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A 1000 word essay on using textbooks in introductory courses (or not).

A 1000 word essay on using textbooks in introductory courses (or not).

A 1000 word essay on using textbooks in introductory courses (or not).

A 1000 word essay on using textbooks in introductory courses (or not).

A 1000 word essay on using textbooks in introductory courses (or not).

A 1000 word essay on using textbooks in introductory courses (or not).

This article reflects on an effort to incorporate constructivist pedagogies (learner-centered, inquiry-guided, problem-based models of teaching) into an introductory class on Christian Ethics in an M.Div. curriculum. Although some students preferred more traditional pedagogies, the majority found that constructivist pedagogies better accommodated different life experiences, diverse learning styles, and other features of the M.Div. curriculum. Further, a qualitative assessment of one student exercise indicates that constructivist pedagogies have benefits over traditional pedagogies. Specifically, students' work on a learning-group research project displayed creativity, depth, and breadth not found in individual research papers. Nonetheless, lukewarm student feedback also demonstrated the need to consider wider factors when attempting such innovations.

In this article we argue for an introductory course in the study of religion that proceeds through interactive interpretation as a responsible form of comparison. Interactive interpretation proceeds provisionally, and encourages students to formulate new questions of the materials instead of making final categories about the materials. We use examples from a typical classroom to show how we work with three pedagogical principles: (1) critical reading; (2) pluralism within religious traditions as well as between religious traditions; and (3) the use of the working hypothesis as a tool in analyzing religious texts. We also make an argument for textual reading as a form of living intellectual practice, which can work alongside of, and not in opposition to, other approaches to the study of religion, such as ethnographic or historical approaches.

Offering a review of four short introductory books on Christianity, this essay discusses how introductory textbooks, and introductory religion courses more generally, are like storytelling. Books by Lindberg, Tomkins, Norris, and Woodhead are reviewed with an emphasis on their classroom use. These books share several things in common – most notably, each is a "short," popular text. Dealing with the topic of Christianity in abbreviated form presents certain challenges and possibilities in the task of teaching. After examining these short histories, the essay reflects on several questions that emerge: When should we use textbooks in college classrooms? What are the goals that teachers have in the use of textbooks? How do textbooks define the subject matter of a course? And finally, how do teachers use texts to aid in telling a story in the classroom?

This essay discusses an approach to teaching religious studies in a general education or core curriculum that I have experimented with for the last decade, which I call the "Learning Covenant." The Learning Covenant brings together various pedagogical theories, including transformational, experiential, contract, and cooperative learning, in an attempt to address diverse learning styles, multiple intelligences, and student learning assessment. It has advantages over more traditional teacher-directed approaches to teaching, including meeting student resistance to "required" courses head-on by inviting them to identify learning needs regardless of chosen vocation and meeting them in the context of a religious studies course, recognizing the multiple ways in which students learn and providing a variety of opportunities for students to express their learning, and allowing students opportunity to take increased responsibility for their own learning. The essay will focus on the Learning Covenant's development, components, strengths, and drawbacks.