I have been thinking a lot about teaching and learning lately. What does good teaching look like? How can we ensure that our students are successful learners?
These are the questions that had my wheels spinning as I lay awake with a red 3:00 staring back at me. I started thinking about Jesus and his teaching. On the surface, I saw Jesus teaching in the traditional sense. Lecturing, or giving a sermon, with an audience soaking it all in. But the more I thought about it, the more that I realized this was not the way Jesus taught at all. As I started scratching the surface I came to the realization that Jesus' teaching style was more that of a constructivist. His teaching through parables and questioning encouraged his audience to construct their own knowledge through critical thinking and problem solving. I think that Jesus knew that learning and knowledge is more powerful when it is discovered and grappled with. The greatest Teacher in the world chose not to simply feed us facts, but to reveal truth in a way that caused us to think about it, to wrestle with it and, as a result, come to a deeper understanding of it. This teaching continues to challenge us and reveal truth 2,000 years later.
Teaching this way may not be the quickest or easiest way, but if we want our students to become life long learners, we will put in the extra work to transform them into thinkers. I don't want students who can regurgitate facts that I tell them are important. I want them to question, problem solve, think creatively and critically, and ultimately discover importance in learning.
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Kelly you are so right. Your point that Jesus challenges his students, "to construct their own knowledge through critical thinking and problem solving" is key. We must teach our pupils to think for themselves and to learn how to solve their own problems. Our assignments must include tangible experiences and the real threat of failure. In their success the students will develop a love of learning that will carry them out of the classroom and into the world. God gives us a choice presented in His son, Jesus Christ. If all we do is read the facts of his life we will never reach a decision of faith. We need to experience His love first hand. That's how we learn.
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I had never thought about His teaching style quite like that. That is going to leave me pondering...
ReplyDeleteI had never analized HIS TEACHING STYLE...
ReplyDeleteDEFF THE BEST
:)