Christian Educators Journal December 2022 Vol. 62 No. 2
Engaging Communities, Loving Neighbors Reservation Community Seeing Restoration amidst Nervous System Falleness Professional Learning through Community Engagement Art Education Toward Community Engaging God’s World for the Sake of the Kingdom
Future Issues February 2023—This Is Our Father’s World Because the first instruction God gives his people is to care for his creation, that task is part of our mission as Christian educational institutions. How do classroom teachers teach environmental stewardship at different grade levels and in different subjects? What building practices and procedures do schools use to conserve resources and model care for God’s world? How is the glory of God’s creation celebrated in school activities, student activities, and curricula? We’ll publish articles from classroom teachers, administrators, custodians, architects, cafeteria managers, student environmental clubs, and community garden tenders about the way they’re having a positive environmental impact on God’s world. April 2023—Resource Review Each year we highlight the best books, films, websites, teaching tools, and other resources for Christian school teachers. We publish reviews of student-facing materials (like which books to stock in your classroom library) as well as materials relevant to school staff (like curricula or books about teaching). This issue is accepting submissions. Proposals are due January 2. Articles are due January 30.
Contents
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Editorial Reservation Community DAN MEESTER
Seeing Restoration amidst Nervous System Falleness CLAYTON LUBBERS
Professional Learning through Community Engagement: A Partnership between a Local FaithBased K–12 School and a Teacher Education Program KEVIN MIRCHANDANI AND NINA PAK LUI
Effective Communication by School Leaders: A Case Study from COVID-19 SIMON BRAUN
Art Education Toward Community ADAM LANCASTER
Engaging God’s World for the Sake of the Kingdom DAVE LOEWEN
Ten Lessons Protestant Schools Can Learn from Our Catholic School Neighbors GINA ROBLES
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Christian Educators Journal Vol. 62 No. 2, December 2022 cejonline.com Editor Abby Zwart cejeditor@gmail.com The Christian Educators Journal (CEJ) encourages letters to the editor in response to articles presented in the CEJ. Letters must be accompanied by the author’s name and email address. The CEJ reserves the right to edit letters for length and clarity. Where a letter addresses issues raised by the author of an article, the CEJ reserves the right to invite the article author to respond to the letter. Subscriptions Klaas Wolterstorff 2474 Westboro Dr NE Grand Rapids, MI 49506 business@cejonline.com Subscription Price (US dollars) US: $25.00 (one year, print) Canada: $30.00 (one year, print) Digital: $25.00 (one year) Beginning September 2021, all subscriptions outside the US and Canada are digital only. Please visit www.cejonline for subscription information. US Postal Information Nonprofit Organization Postage paid in Grand Rapids, MI Permit No. 657 Return postage guaranteed to: Christian Educators Journal 2474 Westboro Dr NE Grand Rapids, MI 49506 Address Correction Requested Canadian Postal Information Registered under Publications Mail Agreement: No. 40022165 at Norwich, ON Return postage guaranteed to: Christian Educators Journal PO Box 39 Norwich, ON N0J 1P0 Indexed in Christian Periodicals Index Copyrighted 2000 CEJ. All rights reserved. Christian Educators Journal (130630) is published quarterly by Christian Educators Journal Association. Scripture All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com
Statement of Purpose The Christian Educators Journal Association publishes the Journal as a channel of communication for all educators committed to the idea of Christian day school at the elementary, secondary, and college levels. The views expressed are those of the writers and not necessarily those of the association. Reprint Policy We allow free reprinting or photocopying of individual articles that have appeared in our journal, as long as the copied articles are used within the context of schooling and the source is acknowledged. Editor Abby Zwart Copyeditor Bethany Murphy Design Editor Klaas Wolterstorff Business Manager Klaas Wolterstorff Web Shepherd Heather Altena Board of Trustees Dr. Henry Algera Heather Birch Justin Cook Sara Leo Albert Kok (Chair) Gayle Monsma Ed Noot Jim Rooks Sean Schat Christine Scholma Tricia Stobbe Edith Van Der Boom Heather VanDyke Christine Webb Supporting Institutions Calvin University Edvance Christian Schools Association Institute for Christian Studies The King’s University Redeemer University Trinity Christian College Tyndale University Subscribing Organizations Christian Educators Association Christian Educators of British Columbia Prairie Centre for Christian Education Printed back issues (if available) can be purchased for $7.50 per copy (cost of shipping to be added to total). Some back issues may be available in digital format.
Editorial
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hink for a moment about the buildings you pass on your daily journey to school. You likely pass many houses—perhaps even some of the houses of the students you are on your way to teach. There are also businesses—coffee shops, corner stores, factories processing packages or making computer chips, locally owned boutiques or grocery stores, and office buildings of everything from law firms to insurance agencies. A third type of building you pass provides social or governmental services—churches, other schools, libraries, the post office. You probably hardly notice these buildings anymore. It’s early, you’re tired, you have other things on your mind . . . but what if these buildings had something to offer your school? With a little creativity, that auto body shop could be a hands-on extension of your engineering classroom. That frozen yogurt stand might appreciate a student-designed mural on the wall facing their parking lot. That mayor might love to come talk to your class or even give you a tour of city hall. These buildings are not just buildings, of course. This is your school’s community. Our issue this quarter focuses on many creative ways that schools in our readership have reached out to their communities and found ways to love their neighbors and their neighborhoods—and they’ve provided great learning experiences at the same time. These teachers and leaders talk about science projects that get kids talking to adults in their lives (Clay Lubbers). They reflect on the ways their school served as a resource center during COVID-19 (Dan Meester, Simon Braun). Others think about the ways that schools—be they universities or K–12 schools in different denominations—can partner for the betterment of both parties (Kevin Mirchandani, Nina Pak Lui, Gina Robles). Still others think philosophically about how particular subject areas, like art, can create stronger communities (Adam Lancaster) and about why we should even engage with our community at all (Dave Loewen). This issue is chock full of great ideas about how to get your students and staff outside the four walls of the school building and into the community. The next time you pass that corner store on the way home from work, we hope you’ll think of it as more than a place to grab a snack.
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Reservation Community DAN MEESTER
C Every morning, a fleet of propane-powered buses departs from Rehoboth Christian School to pick up students over an area of three thousand square miles, representing dozens of neighborhoods in small towns throughout Northwest New Mexico and Northeast Arizona.
onsultants will ask a classic question to help schools, churches, or other non-profits wrestle with their mission and vision: If you closed tomorrow, would your community miss you? The idea behind this question is that an organization like a Christian school should have a meaningful, noticeable impact on its community; that desired impact should shape decisions schools make about curricula, instruction, physical spaces, co-curricular activities, and all the little things that go into the day-to-day work of the school. Most schools born out of the Reformed tradition of Christian education profess a desire to engage the communities of which they are a part. What this looks like for each individual organization depends on how they define community, along with the history and context of their local environment. Every morning, a fleet of propane-powered buses departs from Rehoboth Christian School, near Gallup, New Mexico, to pick up students over an area of three thousand square miles, representing dozens of neighborhoods in small towns throughout Northwest New Mexico and Northeast Arizona. Seventy-five percent of Rehoboth’s student body is Native American—mostly from the Navajo Nation—which brings with it distinctive perspectives on what defines a local community. In this unique and challenging context, what does it look like to learn about the community, engage with it, and make a positive impact on it?
Meeting Pandemic Needs
When the COVID-19 pandemic began, the Navajo Nation was hit hard, but the built-in trust people have for schools made it clear that Rehoboth could take a significant role in relief efforts.
One of the interesting demographic characteristics of the Navajo Nation is that many of its residents don’t live in what most Americans would recognize as traditional neighborhoods. Homes are often miles away from each other out on the reservation with physical addresses like “400 yards past mile marker 118.” That kind of isolation makes it incredibly difficult to build infrastructure for electricity, water, or phone service; in fact, 75 percent of the homes in the United States without those services are located in the Navajo Nation. The Navajo Nation government is organized into 110 different geographical units, called chapters, and each chapter has a central chapter house that is used for a variety of community activities. Those chapter houses, along with schools, are some of the few places where Navajo people can go to receive important communications and instructions for tribal activities. When the COVID-19 pandemic began, the Navajo Nation was hit hard, but the built-in trust people have for schools made it clear that Rehoboth could take a significant role in relief efforts. 4
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Kevin Ruthven serves as the chaplain for Rehoboth Christian School, and he’s also a respected member of the Navajo Nation Crisis Response Team. Rehoboth’s location in the border town of Gallup meant that, whether by train or interstate, supplies could reliably make their way to the school. When regular in-school classes were suspended during the spring of 2020, Ruthven helped the school campus become a staging ground for all kinds of provisions needed to fight the pandemic. Rehoboth students and families, along with local and nationwide volunteers, signed up to help with the relief work. One of the school’s gymnasiums became a temporary warehouse for dry goods, fresh fruit, cleaning supplies, paper products, and warm clothing. The daily volunteers would assemble care packages for families who were sick or unable to provide for their own basic needs. In all, over ten thousand of these packages went out for distribution at churches and chapter houses throughout the eastern Navajo Nation, thanks to drivers and bush pilots. According to Ruthven, Rehoboth’s efforts reached sixty-five of the chapters, with another similar staging area near Flagstaff, AZ, reaching the remaining forty-five chapters. But care packages weren’t the end of the school’s efforts on behalf of the community. Students and families could spend their afternoons and weekends chopping wood to be delivered out to the reservation’s elderly for use in heating their homes. Students alone have chopped over two hundred truckloads of firewood over the past two winters, representing $30,000 worth of fuel, and they’ve helped deliver that wood—meeting their elders and honoring them with care in the process. Finally, the school became a site where families could come for clean water, a resource all too scarce on the reservation. Residents typically drive many miles to wells or other water sources, where they can fill up massive truck-mounted tanks for their animals and for home use. When frequent hand washing became vital to contain the spread of COVID-19, people’s water needs increased, but with the school serving as a water source, people could fill up and receive food and relief supplies all in the same place.
One of the school’s gymnasiums became a temporary warehouse for dry goods, fresh fruit, cleaning supplies, paper products, and warm clothing. The daily volunteers would assemble care packages for families.
Intersection of Culture and Kingdom One of the ways anthropologists characterize people groups is by a culture’s tendency toward either individualism or collectivism. Unlike most Anglo-Americans who tend to emphasize personal rights, freedoms, and responsibilities, Navajo people see themselves very much as interconnected and responsible for each other. During the pandemic, the Diné (their native language name for themselves) willingly changed their routines to meet curfew requirements and wore masks without complaint. Driving through small reservation towns, one would see signs reading “Stay Home. Protect our Elders” or “Their lives are in your hands. Wash your hands. Stay home. Stay safe.” That sense of collective responsibility for the group is a cultural value that resonates with the way God wants his people to put him on display for the world. Caring for the marginalized—whether that’s the aliens, orphans, and widows described in the Torah or the elderly and those without water or heat during a pandemic—shows others the character of God. “At Rehoboth, we call that being Living Images,” says Ruthven. “And for our students, Christian Educators Journal
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Unlike most Anglo-Americans who tend to emphasize personal rights, freedoms, and responsibilities, Navajo people see themselves very much as interconnected and responsible for each other.
This project has been a really tangible way for
and through understanding how they can make a difference in the future. It truly has been one of the great joys of my teaching experience so far and a really tangible way for my students to begin restoration in the place where God has placed them.
my students to begin restoration in the place where God has placed them.
Works Cited Belgic Confession. 1561. Translated by Faith Alive Christian Resources, Christian Reformed Church of North America, 2011, https:// www.crcna.org/welcome/beliefs/confessions/belgic-confession #toc-article-2-the-means-by-which-we-know-god. Wolterstorff, Nicholas P. Educating for Life: Reflections on Christian Teaching and Learning. Edited by Gloria Goris Stronks and Clarence Joldersma, Baker Academic, 2002. Clayton Lubbers is a middle school science teacher currently placed by God at Byron Center Christian School. Clay regularly meets God in creation. Lubbers@ bccs.org.
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Professional Learning through Community Engagement: A Partnership between a Local Faith-Based K–12 School and a Teacher Education Program KEVIN MIRCHANDANI AND NINA PAK LUI
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s educational researchers and practitioners, we have identified the following challenges for teachers in the K–12 Christian school context: capacity building, professional learning opportunities, and sustainable infrastructure to support goals of lifelong learning. The needs in our local teacher education program include finding appropriate field placements, engaging in collaborative community partnerships, and connecting course learning to the complex realities of educational practices. We believe that bridging theory and practice and creating a culture of transformative professional learning cannot be accomplished in isolation. Jeanne Maree Allen states that “in-field and on-campus components of teacher education will remain disjointed while they are taught and overseen by people who have little ongoing communication with each other” (742). Research indicates that “educational stakeholders, including universities, school districts, schools, and governments, need to work collaboratively to spur change” (Schnellert et al. 2). For this reason, when educators in K–12 school communities and local teacher education programs work collaboratively, their partnership can strengthen professional learning and their respective school’s vision and mission. In this article, we offer a narrative of how faith-based K–12 schools can work with their local university, drawing on shared principles from Indigenous ways of being, Christian relationality, communities of practice, and community-based research. We will first situate ourselves, then describe the co-created relationship between the university and the K–12 school, and finally share the outcomes from this collaborative partnership.
Situating Ourselves Trinity Western University (TWU) is a small, private, faith-based liberal arts institution, located on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Kwantlen, Katzie, and Stó:lô First Nations in British Columbia (BC). Post-degree pre-service teachers have the opportunity to participate in a two-year teacher education program in the School of Education at TWU that culminates with professional certification. Langley Christian School (LCS) is a K–12 independent Christian school located on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the Kwantlen, Katzie, Matsqui, and Semiahmoo First Nations people. I (Nina) am currently an assistant professor of education in the School of Education at TWU who is actively engaged in a province-wide professional learning network. Teacher educators in this network explore new Christian Educators Journal
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When educators in K–12 school communities and local teacher education programs work collaboratively, their partnership can strengthen professional learning and their respective school’s vision and mission.
Engaging God’s World for the Sake of the Kingdom DAVE LOEWEN
Why Should We Engage?
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As followers of Jesus we are people of the cross, people who walk in the world with a posture of self-sacrificial love for our neighbor.
he mission statement of Surrey Christian School is “Educating for wholeness by engaging God’s world in the servant way of Jesus.” Central to the statement is the idea of engagement, that we are called to be actively seeking the good of God’s world. Note that it is not simply the world, but it is God’s world, and this orientation helps sharpen our focus on engagement as an element of faithfulness. This call to work for the common good in God’s world has its deep roots in our Reformed heritage as a Christian school, specifically in the belief that we are meant to be image-bearers of God who actively seek to bring God’s redeeming love to “every square inch” of the domain of human existence. And our posture in this engagement is “the servant way of Jesus.” Biblical scholar Michael Gorman writes extensively on the idea of self-sacrificial love in his book Cruciformity: Paul’s Narrative Spirituality. Gorman reminds us that we are people of the cross; therefore, our posture of engagement should be cruciform. He explains that as followers of Jesus we are people of the cross, people who walk in the world with a posture of self-sacrificial love for our neighbor. Surrey Christian School believes engagement in the servant way of Jesus has the potential to form students into followers of Jesus who love their neighbors well and who are a people of shalom, or wholeness.
What If We Don’t Engage?
Retreating from the world can easily lead to a kind of tribalism that is counter to the gospel.
In our current Western cultural context, it is no secret that there is significant division, politically and theologically. In this context, it is tempting to retreat into our own silos, to strengthen our sense of community by narrowing it to those who think like us and maybe even talk and look like us. It feels safer and is easier, even cozier. However, this retreat can easily lead to a kind of tribalism that is counter to the gospel. In the book of Jeremiah, when all the leaders and elites have been captured out of Jerusalem and shipped off to Babylon, Jeremiah (who was still in cozy Jerusalem) had a prophetic word for those living in exile. God calls to them: “Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf ” (Jer. 29:7 ESV). In the midst of being under siege and captured, God calls the people of Israel not to fight or retreat but to engage for the common good rather than just their own good. This orientation to our world is echoed in 1 Peter, written to a community of people who were powerless and socially ostracized. Peter calls them not to withdraw but to stand up to the Roman Empire as the face of God in the face of Christ. They were to be known as benefactors in their community; they were to “do good” (1 Pet. 2:14–15), which Biblical scholar Scot McNight cites 30
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as the technical language of civic benefaction. This means they were to seek the good of the city, help drive down grain prices for the poor, build theatres, and refurbish civic buildings. McKnight states, “The fellowship of the Christians created a community wherein true justice was worked out, wherein healthy, loving relationships were the norm, and wherein response to society was one of benefaction and compassion” (122). It seems clear from Scripture that disengagement and withdrawal are simply not options for us. So, while we are intended to be communities of atonement, the fruit of that atonement is to bear out in the broader communities around us. This requires our engagement. It does not mean things will be easy or simple, but they may become rich and beautiful. As Eugene Peterson puts it, “The aim of the person of faith is not to be as comfortable as possible but live as deeply and thoroughly as possible—to deal with the reality of life, discover truth, create beauty, act out love” (152). Inevitably, this will enlarge our world, and a large world needs a large God, for the larger our world, the less we can exert control over it and the more we need the master of the universe to be just that. Thanks be to God for his greatness! Let us then avoid the temptation of shaping God into a local, tribal deity, thus reducing his power over us and our communities. Instead, may we trust in his sovereignty over all of life and out of that trust engage others well with the belief that God is at work in their lives and in the life of his world.
Engagement does not mean things will be easy or simple, but they may become rich and beautiful.
How, Then, Should We Engage? Surrey Christian School (SCS) has had its mission statement for over twelve years now and has spent those twelve years seeking to embody the mission in its day-to-day practices. There have been some successes as well as some missteps along the way. The following are just four examples of how SCS has worked to engage God’s world in the servant way of Jesus. A cultural norm we have tried to inculcate is to be a people of “try.” This means there is collegial and leadership support to take risks and venture out with students to engage. First, Surrey Christian School (all four of its campuses) exists on the unceded territories of the Kwantlen First Peoples. These people are our living history and have stewarded this beautiful land for tens of thousands of years before we arrived. They suffered greatly under colonization, and sadly, much of that suffering was in the name of Christ and the church. Surrey Christian School has chosen to be friends with the Kwantlen people, to listen to their truth and to work toward redeeming the name of Jesus by being good neighbors and friends (this is the work of reconciliation). We started along this journey by employing Kwantlen artist Brandon Gabriel for a couple of months as an artist in residence at our campuses. We have now developed a strong friendship with Kwantlen storyteller Joseph Dandurand, who spends time on our campus on a regular basis. We are learning to more fully see the Kwantlen people as fellow image-bearers with whom we have much in common and from whom we have much to learn. These are the people in our particular context, the neighbors God has gifted to us. They too are on a journey as they move in our direction with offers of friendship and the willingness to engage our students. Second, the city of Surrey is the fastest-growing and geographically Christian Educators Journal
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Surrey Christian School has chosen to be friends with the Kwantlen people, to listen to their truth and to work toward redeeming the name of Jesus by being good neighbors and friends
Ten Lessons Protestant Schools Can Learn from Our Catholic School Neighbors GINA ROBLES
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My experiences working and teaching in a Catholic school taught me valuable lessons.
uring my first three years as an educator, I taught at a small Christian school connected to the church I attended. When I was hired as a high school English teacher, I had a degree in English and a few courses in teaching but no certification, student teaching, or other teaching experience. Needless to say, the transition was difficult. After one year of struggling to teach high school English, I begged my principal to move me to a second-grade teaching spot for the following year. I taught second grade for two wonderful years but could not afford to stay financially. As is the case for many small Christian schools, my salary was barely minimum wage and included no health insurance or other benefits. So when a colleague suggested I apply at the brand new Catholic school a few miles away, I was intrigued. Doubts quickly crept in, though. What would it be like teaching at a Catholic school? Would they even hire a Protestant? I knew nothing about Catholic schools or the Catholic faith, for that matter. However, after much prayer, I applied and was called in for an interview. Seventeen years later, I thank God for guiding me to accept a teaching position at that Catholic school. He provided me with many incredible mentors and growth opportunities during my time there. I can think of no better way to show my gratitude than to share with other Christian school educators some of the many valuable lessons I learned. During my time in the Catholic school, I had the opportunity to teach in multiple roles and at several different grade levels. I began my years there teaching middle school language arts for grades 6–8, and, with the support of my principal and assistant principal, I received my Florida state certification for English 6–12 during my first three years. Later, I became the school library media specialist and taught technology for grades K–8. In my last four years there, I received my master’s in educational leadership and was promoted to assistant principal. My experiences working and teaching in a Catholic school taught me valuable lessons. While I cannot speak for every Catholic school or diocese, these are some of the most valuable lessons I learned while teaching in the Diocese of St. Petersburg.
1: Harnessing the Power of Numbers Protestant schools typically exist in isolation as single schools or possibly an elementary, middle, and high school trio. This fact, unfortunately, does not allow for the power of numbers. Protestant schools could increase their leverage in many areas if they teamed up with other Protestant schools as 34
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Catholic schools do. Catholic schools utilize their diocesan schools’ numbers to get better rates on curricula, electronic subscriptions, and even software. Teaming up with other Protestant schools to create cooperatives, or mini districts, would create advantages for schools and teachers. It would allow for more access to professional development for teachers while simultaneously bringing down shared costs for training. Another significant advantage would be the availability of Christian educators to mentor or learn from in professional learning communities. One of the most difficult aspects of being a teacher in a small Christian school is often teaching in isolation. The lack of other teachers with whom to work on improving one’s craft can be a struggle. If Protestant Christian schools partnered with each other, teachers could form learning communities to share best practices and seek advice. Finances are always top of mind for small independent schools. Balancing between keeping tuition affordable and the school financially solvent is difficult. Catholic schools still struggle with this, but they have an advantage. In the Diocese of St. Petersburg, all Catholic churches support the schools that their parishioners attend, even if the school is not connected with their church. In addition, parish schools are supported financially with an annual gift from their parish church. This investment system by surrounding parishes establishes the interest all parishes have in maintaining healthy Catholic schools. I believe Protestant schools could do something similar, even if all churches and schools partnering together are not of the same denomination. Churches that do not have their own school could invest even more in those that do. After all, we all have an interest in the value of Christian education.
If Protestant Christian schools partnered with each other, teachers could form learning communities to share best practices and seek advice.
2: Establishing a Hierarchy of Leadership Another drawback for independent private and Protestant schools is the lack of a hierarchy of leadership. While some might think having one school principal or pastor as the school leader means less bureaucracy, it also means there is often no one to go to when trouble hits. Even principals need someone to go to for financial or legal advice. In cases where schools have limited leadership, there is also no system of checks and balances to ensure sound decision making for the school. Catholic schools do this through a system of superintendents, associate superintendents, and school advisory boards. Using the Catholic model, Protestant schools could remain nimble enough to avoid the trap of bureaucracy while taking advantage of the expertise available in the broader community.
3: Implementing High-Quality Curricula This lesson is very near and dear to my heart. As a former English language arts teacher and librarian, I believe Christian schools have a duty to provide high-quality educational materials to all students. Unfortunately, as my time teaching in Protestant schools taught me, this often is not the case. Whether out of fear or social pressure, many Protestant schools cling to outdated curriculum because it is labeled as Christian. Most Catholic schools Christian Educators Journal
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Most Catholic schools use the same curriculum used in public schools, yet they still integrate their faith into every single subject area.