Fostering the Christian Teaching We Espouse

CHRIS PRIOR

Ultimately, Christian schools are places of formation.

Over the past year, much of which was spent in COviD lockdown, I have had many opportunities to reflect on the Christian life. My conclusion has been that too often, due to a whole number of reasons, I underplay the new life that we are to have in Christ. Repeatedly in the Scriptures, the people of God are called to conform to a different way of life than those around them. They are to follow God’s ways, for he is holy (Lev. 19:2). The people of God are also not to conform to the practices of the nations of the world. As Jesus taught, Christians are to love God and neighbor (Luke 10:27), to be Kingdom different! In the Epistles, this is described as new life, a life that is centered on the gospel. In my own life, I want to say, with the apostle Paul, I have been crucified with Christ; I have given up the old life I lived before I came to faith (Gal. 2:20). Yet repeatedly I succumb to another story, the predominant cultural story. I am, thus, acutely aware that confessing that Jesus is Lord does not necessarily mean my everyday actions will be consistent with a Christian worldview.

Visit a Christian school website or read a Christian school prospectus and you will probably find suggestions of a distinctively Christian education. While language may vary, it is commonplace for Christian schools to promote themselves as “biblically grounded” or “Christ-centered” supportive communities seeking to foster the giftedness of each child. They may also suggest they teach Christianly, meaning their pedagogy is informed by a Christian worldview. Teachers teach from a Christian/biblical perspective, often with a goal that students will learn to think critically from a Christian/biblical perspective. Ultimately, Christian schools are places of formation. They seek to form a certain type of person, to encourage students to live the Christian life, to be disciples of Christ that love God and neighbor. As a Christian, I am persuaded by this vision for Christian schooling. I am also cognizant that Christian schooling occurs in the midst of a broader cultural story.

A Task of Leaders

Leaders have multifaceted roles. In Christian schools, this includes understanding the particular approach to the faith of their school. Leaders need to be able to articulate the story and vision of the school and have the ability to foster practice that is consistent with this vision across school life, including educational practice. So how—through what they say, the decisions they make, and the conditions they create—can Christian school leaders foster cultures that support education consistent with the Christian beliefs of their communities?

Before offering an answer, I present a caveat: Christianity is not about competence. It is not about a set or series of practices or rules that, if intentionally followed, will lead to success. It is also not contingent on a heroic charismatic Christian school leader. The message of the gospel concerns God’s love and grace, and it is centered on the crucified and resurrected Christ. It includes a call to follow and the indwelling, in believers, of the Holy Spirit. Thus, in a discussion on fostering cultures that support Christian schooling, what matters more than anything else is submission to Christ and the gospel. It is central, and it is central to all: the leadership, the staff, and the community.

Differing Stories

To begin, as noted above, Christian school leaders need to understand the story of the school and be able to articulate its vision: the “why” underpinning the particular approach adopted. Furthermore, leaders within Christian schools must work to build and evoke shared understanding of this vision. This is not a simple task. Christian schools are often bursting with enthusiastic staff members with a sincere Christian faith, desirous to influence the next generation. Yet Christian schools bring together individuals who each have their own heritage that shapes their understanding of Scripture and the faith.

Further, Christian schools operate in secular and pluralistic societies. This post-Enlightenment, contemporary, Western society has been described as disenchanted, sensate, and hedonistic (Gould 27–28). In secular culture, there is little to no room for God. The world has lost any sense of transcendence; there is nothing beyond what we can touch, taste, and smell. There is no spiritual life, nothing beyond death. The human life is not about living in God’s world, and with God absent, people seek their own pleasure, their own fulfilment. Christianity is marginalized, confined to the realm of private belief. Unfortunately, too many of us who follow Christ have bought into elements of the prevailing Western story. As Walter Brueggemann suggests, “Our consciousness has been claimed by false fields of perception and idolatrous systems of language and rhetoric” (1). We go to church, we read Scripture, and we seek to be role models to students through our conduct. We may “give Jesus moral and spiritual authority” (Gould 173), but we can struggle to imagine how the Scriptures are relevant for other parts of life.

Too many of us who follow Christ have bought into elements of the prevailing Western story.

As they seek to cultivate their schools, leaders need to be aware that even the language of Christian schooling may need reclaiming.

Embracing a Christian View of Reality

Aware of the impact of culture and the potentiality of varied beliefs, Christian school leaders need to present the countercultural claims of Christianity as an alternative to the Western story, including how the Christian faith intersects with education. As they seek to cultivate their schools, leaders need to be aware that even the language of Christian schooling may need reclaiming. Consider, for example, “Christ-centered” education. In some circles, “Christ-centered” is used in relation to Christ’s lordship over all of life. A Christ-centered school, it is argued, seeks to honor a holistic Scriptural and Christ-focused understanding of reality across school life,

Christian schools have a fantastic opportunity to present the world as it really is and encourage people to appreciate the world as “a God-infused reality.”

Too often, these professional seminars and conferences fail to connect the vision for a distinctively Christian education to something that assists individual Christian teachers as classroom practitioners.

Teachers want to see effective Christian teaching in action.

including through the teaching and learning program. Yet “Christ-centered” language is also used in relation to teaching the Christian message in Bible class or chapel with a focus on the development of Christian character, but with no relationship to the rest of the school, including the rest of the curriculum. Christians are to be crucified with Christ, to imagine and embrace a new life in Christ. This life should not be confined to a particular practice. We do not pause our otherwise secular teaching to read Scripture or to pray—rather, all of our pedagogical choices are formative (Smith 37–38). As Christian school leaders espouse a Christian view of reality, they must dispel notions consistent with this modern age that Christianity is only relevant to morality and spirituality. Instead, they need to take up the opportunity to present the countercultural life we see in Scripture. Using the language of Paul Gould, Christian schools have a fantastic opportunity to present the world as it really is and encourage people to appreciate the world as “a Godinfused reality” (83), “God-bathed” and “full of wonder and delight” (82).

Learning from Conferences and Seminars

To support staff in developing practices consistent with the Christian faith they espouse, school leaders need to ensure that the beliefs and values of their schools permeate school culture, including the resourcing of teaching and learning. In Australia, Christian schools have many opportunities to engage in professional learning. Often a whole-school approach is taken, with all teaching and learning staff attending conferences or seminars on Christian education. Too often, these professional seminars and conferences fail to connect the vision for a distinctively Christian education to something that assists individual Christian teachers as classroom practitioners. Whole staff professional learning may support a shared vision, but in many instances it fails to lead to teacher growth. A distinctively Christian education is not achieved by an occasional professional learning highlight. Indeed, occasional engagement in Christian professional learning may perpetuate the idea that we live in a fragmented world where the sacred or Christian parts of schooling are more at the margins of an otherwise secular school (Gould 174–77).

Tips for Building a Christian Learning Culture

Developing faithful Christian educational practices will rarely be achieved through one-off events. Christian teaching and learning requires an everyday or ongoing focus. Teachers do not want theories. They want to see teaching Christianly embodied. They require ongoing exposure, within the context of their school, to examples of curriculum being taught from a Christian perspective, together with regular opportunity to reflect on their pedagogy with the view of aligning pedagogical choices with the biblical story. Teachers want to see effective Christian teaching in action. Providing planning documents that clearly outline what is expected is helpful. Demonstrating effective Christian teaching through providing teachers with video illustrations of practice or through classroom observation is better.

In looking to inspire and support a culture where Christian teachers

are enthused to teach Christianly, leaders should encourage all to see the intersection of their faith and education as an ongoing conversation (Smith 10). Teaching Christianly, like the Christian life, will look different as people submit themselves to following Christ and imagining possibilities. Leaders should be wary of being too prescriptive. Schools include a number of curriculum areas. Teachers vary in their experience and abilities. Encouraging an ongoing conversation invites creativity. Teachers should learn with or from others in their particular curriculum area “that practices are routinely borrowed, adapted, and reworked” (Smith 130). Providing opportunities to engage in broader Christian school networks, sharing ideas, and building resources collaboratively can support this.

It is one thing to provide teachers with professional learning in support of school goals. It is another thing to afford them the time to implement new ideas. Workload is a significant issue in many schools, with many dedicated Christian teachers putting in long hours. If teaching in a way that is consistent with the Christian beliefs of the school is a priority, leaders must devote time and resources for ongoing development—time to collaborate, meetings where ideas are shared with others, team teaching, or opportunities to participate in classroom observation.

It is one thing to provide teachers with professional learning in support of school goals. It is another thing to afford them the time to implement new ideas.

The gospel must be the everyday bedrock on which everything else in the school is built.

Conclusion

Christian schools have a vision and purpose that is often suggested to be distinctively Christian. In Christian schools, staff are invited to develop pedagogical practices that align with Scripture, to teach Christianly, and to encourage Christian discipleship. In order to foster school cultures that are truly Christian, it is important that leaders ensure their communities understand that the Christian faith is not simply about privatized beliefs, good morals, and character formation. Instead, they need to promote environments where ongoing attention and conversation are given to the Christian life and how it intersects with education. In essence, the gospel must be the everyday bedrock on which everything else in the school is built.

Works Cited

Brueggemann, Walter. The Prophetic Imagination. 2nd ed., Fortress, 2001. Gould, Paul. Cultural Apologetics: Renewing the Christian Voice, Conscience and

Imagination in a Disenchanted World. Zondervan, 2019. Smith, David I. On Christian Teaching. Eerdmans, 2018.

Chris Prior works as the principal of the National Institute for Christian Education (Australia). He lectures in worldview, school culture, and school leadership. Previously, Chris held the position of principal at Bayside Christian School near Melbourne.