sunday School to remain effective in the 21
st
century, the Church must both reaffirm
and retain the essential elements of this disciple-making strategy while also developing
flexibility to address the diverse discipling challenges of our fast-paced, pluralistic culture.
Therefore, the Division of Christian Education has written a functional definition of Sunday
School. Any Christian Education initiative in the local church that includes all of the following
features/characteristics will be considered functionally comparable to Sunday School:
The primary purpose is obedient response to the Great Commission: Making disciples
who will fulfill the threefold mission of the church evangelism, worship, and
discipleship.



Historical Background: The Sunday School
Movement
Robert Raikes and Thomas Stock first established a Sunday school for the poor and orphaned in
Gloucester in 1780. Although there were earlier Sunday schools, Raikes and Stock have become
the recognized originators. Their efforts led clergy and laypeople to establish similar schools
throughout England, thus setting in motion the Sunday School Movement. By 1800, 200 000
children were enrolled in English Sunday schools, and by 1850, this number had risen to 2
million.

An example of the lending rules that students were expected to follow.
The Sunday schools were organized by people who found that working-class children required
some form of discipline. Sunday and evening schools were established to teach reading, writing,
arithmetic and catechsim to the 'deserving' poor: enrollment was decided upon by visits with
parents, nominations from subscribers, and individual student applications. Students were
expected to attend school four to five hours per week, and was the only schooling that most
working class children ever received. Although originally hailed as a great and noble
achievement, Sunday schools constantly struggled for survival:
there was often ecclesiastical pressure to not teach writing on a Sunday
debates raged as to whether teaching the lower classes was, in fact, a good idea; there
were worries that such education would lead them to forget their station in life
the Church of England was often unable to support the schools, or provide them with
adequate space or funds
Consequently, the schools were financed by subscribers, who were encouraged to nominate
children for enrollment. They were also encouraged to visit the schools in order to hear the
children repeat their lessons; these subscribers, as such, were the forerunners of school
inspectors. The teachers (men and women) were paid, and classes were often held in a person's
home, or in rented rooms. Hannah More, for example, held such a school in Blagdon, in 1795.
She later became even more influential to the Sunday school movement with the establishment
of her Cheap Repository Tracts.
The Sunday schools caught on quickly and were effective because they were simple, became a
diversion for the children, and a means for parents to socially elevate the family as a whole. They
were often also a means of education for adults, who occasionally attended the schools; children
were actively encouraged to take lessons and books home to share with their parents.
The Sunday school also became an important hub of social interaction for a class of children and
parents who were rapidly moving away from small, close-knit, rural communities to large, over-
populated, urban centres. Lastly, the schools taught catechism to a population that, until that
time, only learned it via a rote memorization system with the priest reciting the Lord's Prayer one
line at a time, once a week, during the service. As the schools gained in popularity and
effectiveness, the Church of England started to actively provide them with facilities and finances.
This also meant a tighter control over their management and curriculum, rather than allowing lay
people to continue running the schools.
| Digital Collections, 2005 | Rare Books & Special Collectio


Problems of Sunday school
In Part 1, I said that no Sunday School is immune from Sunday School challenges, hurdles,
obstacles, opportunities, or problems. But after years of doing Sunday School work, I am
convinced that when you and your Sunday School team work together with God there are no
problems that are insurmountable!
In Part 1, I mentioned an article by Julia Shiply entitled 10 Problems Every Sunday School
Faces. According to Shipley, "A recent survey gave insight into the problems that face the local
Sunday school." In Part 1 and Part 2, I shared the first six problems from her article: lack of
good Sunday School literature and resources; lack of money; lack of space; lack of support; lack
of concern; and lack of growth in all age groups. In Part 3, I will share her final four problems in
all capitals followed by my commentary offering some possible solutions:
LACK OF CHILDREN AND YOUTH. This is frequently a sign that the church has
ceased to reach out. Or it may be a sign that the average age of the congregation is
graying. Few communities are devoid of children and youth. Many good suggestions
were offered in the previous section about lack of growth in all age groups. Target one of
these age groups for a quarter. Improve facilities. Add classes and workers. Set up
monthly outreach events to pursue prospects in these age groups. Offer transportation.
Invite them to parties. For more information, check out the following:
o Balancing the Sunday School Aquarium, Part 1
o How to Evaluate Your Sunday School Facilities
o Reach and Assimilate People into the Kingdom Through Sunday School
Fellowships
o Planning Sunday School Fellowship Activities
o Have You Tried Intergenerational Sunday School?
o Assigning Sunday School Space to Preschoolers and Others
o Part 3: What Is the Ideal Balance of Age Groups in a Growing Sunday School?.
SHORTAGE OF TEACHERS AND WORKERS. There is no quick fix for this
problem. The issue is that you want "God-called" teachers and workers rather than "warm
bodies." Before enlisting workers, begin in a season of prayer. Start early. Enlist in
person. Share job descriptions. Allow time for a prayerful response (usually no more than
a week). The long term solution is to ask every teacher and worker to be apprenticing
another leader. Give them suggestions about how to do that. It may even increase the
effectiveness of your current workers. Offer potential teacher/leader training. Set up
ongoing training events (see training section below). Raise expectations. Work with
teachers/workers to develop a worker covenant. Ask teachers to suggest potential
teachers. Observe VBS workers. For more information, check out the following:
o Avoid Enlisting Warm-Bodies as Sunday School Teachers!
o High Expectations Are Necessary for Sunday Schools Mutiny Against Mediocrity
o Raising Sunday School Expectations without Losing Your Hair
o Sunday School Leader Application Process
o Revolutionary Sunday School Multiplies Leaders
o New Sunday School Teachers: Getting Ready for a New Year
o Coaching Helps Sunday School Teachers Stay Balanced and on Target
o High-Expectation Sunday School
o Revolutionary Sunday School Prevents, Improves, and Removes Ineffective
Leaders.
LACK OF SPIRITUAL GROWTH. Shipley hit the nail on the head: "Growth in
attendance and spiritual growth very often go side by side. If the members of the Sunday
school are growing spiritually they will be excited and happy to invite their friends."
Even enlistment of teachers and workers will be easier. Lead them to obey Christ's
commands (Matthew 28:19-20). Check on commitments made at the end of one lesson at
the beginning of the next. Challenge them to practice a daily quiet time and spiritual
disciplines. Help them to examine priorities and Kingdom use of the precious commodity
of time. For more information, check out the following:
o Sunday School Supporting Spiritual Disciplines, Part 1 (and other three parts)
o Teaching Sunday School Members to Pray Through Scripture
o Sunday School Teaching Believers to Listen to the Voice of God, Part 1 (and Part
2)
o Growth as Person, Disciple, and Sunday School Leader Requires Wise Use of
Time
o Teaching Your Sunday School Class the Spiritual Disciplines of Prayer, Bible
Study, Meditation, and Solitude
o Revolutionary Sunday School: Changing Converts into Disciples
o Is Your Sunday School Training Missionaries?
o What Should Happen as a Result of Revolutionary Sunday School?
o Three Tools Sunday School Can Use for Increasing Spiritual Maturity
o Accountability Partners in the Adult Sunday School Class
o Sunday School/Small Groups Can Help Adults Get Involved and Make Spiritual
Progress
o How to Have a Meaningful Experience with God in Sunday School/Small Groups
o Sunday School Graduation or at Least Making Progress
o Maturational Growth Through Sunday School Is a Voluntary Choice
o Transitioning from Sunday School Teacher to Disciple Maker.
LACK OF TRAINING OF SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHERS AND WORKERS.
Bored workers are more likely to drop out of service. Challenge them. Affirm them.
Train them. Raise expectations. Be creative. Offer variety of delivery. Be flexible in
schedule. Customize the training to meet specific needs. Don't forget other workers
besides teachers. For more information, check out the following:
o Creative Ways to Train Sunday School Teachers
o How Often Do You Train Your Sunday School Workers?
o Responding to Sunday School Teachers Who Dont Want to Train
o Plan an Exciting Launch to the New Sunday School Year
o Free Training Materials for Sunday School Teachers
o 5 Goals for Sunday School Growth This Year.
Look back over Part 1 and Part 2. Take a step back to give some perspective to the problems.
Which of these are the biggest ones your Sunday School faces? How can you turn them from
problems to challenges and from challenges to opportunities? On which one do you need to start
work first? You (plural) + God = more than enough to conquer it! Trust Him. Trust each other.
Pray. Work together. Be revolutionary!
- See more at:
http://web.kybaptist.org/kbc/blogs/ssrb.nsf/dx/09242008104751AMWEBKCY.htm#sthash.VX0
WbiYk.dpuf


Bible Teaching Methods: Methodology for
Sunday School & Other Bible Teachers
Training Category: Bible Teaching Ministry
This Month's Bible Teaching Method:
Listening Activities
Students, either in teams or individually, listen for specific information in a presentation.
Students then report, record, or respond in some way to what they heard.

In Choosing Teaching Methodology consider your group factors:
Click on a factor or scroll down.
Group size
Resources needed
0bjective targeted
Use Modeled
Proximity of others

Finances needed
Age level
Categorization
Time required
0penness of group
Room size
Skills needed

Teacher Training Worksheet Based on These Group Factors:
Tips for Choosing & Using Methods

Group size
Listening activities can be used with one individual or in a small or large class of students. If you are
forming listening teams, you would need at least enough students to form two groups of two students,
which would be at least four students. For a larger class, you will form more groups and/or have more
students in each group. If the class is large, you will need to think through a way for students to
effectively report that will allow for the greatest level of participation and also fit within your time
frame.

Resources needed
You will need whatever materials and equipment is required for your presentation. You may possibly
need paper and pencils/pens for students to jot down notes or handouts with questions, phrases, or fill-
in-the-blanks indicating that for which they are to listen.

Objective targeted
Listening activities are normally used for the purpose of students acquiring information from the
presentation so the objective would be to gain knowledge.

Use modeled


Proximity of others
This method will generally be no louder than your means of presentation. However, if you use a creative
approach to the way students indicate when they have heard their part (i.e. some kind of sound), it
could get loud. Closeness to another class could limit this kind of expression.

Finances needed
No cost should be involved in the listening part itself unless you provide a handout of some sort and
then cost would be minimal. The presentation may incur costs if you need to purchase or rent a movie,
CD, DVD, tape, etc. or if you need to give an honorarium to a speaker.

Age level
This methodology can be used effectively with grade school students whose attention spans could use a
little help focusing in on a presentation. Youth and adult classes could also benefit from listening
activities on occasion.

Categorization
This method is impressional as students listen to the presentation but expressional when they have
opportunity to share what they heard.

Time required
This method allows for a good degree of flexibility time-wise. Figure time for the presentation and then
sharing of what was heard. How long the sharing time will take is dependent on the number and length
of reports which can be limited to fit within your schedule.

Openness of group
Listening will require extra effort on the part of students but it is a way of drawing them in. Reporting,
depending on how you are doing it, may be threatening to those who do not like to speak in front of a
class.

Room size
Any room can be used that fits your means of presentation.

Skills needed

Choose your presentation. Truth can be presented in a number of formats when using a
listening activity. Choose the type of presentation that will best communicate the subject. It
could be one of the following:
class lecture
sermon
movie
video or DVD clip
song
audio tape
narration of a story

Choose what students are to listen for. Try to zero in on what is most important or most useful
for your students to know. The age of your students may determine how simple or complex their
listening assignments will be. It may include:
answers to questions
phrases or key words
concepts or principles
characters with whom they are to identify
certain actions in a story

Choose how you will structure for listening. This could vary based on the number of students
in the class, the age of the students, and what else you want to accomplish in that session. You
may choose one of the following options:
each individual listens for the same information as it is presented to the whole class
each individual listens for something different from the other students as it is presented to the
whole class
students are divided into teams or pairs and each team listens for different information as it is
presented to the whole class
students are divided into teams and each team listens to a different presentation by different
teachers or some other means
students rotate as individuals or teams through learning centers in the classroom, one or more
of which includes a listening activity

Choose the way students will report, record, or respond to what they have heard. The
means could be simple sharing of what they heard or it could be something more creative or fun.
When re-using this method, varying the way they respond from their previous experiences could
add to the appeal of this method. Following are some possible means:
answer questions
discuss within subgroups or as a class
individuals or teams give a report (If using teams, you may want to give the teams time to
discuss among themselves first and choose a reporter who will share with the class.)
written responses such as filling in blanks, marking a checklist of what they hear, filling in a chart
(Keep writing during the listening activity to a minimum so the writing itself does not distract
their focus from what is being said.)
act out what they heard
profile the character based on what they heard
make a certain gesture or sound when they hear a certain word or phrase

Choose what pre-listening activities may be necessary. The age of the students, the familiarity
of the content, and previous experience with this type of method may be factors that will help
you determine what, if any, pre-listening work is needed. Perhaps some of the following pre-
listening activities will make your use of this method more effective:
instructions on what they are to do
review of the questions or whatever it is they are to listen for (especially critical if some of the
words or concepts are not familiar to them)
background information (may be provided in class or may be done by the students as
independent research/study prior to the session such as reading on the topic)