Teaching the Word in Christian School

Maybe I should put “Part 1″ in front of the title.  Over the summer and into this fall, though we have not been as active in blogging as desired, the email we have received and answered has focused heavily on Bible curriculum for middle and high school students.  It seems that most Bible teachers have similar difficulties. Such as:

1.  Administrators who are overly sensitive to parent complaints and want Bible to be more like art class than something serious and academic.

2.  Lack of comprehensive curriculum materials that are age appropriate, and prepare students for the challenges they will face in college and beyond.

3.  Teachers who do not have any formal training in Bible being given a Bible class to teach because it fits into their schedule and “anyone can teach Bible, right?” 

Let’s talk about teaching Bible the right way. 

First, on the middle and high school level, Bible should never be an afterthought.  Bible teachers on this level should be individuals who have formal training in Biblical studies.  I would add to that the requirement that they have some kind of ministry experience working with teenagers as well.  A vacancy in the Bible department is not an opportunity to hire a coach.  You need someone who knows the Bible, and understands theology well enough to help students “catch” the principles it teaches,  and actually learn how to experience faith formation for themselves.  Maybe a Bible teacher can help coach your football or volleyball team, but they need to have a degree in Biblical studies and a commitment to teaching first. 

Second, don’t let available curriculum materials dictate what you teach.  YOU develop your own curriculum, year by year, based on the goals and objectives you set for your Bible program.  The Christian media publishing business is massive, and while they may not have produced materials that are divided up for use by semester, unit by unit, they have probably produced some useful things to help you come up with your own lessons.  You know your own students better than anyone else.  You decide what they need to learn on each grade level. 

We used to advocate some kind of Bible survey course for ninth grade, perhaps a semester of Old Testament, a semester in the New.  But I think a more systematic approach is better than just doing that.  Give them some background in middle school, and in the ninth grade, cover the major Bible themes.  Start with the theme of Redemption.  Matthew 5:17 is a key theme, in which Jesus says that he has come to fulfill the law and the prophets.  Blend together the New Testament teachings and principles of Jesus which show the themes of salvation, faith, grace, and the disciplines of the Christian faith with the Old Testament principles and prophecies that point to Jesus coming and the kind of faith he would bring as complimented by the old covenant. 

High School students should also have a comprehensive course in apologetics, once they are able to handle the basic principles and teachings of the New Testament.  Josh McDowell’s book, A Ready Defense, along with Lee Strobel’s The Case for Christ, are excellent challenges for high school students and a good Bible teacher can divide up the material into workable units for the students.  I would save this course for their junior or senior year. 

After tackling the major themes of the Bible, students need a course in New Testament studies.  During this course, you can teach and practice basic hermeneutics, and turn students loose to discover the truths taught by the various New Testament writers.  Devote at least a semester to the gospels, and make sure each student has a “Harmony of the Gospels” to use.  Make sure there is historical background included, so that students understand how to determine context. 

The main emphasis of middle school Bible should be on basic Bible study skills.  They should spend at least one year learning how to interpret scripture, and then have basic units that help them apply those skills. 

Speaking from experience, a good Bible teacher in a Christian school will spend a lot of time writing unit objectives, lesson plans, and even the lessons and learning activities themselves.  Once you’ve done it, you have a framework to use again, and it does get easier.  You will also spend a lot of time convincing your administration that approaching Bible this way makes sense, since it is the very core of the foundation upon which your school is built.  If they don’t quite see it that way, then it may be your job to convince them.  Many administrators are very driven by parent complaints which often do not reflect a strong conviction about what students should be learning.