Energizing the Relevance of Christian Schools
Christian schools have existed for many years, and in the early twenty-first century, their importance takes on an increasingly important stature. | Visit the section of this site introducing the | | CHRISTIAN SCHOOL TEACHERS' RESOURCE ASSOCIATION |
I stand in awe, at times, of the intense responsibility God has entrusted to those of us He has "called to be teachers." Left to my own natural tendencies I inevitably acquiesce to the traditional and stereotypical components of teaching in which I become a purveyor of knowledge and an assessor of performance.  Teaching is so much more than that, so frequently I step back and remind myself of three foundational concepts. First, curriculum is critically important. Not just the knowledge of a particular subject, but we must teach the effective analysis and computation involved in a subject well enough to give students functional and appropriate knowledge and skill when they emerge from our classes. That responsibility mandates my continued perusal of literature in the field and utilizing other sources to keep current in my knowledge. Second, teachers in Christian schools must be ready to give intellectually sound reasons "for the faith that lies within" them. It is imperative that Christians in today's society be able to present belief in God and redemption through Jesus as a reasonable and logical alternative to a humanistic "we're here by chance" model. To be effective witnesses, Christians need to understand the interrelationships between any body of knowledge, society at large, and applications and principles of Scripture.
Third, the first two objectives will be more thoroughly ingrained in our students if we adopt a relational method of teaching. This is not an "I'll be your buddy" style, but an effective sharing of the deeper parts of our being openly and honestly with our students. Such effort will take different routes for different professors, but certain characteristics will likely be observed in most cases.
Leave "Christian Schools" and Return to the Home Page

|