Karen-Marie Yust Union Presbyterian Seminary. Teaching and Learning Spaces for Christian Education...
If you can't read please download the document
Karen-Marie Yust Union Presbyterian Seminary. Teaching and Learning Spaces for Christian Education Too often, the spaces where curricula are used do not
Teaching and Learning Spaces for Christian Education Too often,
the spaces where curricula are used do not reflect the culture,
values, and practices of the faith community explicitly. Children
meet in weekday preschool rooms geared to basic education rather
than religious enculturation.
Slide 3
21 st century curricula need to Help teachers re-imagine the
space (through diagrams, sketches, photos, and other visual
prompts) Provide patterns for simple drapes, par aments, murals,
and other resources that help transform spaces Point leaders to
resource sites for artwork, decorating ideas, and practical
furnishings that support the transformation of spaces into
religious environments Build the creation of classroom visuals
(posters, murals, wall hangings, table drapes) into lesson plans.
Offer higher and lower cost/energy approaches.
Slide 4
Teacher Preparation for Educational Leadership Many volunteer
teachers are underprepared for the task of forming persons in
faith. Lesson plans provide instructions but often neglect to help
the teacher understand why a lesson is shaped the way it is or the
reasons behind the use of a particular pedagogical strategy.
Slide 5
21 st century curricula need to Recognize that teacher training
supplements and separate teacher prep sections are usually ignored
Build information about human development, learning theories, and
theologies into lesson plan instructions Package lesson options
within a clear and well- explained basic session structure or flow
Resist scripted responses or provide highly varied potential
responses Encourage variety by emphasizing less preferred styles
among teaching options
Slide 6
Teacher Preparation as Spiritual Models and Mentors Religious
education is often reduced to a process of conveying information
about beliefs or presenting entertaining activities that promote
good feelings about going to church, rather than focusing on
learning how to be the body of Christ gathered and scattered.
Slide 7
21 st century curricula need to Introduce and reinforce
repeatedly the concept of the teacher as spiritual leader who walks
with students on a faith journey Integrate spiritual and
logistical/material preparation activities (or encourage
outsourcing of the latter) Provide models of brief but continual
theological reflection on the lesson throughout the week (e.g.
calendar, emailed thought, weekly cycle) Encourage teachers to try
out spiritual practices and develop a rule of life that shapes
their calling
Slide 8
Educational Ministries as Communities of Spiritual Practice
Classical spiritual practices, such as prayer, study, service,
contemplation, worship, stewardship, practicing the presence of
God, and examination of conscience are missing or perfunctory
experiences in many church school classes and study groups.
Slide 9
21 st century curricula need to Develop a cycle of spiritual
practices as part of scope and sequence Introduce the concept of
vocational discernment in age appropriate ways throughout materials
Encourage experimentation with a variety of spiritual practices
over time alongside adoption of regular personal and communal
practices Provide models of accountability structures for all ages
Facilitate attentive movement through the inward and outward
aspects of the spiritual journey
Slide 10
Faith Formation as a Partnership among Teachers, Worship
Leaders, and Families Most children and youth spend very little
time engaged in formal religious education, which means that faith
communities and families must work together to create a religious
culture influential enough to form strong Christian identities and
resist assimilation to the wider culture.
Slide 11
21 st century curricula need to Develop more resources for
family-based educational ministries (e.g. intergenerational church
school classes, family bible schools, neighborhood groups) Build
worship education into scope and sequence Key hymns, litanies, and
other worship resources to church school lessons across age groups
Encourage the development of materials in lessons for congregation
worship resource books Develop e-group resources keyed to families
(e.g. automated shared devotions for parents & school-aged
children)