Interestingly enough this post comes from discussions I have been having about my other job, teaching. I have been very interested in the idea of community building for my students at school with the emphasis being on creating a learning community that encompasses students in far away places (like California or Indonesia). Here is a link to the post I wrote about it if you are interested in reading it.
My post started a great discussion. Jerrid Kruse has made some comments that make me really think about community building in my own classroom and it has bled over into my thinking about community in my youth group.
Tonight I made a realization that while I do not (usually) do any direct lecture in my media (aka computer) class, lecture is the way I present the material to my youth. This made me think about Jerrid and our past conversations. Basically I began to really examine how and why I use lecture at church but not at school and the answer seems to be at odds with the expected results.
I lecture to my youth group because I have 10-15 minutes to get across a Biblical truth (at least that is what I believe I am doing.) The youth then spend at least 15 minutes with their small group discussing the lesson and how they can apply the principle in their lives. The community building really takes place in the small group because of the shared experience of the lecture.
So, what is it I am trying to explain? The way the youth class is set up is for the purpose of getting students to share with each other what the message is and how it can be applied. They work together, not separated at desk or on a computer. They are building their community which is what I want to have happen in my classroom. Time to take what I am doing at church and apply it to my class, don't you think?
That's a pretty cool idea. We did that in my later years of Sunday school (grades 5-8), and it made the learning experience much richer. Of course, we were stuck there for an hour with an hour of mass before and another half hour after (gotta love Greek church). The instructor allowed us to talk and debate the things we were learning. During the earlier years, we were simply taught the rules, made to memorize the prayers, and given arts and crafts on occasion. I think regardless of religion having a community and a set of morals is imperative, and its wonderful that you are trying to help these kids find both. I don't think that lecture is bad, sometimes it's necessary and useful, but the second part, the small group discussions, are critical.
ReplyDeleteNicole, I agree. Nobody wants to be talked at, there is a reason community and communication have the same base word. An added benefit to this is the relationships the adult helpers are creating with some of the youth. It also requires the adults to think critically about the message as well.
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