Glantz 1

Aubrey Glantz
Connie Douglas
ENG 111-52
21st November 2016
Growing Closer to God
Sent out on an English assignment, a student becomes an observer and an interviewer to
show a unique community that exists in the world. Christianity is a belief that has been around
since Ancient Greece and Rome and is still practiced to this day. In University area in Charlotte,
North Carolina, there is a Christian Academy named Northside that allows students and faculty
to grow as a community with their faith. To compare, what is remarkably odd and different about
this site is how the teachers and students interact with one another outside of the classroom
environment. They look like normal people you would happen to see at Walmart or Chick-Fil-A;
they just carry their beliefs on their hearts, minds, and actions. To most people, teacher and
student relationships are frowned upon, but to the member of the Northside Christian Academy,
it is encouraged.
On a chilly Sunday evening at six, college students walk into their childhood fine arts
school building to gather with their former classmates, and teachers to begin their own version of
Bible Study Class. To help gather a further analysis of this unique discourse group, an observer
walks in with one of the students where the meeting is taking place. In about a couple of steps
into the building, there are rows of chairs facing a small stage in the middle of the room. A large
grand piano is to the left corner of the stage as a student sits on the bench and plays the
Halloween theme song. Beside him is a game of ping pong being played between a teacher and
student. To the right of the building by the front entrance, female students and a female teacher

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are gathered in a circle having a light conversation in front of the food table; covered with
takeout pizza, chips, and sodas. Everyone is dressed in a casual outfit of t-shirts, sweatpants, and
comfortable shoes. As more students begin to enter, students welcome their classmates in an
encouraging way. No one hugs, but the group makes room for them to fit in the circle and
immediately get caught up in the random conversations being brought up by everyone in the
group.
Once everyone has arrived, heads are bowed, eyes closed, and someone says a prayer
before they begin to gather their dinner on a plate. As a line prepares, ladies are announced to be
first to pick their dinner choices as the guys enter behind them. They pick their spot randomly at
the three plastic white tables that are shaped in a triangle, so everyone is facing each other. It is
about six-thirty as everyone sits down with a plate and begins to dig into their meal. The teachers
sit on one side as the students fill the rest of the chairs. Some students are having conversations
with others around them, whereas at some point laughter causes everyone to stop and focus on
what is funny. The teachers and students are bringing up memories when they were in class
together which brings joy and laughter to everyones faces. Dinner lasted until seven fifteen; at
about that time students got up for more food or to play a competitive fun game of Ping Pong. It
is now shortly arriving to seven thirty-five and the teachers are now having the students prepare
themselves for discussion on their assigned books they are reading; Mere Christianity by C.S.
Lewis.
As the students and teachers put their books on the table in front of them, the room
becomes quiet. As one of the teachers begins to put their glasses on and opens to the chapter
numbers that were assigned weeks prior, the students also begin to grab their pens and
highlighters and open their books to the same page. Now, students and teachers are asked if

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anyone would like to share their thoughts with what they have read or share a quote from what
Lewis has written. One of the teachers takes over the light and begins to reflect what they have
preserved from the text and compare it to their own personal thoughts and feelings. Another
student begins to chime in agreement towards his teachers thoughts and begins a thread of
discussion between their peers. As the room becomes silent with no further indication of talking
about the text, they begin to read the book as a group, reading a paragraph until the end of the
assigned page numbers. At the end of each chapter, just like they started reading together, an
open discussion is held between the teachers and students; one of the discussions went for almost
ten minutes involving the whole class to talk about their thoughts and feelings towards the text
and what is being discussed. The teachers now are asking everyone in the class to speak forward
about a prayer request for themselves or those around them. One teacher asks the students to say
a prayer for her as she is dealing with depression. Next, a student comes forth saying he needs
everyone to say a prayer for both of his grandfathers as they are not well so good health wise.
Another student speaks about how nervous she is about taking her final test to become a physical
therapist and asks to say a prayer for her. When everyone has spoken, one of the classmates leads
in prayer repeating everyones wishes and thoughts and closing the discussion altogether.
It is now about eight-thirty; students and teachers pick up their trash and belongings and
leave the tables. After discussion, the students and teachers use the rest of time available for bible
study to play games or relax. Most of the male teachers play Spike Ball with the students which
causes a rave of laughter and screams of joy. Another teacher and student begin the battle of Ping
Pong while listening to melodies coming from the piano beside them. Most of the female
population of students and teachers are right behind the Ping Pong area playing a game of Just
Dance on the Wii; nothing but laughter music, and joy are filled in the room. As hours pass,

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students leave one by one declaring they have homework to work on, a job to wake up to, and to
catch up on sleep. Around ten-fifty at night, about three students have left and two teachers. Most
of the male students and teachers are finishing up a of a competitive and entertaining game of
Spike Ball. Once the game has ended, the students and teachers help one another to pack up the
tables, put away the Spike Ball net, and fold up the ping pong table and store them in the closet
past the stage and Piano on the left. It is now the time where the students and teachers go home
well rested and content with their night being filled with family time and their faith.
While gathering information, and observing the community the relationship between the
students and teachers stand out the most. It is not often in a public-school setting where a group
of students and teachers group together on a weekend night devoting their time around each
other and their beliefs. Most of the time teachers are to refrain their belief systems to their
students to not cause chaos. Currently, the word religion and Christianity are touchy subjects in
general; Melissa Mcvey gives an insight on her personal reflection on working within a Christian
school. By teaching in a Christian school I was able to fully explain my beliefs to my students.
My relationships with my students were more meaningful and deeper than those with whom I
must keep this side of my life somewhat limited. Watching this specific class from a far, the
interaction Melissa has between each former student of hers shows how much she has impacted
their lives and how much they continue to impact hers. As a public-school teacher my focus
would be simply on literature, grammar, and semantics. In a Christian school, we are able to go a
bit deeper with our analysis and see how different worldviews and faiths affect one another.
Within discussion Melissa starts off commenting on what has been read aloud within the
class and begins to reflect on how the book is effecting her sense of Christianity. As she starts the
discussions, her students end up picking up where she left off and begins to reflect upon her

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statements. Showing that this specific group is far more unique, Mcvey goes on to say in the
interview, It was comforting to know that I could go to my other faculty members with my
worries, prayer requests, concerns, etc. It was also nice to know that the families in our school
were coming from a similar foundation. We could discuss issues like morality and behavior from
a common ground. During the discussion, one of the students begins to reflect on how hard it is
to transfer from a school she has been a part of since her diaper years to a new atmosphere where
she does not know a name to most faces she may see. She also reflects that it is hard to have a
teacher to not have that personal connection she grew up with and to ask for prayer requests or to
go into a deep conversation about personal trials.
It shows not just through the students, but also the teachers how important it is to have
these relationships with their students. In some cases, not everyone grows up within a comforting
and loving environment between parents and children. One reason why the school and teachers
still hold the classes are because while these students are going through these trials on their own,
they also have the option to go back to a familiar and a comforting setting to recharge their
senses. In the school, the bible study classes are structured. That is what I like about Sunday
nights, the lack of structure. Sunday nights are a time when similar minded people can come
together to grow in their faith together. We can be silly and let our hair down a little bit, but our
end goal is to help everyone to grow closer to God.
As last note towards her students, Melissa says in the interview, Even though I was their
teacher, I am still just a normal person like them. In their discussions, I want them to see that I
struggle with issues in life and am still learning and changing. She goes on to to say in the
interview in a very strong loving way, I also want them to know that I am always there for them
and am happy to help them anyway I can. They are part of my family. The Fine Arts building is

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not only a way to further the students and teachers journey through Christianity, but to come to
an environment that feels like home to grow closer as a family. The genuine connection between
the students and teachers stand out in ways of playful antics of jokes and games. No one walks in
with a negative judgement; they are welcomed into the arms of their former classmates and
teachers and to live a social environment together. Once the games are brought out phones are
tucked away in pockets or in bags which gives the students full access to those in front of them.
The students and teachers engage more as a whole once they sit down for an early dinner as a
collection of memories play out like a movie in front of everyone. Melissa is the one teacher who
can perform jokes in front of her colleagues and students while giving the atmosphere a relaxing
and enjoying feeling.
For relationships to build and grow, trust, respect, and compassion are three main roles
between teachers and students at this private school. Without these components within the school
structure, how are the teachers and students supposed to gain an authentic and genuine
connection with their faith? Connections need time to strengthen is why mentoring can work
well with high school students. Students have the opportunity to connect with their teacher or
mentor and are able to reflect and act on their learning. A structured mentoring program provides
the avenue for this to occur as well as providing an arena in which a students learning becomes
relevant to him/her. (Winn, 2010) To win the hearts of students, teachers must have the same
mindset and goals in order to create a trustworthy atmosphere. A way of showing compassion as
mentioned before is through prayers. As teachers begin to have a connection towards their
students, they begin to read between the lines with their students body language, thus giving the
students a reason to voice their troubles to their teachers. As teachers begin to know and

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understand their students by genuinely asking them to voice their opinions, they begin to build
the relationship of a comforting and trustful atmosphere. This process is generally smoother
and less tenuous because in a structured mentoring program, a mentor who understands and
knows the student can help guide him or her to reach the goals he/she has established. With an
adult to model the process as well as support and encourage the student, the transition becomes
attainable, (Winn,2010)
No matter if students and teachers are to walk into bible study on weekends at church or
walk into their school building, they are to walk into each other because that it is how their
school and church are formed. They can build this bond inside and outside of school because
how close of a community they are to one another. Many things have changed in the public
school systemfor example, prayer has been removed, religious relativism is practiced, and
academic rigor has vanished. The diversity of American private schools reflects the social and
religious diversity of modern American society. (Dietrich, 2010) When Christopher Columbus
set sail on his voyage, he was the first man to make a lasting impact on the United States by
lightly spreading Christianity. Over the years, many people decided to travel to North America
because of how diverse it was with religion-it was a choice to believe in anything you wanted to.
Taking away what schools had classified as tradition is one way of losing the meaning of what
makes America so great. The United States offers opportunities to countries who have a
controlling hierarchy with how men and women are to live their lives and are expected to live by
traditional rules. At Northside, teachers, parents, students, and school facilities share this bond
with one another by how their school and church are formed into one. Having the opportunity to
feel safe in this kind of atmosphere is what helps create this everlasting bond between teacher
and students.

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To reflect most people in a public-school setting teacher and student relationships are
frowned upon, but to a member of the Northside Christian Academy community it is a blessing.
As each student is prepared to walk within their Christian faith outside their comfort zone, their
childhood school gives them a place to refer to with a safe and loving environment from those
that a deeply care. The Bible Study class offered towards the college students provides a family
atmosphere towards living a life of support and care from teachers and peers. This community
may look different to outside world, but on the inside, they are just the same as any other human
being walking on Earth. They just carry their faith close to their hearts and walk and talk the
Christian life.

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Works Citied
Winn, Brant. Characteristics of Adult to Student Structured Mentoring Programs
Occurring in Christian High Schools. Columbia International University : Proquest Dissertation
Publishing, 2010. (Print).
Dietrich, Eileen. Leading Classical Christian Schools: Job satisfaction, job efficacy, and
career aspirations. Fordham University: Proquest Dissertations Publishing, 2010. (Print).