Five Things With One More Veteran Pastor

FIVE individuals who were instrumental in your development as an educator and why.

  1. My dad—he was principal and taught grades 6-8 at St. Paul Lutheran School in South Haven, MI. Watching him in action and his dedication to ministry taught me a lot about what teaching was all about. 
  2. Prof. Mike Hein at MLS taught the Freshman history course. He used so many interactive ways to teach that we couldn’t wait to get to class and see what he’d say, do, or make us do to remember history. 
  3. Prof. Clarence Jenkins at MLS taught English and with his teaching style showed me that interacting with students could be very rewarding. 
  4. Dean/Prof. John Brenner taught Senior Doctrine at MLS and then I had him for Church History at WLS. He was instrumental in getting me into the pastoral ministry as well as showing that teaching the Bible could be a very engaging way to learn God’s Word. 
  5. Prof. Daniel Deutschlander did an excellent job in whatever he taught with engaging his listeners and helping them to be active learners even as he shared the depth of his wisdom. 

FOUR resources you’d recommend for educators who teach adults.

  1. Take the WLS Adult Education course—that’s where I really learned the most about teaching adults. Thanks Prof. Kock! 
  2. The Teach the Word articles that come out from NPH have also been incredibly helpful. 
  3. Adult Education (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCHKJz1zUswPQs4MMurEAuQ/videos) was a spot I used when researching for my class presentation. There are a lot of things to look at and sift through. 
  4. ProLiteracy Research Briefs (https://www.proliteracy.org/briefs) gives a lot of short papers to read and glean information on adult education. 

THREE of the most interesting/rewarding/fun Bible study topics you’ve covered in the last few years.

  1. A study of some of the Sunday pericope readings that I did as an assignment for the Adult Education course. It was fun to apply different principles and watch them work in class. 
  2. A study on prayer from NPH that I edited and used last spring 
  3. I really enjoyed using the Timely Topics studies from NPH.

TWO things that you do differently in Bible Study design/prep now as opposed to when your ministry began. 

  1. I don’t just try to write questions to get through the material and come up with a bunch of facts. I work hard to come up with questions and learning activities that will draw participants into the lesson and get them learning on their own. 
  2. I spend more time trying to listen instead of lecturing them. People who come to Bible study will say that they just want the teacher to fill them up, but for the most part they go away feeling like they learned something when they discover the truths for themselves.

ONE technique educators could implement in their next adult Bible Study to better engage learners with the content.

  • Work hard on the introduction and conclusion so that the thing you want them to take away (All People Should BAble To…) is the main focus throughout the entire lesson.

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