Module 5
Delivering Instruction

"He never taught a lesson in a classroom. He had no tools to work with, such as blackboards, maps or charts… He used no subject outlines, kept no grades, and His only text was ancient and well worn…."

These words from the anonymous poet give us much to think about as we reflect on both the art and science of good teaching. We may think of words and phrases like pedagogy, teaching methods, multiple intelligences, higher order thinking, instructional approaches, common essential learnings, and all the rest of the educational jargon that has become the language of the teaching profession. However, as educators who are committed to the teaching example of Jesus, we have wonderful opportunities to reflect on our own teaching methodologies through the light of faith.

How did Jesus Teach?

Gini Shimabukuro (2000) directs Catholic educators to a wonderful resource formulated by two Protestant educators, Thom and Joani Schultz (1993). They propose four teaching strategies that Jesus utilized that could just have easily been taken from an educational methods textbook written in modern times. They propose that Jesus:

1. Started with the learner's context, realizing that effective learning builds upon what the learner currently knows.
2. Facilitated learners to discover truth for themselves.
3. Took advantage of teachable moments, creating lessons out of circumstances that surrounded him.
4. Provided his learners with opportunities to practice what they learned.

Another perspective is provided by Yount (1998) who observes other characteristics and methods of Jesus, the master teacher:

The Characteristics Of Jesus As Teacher

• Was What He Taught
• Was Comfortable With People Of All Kinds
• Was Compassionate Toward The Learners
• Had A Strong Self-Concept
• Knew His Learners

Jesus' Methods Of Teaching

• Established A Relationship With The Learners
• Stimulated And Maintained Interest
• Taught By Example
• Taught People, Not Lessons
• Emphasized Character More Than Content
• Focused On Ever Smaller Groups
• Recognized The Worth Of The Learner
• Emphasized Quality Of Effort Over Quantity
• Emphasized Action More Than Knowledge
• Focused On Structure More Than Detail
• Stressed Long -Term Rather Than Immediate Results

The one irrefutable conclusion that one can make about Jesus the teacher is that his pedagogy was grounded in the intimate and personal relationship that he had with his students. This relationship was characterized more by the process of teaching than the content of teaching. This sentiment is perhaps best expressed by Henry Nouwen (1971) who wrote:

"Education is not primarily ministry because of what is taught, but because of the nature of the educational process itself. Perhaps we have paid too much attention to the content of teaching without realizing that the teaching relationship is the most important factor in the ministry of teaching."

Further evidence of the relational dimension of teaching is implicit through all the Vatican documents on education. This sentiment is most eloquently presented in The Religious Dimension of Education in a Catholic School, which states,

"Most of all, students should be able to recognize authentic human qualities in their teachers. They are teachers of faith; however, like Christ, they must also be teachers of what it means to be human. This indicates…such things as affection, tact, understanding, serenity of spirit, a balanced judgment, patience in listening to others and prudence in the way they respond and finally, availability for personal meetings and conversations with students."

Another of the Vatican documents, Lay Catholics in Schools:Witnesses To Faith makes similar assertions:

"A variety of pedagogical theories exist; the choice of the Catholic educator, based on a Christian concept of the human person, should be the practice of a pedagogy which gives special emphasis to direct and personal contact with the students. If the teacher undertakes this contact with the conviction that students are already in possession of fundamentally positive values, the relationship will allow for an openness and a dialogue which will facilitate an understanding of the witness to faith that is revealed through the behaviour of the teacher." (no. 21)

• How can my personal teaching methods better reflect the example of Jesus?
• What is the common pedagogical element that emerges in the Vatican documents and in the words of Henri Nouwen?
• Create a definition of a Catholic Pedagogy.

Co-creating With Jesus: A New Understanding of Pedagogy

It is not a far stretch of the imagination to deduce that Jesus was fascinated by knowledge in all its many forms. Scripture is full of examples where Jesus asks the people for their ideas. He followed the lead of his own Heavenly Father who brought the animals to Adam and Eve and said, "Whatever you call them, that will be their name" (Genesis 2:19). Jesus taught us that life is about learning from others and using our knowledge for co-creating positive change. Jesus was, and continues to be, interested in the ideas of people.

Even the Apostle Paul expresses his personal need for reading and studying the ideas of others when he requests of Timothy, "When you come, bring … my scrolls, especially the parchments" (2 Timothy 4:13). In his quest for knowledge, one can easily imagine Paul going beyond the reading of the Old Testament and asking Timothy to bring along works of Jewish history, medicine, astrology, explanations of the law, and stories of the prophets. Paul's counsel to Timothy, "Give heed to reading" (1 Timothy 4:13) has as much relevance today as it did when the words were first uttered. A scholar to the end, Paul was one who was passionate about the written word and its potential for the creation of new ideas.

A Secular and Faith Based Understanding of Pedagogy

While we need to always adhere to the models set before us by the Master Teacher, we can remain comfortable in the belief that our vocation as Catholic teachers is not only in following the example of Jesus, but also in taking what we know about Christian pedagogy, and co-creating new and innovative pedagogies that address present day needs and realities, as well as our understanding of current secular research. Perhaps this is best articulated by the The Sacred Congregation for Catholic Education (1982) in its document Lay Catholics in Schools:Witnesses To Faith:

"...our age is characterized by change; change that is constant and accelerated.... Because of change, knowledge that has been acquired, and structures that have been established, are quickly outdated.... The Catholic educator has an obvious need for updating; in personal attitudes, in the content of the subjects being taught, [and] in the pedagogical methods that are used.... No lay Catholic who works in a school can ignore this present-day need. To do so would be to remain locked up in outdated knowledge, criteria, and attitudes." (no. 67)

What commonalities does Jesus' teaching methodology have with today's understanding of good instruction? Refer to Instructional Approaches and Common Essential Learnings. How could our modern understanding of instruction better reflect the example of Jesus? How can I become better informed so as to become a co-creator of our understanding of pedagogy and instructional design? Click on Teacher's Call To Remain Professionally Updated and provide additional reasons for why Catholic teachers need to remain current in their reading and understanding of the research.

Sister Clare Fitzgerald: Where the Pedagogical Rubber Hits the Road

Sister Clare Fitzgerald of Boston College is well known to Canadians. She has spoken to Catholic educators in Ontario, Alberta, and Saskatchewan as part of this province's Understanding the Faith Inservice Program. It has been said of Sister Clare that her talks give a clear sense of "where the pedagogical rubber hits the road." In an article in the March 29 Edition of The Prairie Messenger, Sister Clare is quoted as saying: "Our Catholic pedagogy tells us that when a child walks into a classroom, this child is someone created by God, for God and these children are on a journey home to God…. It's our job to nourish that child on its journey. We have to see the child as something holy and if we do that, it changes our educational system." Sister Clare's eloquently chosen words square very well with the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which speaks of a Divine Pedagogy. The General Directory for Catechesis (no. 143) states that Divine Pedagogy is a place: where words and deeds, teaching and experience are interlinked.

Pedagogy in a Catholic educational sense can best be defined as the relationship that exists between the student, the teacher and God. This relationship of course occurs within the broader context of the Catholic community (see Module 2). In this relationship, the teacher and community doesn't stand between the student and God, but beside him. In other words, a Catholic pedagogy promotes a personal God relationship for each student with teacher and community as a source of spiritual encouragement, faith example and quality teaching. In this context, Catholic pedagogy is as much art as it is faith as has been expressed by such notable writers as Bishop Raymond Burke (2000) who wrote: "The pedagogy or art of teaching…should imitate the pedagogy of God. The art of teaching the faith is the art of assisting others to return to God the Father in love and holiness of life…."

Behavioural Markers of a Catholic Pedagogy

Shimabukuro (1998) provides several behavioral markers of this intimate relationship between student and teacher. These markers are essential for Catholic teachers who desire to practice a truly Catholic pedagogy. They are briefly outlined here in Shimabukuro's own words:

Self-esteem:

• Effective Educators work to maintain self-esteem, realizing that their healthy sense of self continually affects their students.
• A teacher with a mature spiritual personality actualizes his or her self-esteem through accountability and responsibility, and nurtures the connection between self-esteem and spirituality.

Authentic Caring:

• The teacher who cares for students must be open to learning about them.
• Such a teacher recognizes individual learning differences, provides dynamic delivery of curriculum and offers a variety of opportunities for student assessment, all in an effort to actualize each student's potential.

Humility:

• One of the most valuable virtues of the educator [is] humility.
• Humility creates a valuable learning space between the teacher and student that invites communication and ultimately, the transformation of both student and teacher (Shimabukuro references Mayeroff, 1971)

Communication Skills:

• A practical spirituality hinges on appropriate, positive and effective interactions with others. This in turn requires refined communication skills on the part of the educator.
• Taking focused time and care to reveal the Christian message not only by word, but also by every gesture of behavior empowers the teacher to make transformative differences in the lives of students.
• It is the mission of the educator "to inform, form, and transform [students] with the meaning and ethic of Christian faith." (Shimabukuro cites this quote from Groome 1996)

Other Catholic writers like Hawker (1985) have identified additional behavioral markers that don't require definitions. Responsibility, Patience, and Enthusiasm have been identified as key behaviors for all teachers wishing to establish a pedagogy that enhances teaching and learning. Think of these behavioral markers in the context of the challenges set for us by Shimabukuro and Sister Clare Fitzgerald as you reflect on the following points:

How does Sister Clare help us understand "where the pedagogical rubber hits the road"? What is the focus of a Catholic pedagogy and how does this focus impact on what we do as teachers in terms of building relationships with our students? Click on Divine Pedagogy. Read the various entries to develop your own definition of this term. Write this definition and post it where it can be read and reflected upon. Read Shimabukuro's behavioral markers. Think about how you reflect each of these in your teaching. How do these markers determine your own relationship with your students?

Resources:

Burke, Raymond. (2000). The Art of Teaching the Faith. (web article).

Mayeroff, Milton. (1971). On Caring. Harper Perennial. New York.

Nouwen, Henri. (1971) Creative Ministry. Doubleday. New York

Shultz, Thom & Joani. (1993). Why Nobody Learns Much of Anything at Church: And How to Fix It. Loveland, CO

Shimabukuro, Gini. (1998) "The Authentic Teacher: Gestures of Behaviour". Momentum. vol. 29, no. 2

Shimabukuro, Gini. (2000). "Teaching and Learning in the Catholic School". Catholic School Leadership: An Invitation to Lead. Falmer Press. London and New York.

Hawker, James. (1985). Catechetics in the Catholic School. NCEA Keynote Series No. 10.

Yount, Rick. (1998). "Jesus, The Master Teacher". (Web Article)

*** "Studying With Christ" graphic used with permission of Catholic Youth Networking.