Formational Theological Education—Part 2: The Competency of the FolkPosted on October 13, 2014 by Timothy SnyderWe learn in our bodies, in concrete situations. We learn from our built-environments and the constructed social contexts which surround us. In theological education, the turn to CPE and field or contextual education have brought these pedagogical realities to the foreground.If it is the case that theological education shifts as models of ministry shift (and that seems to hold from my reading of history), then such learning in ministry ought to become the “research and development” arm of our seminaries and theological schools….
Full Reverse! The OT/HB from Writings to TorahPosted on August 16, 2013 by A+ Brooke Lester, Curator“Say, I know! Let’s teach our students, at term’s beginning, a model of Pentateuch formation that requires many of them to make a major emotional adjustment, and further involves learning the ENTIRE TIME LINE AND POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY of a thousand years of ancient Israel! Because, pedagogically speaking, how could that go wrong?”JEDP as a starting point for Old Testament study: what have we been thinking?But I admit, that’s not the real reason that I began to teach the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible (OT/HB) “in reverse”…
Reimagining Nimble Ways of Preparing Persons for Church Leadership—1 of 2Posted on July 24, 2013 by Robin SteinkeIf the world needs the church to be better at being the church and the church needs theological education institutions to be better at educating a wider range of people for leadership in the church, then how might we imagine such work?RecapMany schools are working to rethink both the time to degree and the delivery methods needed to prepare persons for ministry. Changes in ATS accreditation standards now define a minimum of 72 hours for a Master of Divinity Degree and allow up to 25% of the degree to be handled through advanced standing.
Counteracting Global Ignorance with Synchronous Online LearningPosted on July 23, 2013 by Nathan LoewenBringing web-based technology into the world religions classroom is often destructive. It’s wrong because the web technologies easily foster the worst kinds of tendencies that erode what is good about general education. The adoption of the web into religious studies teaching must adapt the technology towards properly-considered competencies for general education. I will propose and justify one means of doing just that.