Yesterday Mardi Gras, the chapel preacher at George W. Truett Theological Seminary of Baylor University was Dr. Andrew Arterbury. His text was Exodus 13:17-22. He reminded us that God did not take the Hebrews by way of the short cut, or even the most direct route. This is a timely reminder for a context that focuses on how fast we can do things. Mardi Gras gave way to Ash Wednesday. The Ash Wednesday service at George W. Truett Theological Seminary was lead by Hullitt Gloer. He told us that today we start a journey fo forty days, a journey to the Cross and beyond. The season of Lent like the travels of the Hebrew children does not move in a straight line. In fact this is the season to eschew straight lines.
The Dixie Chicks song the Long Way Home is an interesting theme song during this period of lent.
Monthly Archives: February 2010
Teaching the Bible
1. Pray twice and teach once
2. Prepare yourself physically and psychologically.
3. Paula Deen, Lance Armstrong, and Soren Kierkegaard. It is not all about the cooking, the bicycle or the data. They came to hear a word from God not a word from you. And don’t get confused about who is who.
4. Listen, listen, and listen more, again. God has a story, the Bible. But each person in this group has a story listen for it and to it. If you listen well enough they will think you are smart enough.
5. Figure out whether the context, often that is the size of the group, mandates a sager on the stage process or a guide by the side strategy.
6. Somehow help them think through some simple rules of reading.
7. What the Bible doesn’t tell you. You don’t know.
8. A good education shows but it seldom shows off.
9. People learn more when they laugh or cry. Laughing is easier to handle.
10. If you teach what you want to learn you might be a more effective teacher. Acquiring biblical literacy and a profound understanding of biblical history is a lifelong vocation but start now.
Teaching Takes Time
When I began my teaching career I spent most of my time reading and preparing lectures. My job was to transfer my knowledge, that is data, to the unsuspecting and the eager students as well. After the course of years this took less and less time. I knew the data. As a colleague of mine once said, “Anyone who has succesfully completed a good Ph.D. program has at their finger tips more data than the general undergraduate or seminary student can assimilate in a typical course.”It became easier and less time consuming.
Then I went to the Wabash Center for Teachign and Learning. I started to read the work of Knowles on adult learning and Stephen Brookfield on critical thinking and discussion as teaching learning strategies. As time went on I began to think about student centered learning. However, no one told me that it would take more time.The sage on the stage is less labor intensive than the guide on the side.
I guess student centered education is just that. It does not ask the question what is easiest for the professor or the university. Nonetheless, that is still a rather novel, if not revolutionary idea.