The Dirt on Learning
Yo, yo, and hello everyone! I hope and pray all of you are having a great day today! Before I get into the book, my parents, sisters, brother-in-law and I saw a sneak preview for the movie Three last night. It was GREAT!!! I understand that it opens today in theaters. Please go see it. The movie is based on Ted Dekker's book by the same title: Three. Very good! Lots of Christian overtons in it.
Now, on to The Dirt on Learning. I read the third chapter yesterday. This chapter is about the learner-based approach. This approach is a major shift for most of us I would imagine. The learner-based approach that learning is more important then teaching. Notice that teaching is important, but learning is more so. Just like a farmer can sow all the seeds he wants, but if the seeds don't get in the soil and produce a croup it doesn't really matter how much seeds get out there. It is the same with teaching God's Word. It doesn't matter how many people are out there spreading His Word and it doesn't matter how many people hear the Word. All that matters is how many convert and become faithful Christians.
The goal for Christian education is that God's Word is learned. For that to truely happen we must adopt a learner-based approach to Christian Education. First of all, what do we mean by the term "learner-based"? "It's an approach with a clear goal: that learners understand, retain, and apply their learning. "The focus is on the learner, not the teacher. It's success is based not on how eloquently the sower casts seeds, but on whether the seeds take root and bear fruit. This shift of perspective is an enormous change for most churches. But the results are stunning, 'yeilding a hundred, sixty, or thirty times what was sown' (Matt. 13:23b)".
Here are some of the characteristics of the learner-based approach.
1. Learners are distinct and unique. No two finger prints are alike. No two people are alike. No two people learne alike. Learning styles are different. Some are auditory. Some like to feel and touch, and so forth. The learner-based approach accomadates all learning styles.
2. What works for the learners is far more important that what's most comfortable for the teacher or leader.
3. Learners help guide the learning process. The learners are allowed and encouraged 'to make choices, follow their own curiousity, and explore what interests them. They're encouraged to make learning relevent to their own lives".
4. Learning occurs best when learners enjoy the process. The students will learn and retain more material when the process brings them joy and excitment, when they are encouraged to build friendships and interaction.
5. Education is evaluated on what learners understand, retain, and apply; not merely by what is taught. Learning is far more effective when it is fun and interactive for the learners, and when it brings on the desire to learn more.
The learner-based approach seeks to bring real life relevance of the subject matter to the students. "When we allow learners to help guide the learning process, they find avenues of relevance, ways to tie the Bible to their own lives".
So, how do we become more learner-based? First of all, we need to get away from our teaching inclinations. Most of us teach in the ways we were taught when we were that age.We need to lable all of that for what it is: teacher-based inclinations. We need to figure out how students learn best. Leonard Sweet says that older generations liked TV shows like Bananza. It is a "linear" show for "linear" thinkers. It has a consecutive story line. The show starts with a certain situation, then builds on it sence by sence until it reaches a conclusion. Younger generations like shows such as ER. It is characterized as "loopy". It loops in and out of different story lines. It is layer upon layer. That is the way most people of younger generations think. That is also the way the internet works. So, here is the obvious question, how does the church "organize for learning"? We must start by recognzing that all learners are different and that we all learn in different ways. We all have different learning styles.
The authors work for Group Publishing. They have developed Christian Education materials for all age levels that is Bible- based, hands-on, and inovative. "All of these materials use an active, experiential approach- people learning by doing. It's a learner-based technique Jesus used" as the authors say. A perfect example is Jesus washing the disciples' feet in John 13. They felt Him wash their feet, they heard Him speak to each of them, they watched Him do all of these things. This act encompassed all learning styles.
This is also called interactive learning. "This is student-to-student talk". "... people learn and retain more when they get to talk". Now this doesn't mean students only talking to the teacher. It means students talking to each other one on one or in groups. Good questions might be, "Why do you suppose Peter denied Jesus" or "What are some ways we deny Jesus in our own lives" instead of "What three ways did Peter deny Jesus".
Their reserach shows that interactive learning results in deeper learning.
How do we create a learner-based enviornment? A great example is shared in the book (infact all of the examples are great and are in the book- so please go get a copy of it and read it). A director for the VBS at a church took out all of the tables in the classrooms where VBS classes were to be held. An impreticular lady leading a crafts exercise wanted the tables in there. The director convinced her to just take a chair for herself in and allow the kids to use the whole floor. It worked out fabulously! She said that the kids loved having the whole floor to work with. Everything worked out great!
How do we organize students into groups for learning? The authors suggest grouping a few from each age group into groups. Here are four reasons. 1.It enhances learning. Everyone can move at their own pace. There's no peer presure to hurry up. The older kids can help teach the younger ones, which gives them a chance to teach.
The second reason is everyone cooperates. The children really help eachother out and it helps their cooperation skills. The older ones help the younger ones. And the younger ones look up to them.
The third reason is flexibility. If you only have a hand full of one grade level just mix them in with some of the older kids. Or if you have a large group of grade levels, just mix them all up. This helps because it seperates those who cause trouble together.
And forthly it helps with discipline. Mixed age groups brings positive peer presure to behave. The older children don't want to act uncool around the little ones, and the little ones don't want to act immature around the big kids. So, it helps all around.
This is a really good book. I highly recommend it. I hope and pray to become a missionary after attending SIBI and after a number of years on the mission field come back to Texas or elsewhere in the South as a Christian Education minister, or Discipleship minister, or Outreach minister or a combination of two of those three someday. Maybe that will work out, or maybe not. We'll see.
Thank you for reading my E-book. I hope and pray all of you have a great day. God bless you all in Jesus' name!
Zack
ps. Go Mavs! We won again last night! Twelve in a row. Tonight is against the Spurs. It's going to be tough, but I think we can win. And the NFL playoffs start tomorrow. Cool stuff! God bless!
Now, on to The Dirt on Learning. I read the third chapter yesterday. This chapter is about the learner-based approach. This approach is a major shift for most of us I would imagine. The learner-based approach that learning is more important then teaching. Notice that teaching is important, but learning is more so. Just like a farmer can sow all the seeds he wants, but if the seeds don't get in the soil and produce a croup it doesn't really matter how much seeds get out there. It is the same with teaching God's Word. It doesn't matter how many people are out there spreading His Word and it doesn't matter how many people hear the Word. All that matters is how many convert and become faithful Christians.
The goal for Christian education is that God's Word is learned. For that to truely happen we must adopt a learner-based approach to Christian Education. First of all, what do we mean by the term "learner-based"? "It's an approach with a clear goal: that learners understand, retain, and apply their learning. "The focus is on the learner, not the teacher. It's success is based not on how eloquently the sower casts seeds, but on whether the seeds take root and bear fruit. This shift of perspective is an enormous change for most churches. But the results are stunning, 'yeilding a hundred, sixty, or thirty times what was sown' (Matt. 13:23b)".
Here are some of the characteristics of the learner-based approach.
1. Learners are distinct and unique. No two finger prints are alike. No two people are alike. No two people learne alike. Learning styles are different. Some are auditory. Some like to feel and touch, and so forth. The learner-based approach accomadates all learning styles.
2. What works for the learners is far more important that what's most comfortable for the teacher or leader.
3. Learners help guide the learning process. The learners are allowed and encouraged 'to make choices, follow their own curiousity, and explore what interests them. They're encouraged to make learning relevent to their own lives".
4. Learning occurs best when learners enjoy the process. The students will learn and retain more material when the process brings them joy and excitment, when they are encouraged to build friendships and interaction.
5. Education is evaluated on what learners understand, retain, and apply; not merely by what is taught. Learning is far more effective when it is fun and interactive for the learners, and when it brings on the desire to learn more.
The learner-based approach seeks to bring real life relevance of the subject matter to the students. "When we allow learners to help guide the learning process, they find avenues of relevance, ways to tie the Bible to their own lives".
So, how do we become more learner-based? First of all, we need to get away from our teaching inclinations. Most of us teach in the ways we were taught when we were that age.We need to lable all of that for what it is: teacher-based inclinations. We need to figure out how students learn best. Leonard Sweet says that older generations liked TV shows like Bananza. It is a "linear" show for "linear" thinkers. It has a consecutive story line. The show starts with a certain situation, then builds on it sence by sence until it reaches a conclusion. Younger generations like shows such as ER. It is characterized as "loopy". It loops in and out of different story lines. It is layer upon layer. That is the way most people of younger generations think. That is also the way the internet works. So, here is the obvious question, how does the church "organize for learning"? We must start by recognzing that all learners are different and that we all learn in different ways. We all have different learning styles.
The authors work for Group Publishing. They have developed Christian Education materials for all age levels that is Bible- based, hands-on, and inovative. "All of these materials use an active, experiential approach- people learning by doing. It's a learner-based technique Jesus used" as the authors say. A perfect example is Jesus washing the disciples' feet in John 13. They felt Him wash their feet, they heard Him speak to each of them, they watched Him do all of these things. This act encompassed all learning styles.
This is also called interactive learning. "This is student-to-student talk". "... people learn and retain more when they get to talk". Now this doesn't mean students only talking to the teacher. It means students talking to each other one on one or in groups. Good questions might be, "Why do you suppose Peter denied Jesus" or "What are some ways we deny Jesus in our own lives" instead of "What three ways did Peter deny Jesus".
Their reserach shows that interactive learning results in deeper learning.
How do we create a learner-based enviornment? A great example is shared in the book (infact all of the examples are great and are in the book- so please go get a copy of it and read it). A director for the VBS at a church took out all of the tables in the classrooms where VBS classes were to be held. An impreticular lady leading a crafts exercise wanted the tables in there. The director convinced her to just take a chair for herself in and allow the kids to use the whole floor. It worked out fabulously! She said that the kids loved having the whole floor to work with. Everything worked out great!
How do we organize students into groups for learning? The authors suggest grouping a few from each age group into groups. Here are four reasons. 1.It enhances learning. Everyone can move at their own pace. There's no peer presure to hurry up. The older kids can help teach the younger ones, which gives them a chance to teach.
The second reason is everyone cooperates. The children really help eachother out and it helps their cooperation skills. The older ones help the younger ones. And the younger ones look up to them.
The third reason is flexibility. If you only have a hand full of one grade level just mix them in with some of the older kids. Or if you have a large group of grade levels, just mix them all up. This helps because it seperates those who cause trouble together.
And forthly it helps with discipline. Mixed age groups brings positive peer presure to behave. The older children don't want to act uncool around the little ones, and the little ones don't want to act immature around the big kids. So, it helps all around.
This is a really good book. I highly recommend it. I hope and pray to become a missionary after attending SIBI and after a number of years on the mission field come back to Texas or elsewhere in the South as a Christian Education minister, or Discipleship minister, or Outreach minister or a combination of two of those three someday. Maybe that will work out, or maybe not. We'll see.
Thank you for reading my E-book. I hope and pray all of you have a great day. God bless you all in Jesus' name!
Zack
ps. Go Mavs! We won again last night! Twelve in a row. Tonight is against the Spurs. It's going to be tough, but I think we can win. And the NFL playoffs start tomorrow. Cool stuff! God bless!
posted by Zack | 8:23 AM
2 Comments:
Hey Zack. It was good to see you at Buckingham last Sunday. We always look forward to coming back to visit and see all of our spiritual family there. During our brief period there, we established some great relationships with some great people.
Anyway, it's nice to see your blog. I will bookmark it along with the other blogs that I periodically visit. I used to blog, but found that I didn't have much to say ;-)
Take care.
Anthony
Thank you Anthony! BRCC is a great place. It was great seeing you and your family too. God bless you and yours. Take care. Hope to see you again soon.
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