Essay on Philosophy of Christian Education

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.

When these children come to school, they will follow a good leader. They will thrive in a loving environment. For some of these children, we are the only God that they will ever see. By this I mean, we must show the love of God in everything we do, he must be ever present in our daily lives. Some of the children may have never experienced a Christian environment, and they need it more than ever, and it’s our job to provide it for them.

According to Littlejohn and Evans (2006), “The purpose of Christian education is always twofold, we want our students to grow spiritually, intellectually, and socially, and we want them to foster similar growth in society” (p. 18). This sums up the Christian liberal arts philosophy. Therefore, a Christian liberal education should be useful and practical. The goal of every Christian is to be like Christ and to serve others just like Christ did. While a traditional liberal arts scholar serves others out of duty to community, a Christian liberal arts scholar serves out of love for the Lord. So, the Christian liberal arts education should build the human person by fundamentally changing who they are and what they, preparing and equipping them for the good work.

Human perspective differs and leads to diverse worldviews. Several factors contribute to the creation of worldviews; the environment, experiences and most importantly the education that a human is exposed to. The question is often asked if there is such a thing as a write or wrong worldview, since it can consist of religious beliefs, political connections, and subjective opinions on life, love, family and friendship. These worldviews create philosophical questions regarding how society truly functions and different human beliefs. As educators it is critical that we nurture the Christian mind in order to fulfill the Christian worldview. It is also absolutely essential that the education system and learning objectives put

This emphasizes the importance of proper teacher education, objectivity, and transparency. In order to effectively teach this class, instructors must have a general knowledge of the religions highlighted in the course. This could be achieved by partnering with the Wake Forest Divinity School. This relationship would allow high school teachers to learn about teaching religion objectively while also giving them background knowledge and a mentor to contact if questions should arise. In order to alleviate parental concerns, educators should be transparent about course material. Also, teachers should be informed of the laws that delineate the appropriate way to teach religion in public high schools. Overall, when approached academically, it is the duty of educators to inform students about topics that affect the community, such as

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.”

School is in session! However, it is not the students who are in need of instruction, but the teachers! That is the message found in the infamous and controversial “letter to the Hebrews”, one of the newest documents from the growing religion known as Christianity. According to the writer, the Christians that he is writing to (those who converted from Judaism) should be teachers, but are instead the ones needing instruction.

The reason I chose that topic is that because of the huge importance of learning over centuries. the precise arrangement of learning procedures to most kids has been an advancement of the last 200 years or even most recent 50 years in a few nations. Schools for the youthful have generally been supplemented with cutting edge preparing for ministers, officials and experts.

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.

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

Ultimately, parents are responsible before God for their child; however, it is the role of the church and the school to support the parents in their God given responsibility. In Kingdom education, these three cords must work in harmony to

In 1881, Wright wrote to Bishop Paddock and asked him how he could further support Tacoma. Paddock answered that the little town of some 1,000 people needed a church and a school which would "make possible Christian education for the rising generation of daughters of the pioneers." Wright agreed and outlined his vision for the school:

“Schools may indeed and should teach secular values such as honesty, respect for others, courage, kindness and good citizenship. These values, however, must not be taught as religious tenets. The fact that most religions also teach these values does not change the lawfulness and desirability of teaching them. It is also appropriate for school officials to instill in students such values as "independent thought, tolerance of diverse views, self-respect, maturity, self-reliance and logical decision-making”. This quote comes from a website that has the meaningful factors of religion within the school system. So with this it is presented that many sources argue with the topic from many different

Parents are the first and best teachers of our children, but a Catholic school environment adds much more to the development of each child’s life. Every child can and will learn, but in a Catholic school, every child can and will learn about God and can and will deepen their spirituality. Parents have the foremost responsibility to teach their children. According to Canon Law, “Parents as well as those who take their place are obliged and enjoy the right to educate their offspring.” (Canon Law, paragraph 793) Canon Law also states that Catholic schools provide “assistance to parents in fulfilling their education task.” (Canon Law, paragraph 796) We, as parents, teachers and school leaders collaborate, working together as a team to provide the best possible education for our students. Rooted in prayer and spirituality, I know that through this effort, we can and will succeed.

A considerable amount of research has been carried out on what should be taught in religious education, and how it should be taught in classrooms. REDCo was one research carried out in eight European countries with students from the age of fourteen to sixteen, this research really got me interested in the content being taught to students, as they expressed their own attitudes