"The church teaches. It always has and always will. From the Great Commission to its earliest confessions and catechisms, the church has viewed teaching as an integral part of its life and ministry."
It has been noted that there is a distinct difference between a "Christian philosophy of education" and a "philosophy of Christian education." The former being only one of many applicable and credible forms of education and the latter being the only viable form of education. We, as a collective person, were made in the image of God. With this premise given, God alone would hold the keys to educating the entire person, and all other educational systems and philosophies, while holding some truth, cannot hold all truth. Any educational system
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We are created in the image of God, and therefore have the ability to think creatively. That independent thinking must be taught under the umbrella of a Scripturally based curriculum. Scripture is not afraid of the hard, academic questions, but many teach as if they must fear any questioning that arises outside of their established curriculum. God is the source of all truth, so why fear a question that arises from studying His truth? Remember, the undeniable reality of God is the premise of Christian education.
The curriculum must follow this pattern: "If God is the ultimate reality, if truth is inseparably related to His revelation, and if the objective of church education is to make people like Jesus Christ, then the centrality of the Bible in the church's curriculum is a foregone conclusion." Any other attempt to convey truth without including the truth of Scripture is faulty at best. The last few decades have seen truth' subjectively defined and the truth of Scripture placed equally along side of other religious truths and the student is told to take this leap of faith to see what is the best truth for them. "The Kierkegaardian seed produced the neo-orthodox plant which now gives forth an existential rose. But such a rose by any other name is still heresy
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The Christian educator outside of the home must realize that the responsibility for the education of that child is given to the parents. The
5. What is your basis of ethics? My basics of ethics was taught by my grandma she instilled a lot of her values and morals in my life giving me the teachings that made her a bright woman. She made sure to start on me early by getting me involved in church and helping me understand my religion and god and what he expects from his people. I was told to become a leader and not a follower use gods power that he using in my life to restore and help those who may be broken in life. I always ask god if I’m unsure I understand in this world of many temptations we may fall but our god isn’t a judging god and will be there with open ears and arms to help you get it right if you want change. I am not perfect but I pay attention I know right from wrong and know I am help accountable for my actions and faults. And have god move in my
In today’s society it is hard to be a teacher; especially, in a secular school. The students in this setting need Christian teachers more than anything. The children today need to have a teacher that has biblical values and understands just how important it is to live by these values. Before stepping foot into a classroom, a teacher really needs to understand that each child’s worldview will make a difference as to how the teacher leads her instruction and how the students processes the instruction that is given to them. We are there to encourage our students to take a good look at them self and really examine what they believe their worldview is. This being said, we really need to understand what a worldview is, why integrating our worldview into the classroom is so important, what it really means when someone talk about integrating, and how a teacher can begin to develop worldview integrative activities in a secular and Christian school environment.
With reference to Peta Goldburg’s (2012) Transforming religious education: Implications from the Second Vatican Council, the following discussion will review and critique the important religious education approaches that has had an impact on the Catholic schooling system for the past fifty years, and also help shape the contemporary classroom we teach in today.
What needs to be taught in the classroom is absolute truth. It should be taught with zealousness for the achievement of the great commission Matthew 28:19-20: “therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Early educators considered religion and politics important. Now paranoia about inappropriate indoctrination prohibits such topics. The implication that teachers would seek to indoctrinate students and that those students would be unable to discern their own opinions via critical thinking, points toward a huge lack of confidence in both teachers and students. The urge to control every facet of the educational process inhibits the process of learning and great progress could be made if teachers could simply be empowered to teach all pertinent information. Trust in the relationship between students and teachers would let teachers teach, and children learn.
The word “Christian” in Colorado Christian University is more than just a belief shared amongst the Faculty and Student Body. It is the foundation on which all aspects of the educational experience are built. Beginning with a strong Statement of Faith, which aligns with core beliefs of the National Association of Evangelicals, the University proclaims its belief “in the Bible as being the only authoritative Word of God, that God exists in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, as well as belief in the salvation and resurrection that is only found in Christ Jesus” (Statement of Faith at Colorado Christian University, n.d.).
Holmes rightly mentions that, often in the past, anti-intellectualism or “cultural escapism” has erupted within the Church; however, the beauty of a Christian college is that it recognizes (and emphasizes) that all truth is God’s truth, and that “in God’s creation every area of life and learning is related to the wisdom and power of God” (Holmes, 1987). Another benefit of the integration of faith and learning is that, when the ultimate goal is to give glory to God, all aspects of examining and exploring His world become exciting and satisfying. Students are in an atmosphere where even the faculty delights in pursuing an education; learning is, according to Holmes, “an act of love, of worship, of stewardship, [and] a wholehearted response to God” (Holmes, 1987). The integration of faith and learning is vital, unique, and exceptionally executed by Christian colleges.
Broadly speaking, a liberal arts education is concerned with the pursuit of knowledge as an end in itself, rather than for the sake of acquiring skills targeted at a career. The liberal arts philosophy is traced to the Greek philosopher Socrates, who famously proclaimed that the “unexamined life is not worth living”. To that end, traditional liberal arts education emphasizes the scholarly, the gentlemanly and the liberating. However, contemporary liberal arts education is marked by the integration of liberal and practical education. Consequently, a Christian liberal arts education should provide knowledge and intellectual skills to help students become functional and capable of
What do you see when you visit a city for the first time, or look at a movie or, what do you hear when you listen to the news or read a book? The answers to these questions depend on your worldview. So, what is a worldview? A worldview is described as “the framework from which we view reality and make sense of life and the world.” David Noebel, author of Understanding the Times said, “A worldview is any ideology, philosophy, theology, movement or religion that provides an overarching approach to understanding God, the world and man 's relations to God and the world," Your worldview is like a set of lenses through which you view the world. Your worldview is formed by your upbringing, your education, your culture, the books you read, the
Due to the "highly subjective nature of most scientific theorizing... [we should] let the Bible speak for itself and modify our scientific view of origins accordingly." (as cited in Downey, D., & Porter, S., 2009).
Catholic Schools are educational institutions that are devoted to teaching and developing young individuals under the faith and guidance of Jesus Christ (Catholic Education Commission of Western Australia, 2009). Central to the vision of Catholic schools is the belief that Jesus is in the heart of all young Catholic believers (CECWA, 2009). Therefore in order to fulfil the mission and proclaim the gospel students are required to learn about how to live out the life that God intended through the lessons of Jesus Christ (CECWA, 2009). This paper aims to outline unique features that distinguish Catholic education from that of other educational institutions through linking peer-reviewed sources to a school based analysis. The school that will be
As we go through our day by day lives in a very secular world, I believe it is very easy to question ourselves as Christian educators. We ask ourselves if we are doing our jobs exactly to God’s calling. Are we striving to teach the truth? And with that, what is truth? According to Gaebelein in his book The Pattern of God’s Truth, “All truth is God’s truth.” As educators we are called upon to cultivate “Christlike minds” (Moreland). This is quite the task, especially given our surrounding circumstances and constant secular environment. Not only are we, as educators surrounded by this secularism, but our young, adolescent students are as well. So, how do we accomplish such as task of guiding
Christian education is an intentional process in developing relationship with God for the purpose of fulfilling the mandate to “go and make disciples of all nations, to “preach and teach” the good news of the gospel of Christ, and to build the Kingdom of God. In developing and incorporating evangelism and discipleship into a current Christian education program I believe that involvement of the entire membership of the congregation should be employed (all age
Christianity is the religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Most followers of Christianity, called Christians, are members of one of three major groups--Roman Catholic, Protestant, or Eastern Orthodox. These groups have different beliefs about Jesus and His teachings. But all consider Jesus central to their religion. Most Christians believe God sent Jesus into the world as the Savior. Christianity teaches that humanity can achieve salvation through Jesus.
Many Christian schools and Christian homeschooling families hastened a “classical” curriculum approach to teaching and learning, believing it to be the best form of education.