Philosophy of Teaching
Scholarship On Teaching - Topic: Philosophy of Teaching - 44 results
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The article is a response to this journal's call for papers on metaphors for teaching, and also draws from a previous publication in which Kent Eilers developed a methodology for teaching global theologies. In this methodology, the ultimate goal was the development of “hermeneutical dispositions of empathy, hospitality, and receptivity toward culturally diverse voices” (2014, 165). This article considers the goals of Eilers' methodology, and others like his, and how it is ...
The article is a response to this journal's call for papers on metaphors for teaching, and also draws from a previous publication in which Kent Eilers developed a methodology for teaching global theologies. In this methodology, the ultimate goal was the development of “hermeneutical dispositions of empathy, hospitality, and receptivity toward culturally diverse voices” (2014, 165). This article considers the goals of Eilers' methodology, and others like his, and how it is ...
Additional Info:
The article is a response to this journal's call for papers on metaphors for teaching, and also draws from a previous publication in which Kent Eilers developed a methodology for teaching global theologies. In this methodology, the ultimate goal was the development of “hermeneutical dispositions of empathy, hospitality, and receptivity toward culturally diverse voices” (2014, 165). This article considers the goals of Eilers' methodology, and others like his, and how it is that the metaphors of “leaving home” and “communal imagination” highlight the importance of the ambient and interpersonal features of a classroom and their effect on the attainment of the above goals. In so doing, it extends the conversation beyond content and methodology in teaching theology and religion into the realms of philosophy of education, as well as the fields of moral and values education. It is contended that the metaphors informed by these areas of study facilitate the attainment of such goals, and similar ones, by demonstrating that the cultivation of an ambience of care, trust, and compassion within the classroom constitutes an essential foundation for learning in which students “leave home” and cultivate “communal imagination.” The article finishes with practical suggestions for educators in theology and religion.
The article is a response to this journal's call for papers on metaphors for teaching, and also draws from a previous publication in which Kent Eilers developed a methodology for teaching global theologies. In this methodology, the ultimate goal was the development of “hermeneutical dispositions of empathy, hospitality, and receptivity toward culturally diverse voices” (2014, 165). This article considers the goals of Eilers' methodology, and others like his, and how it is that the metaphors of “leaving home” and “communal imagination” highlight the importance of the ambient and interpersonal features of a classroom and their effect on the attainment of the above goals. In so doing, it extends the conversation beyond content and methodology in teaching theology and religion into the realms of philosophy of education, as well as the fields of moral and values education. It is contended that the metaphors informed by these areas of study facilitate the attainment of such goals, and similar ones, by demonstrating that the cultivation of an ambience of care, trust, and compassion within the classroom constitutes an essential foundation for learning in which students “leave home” and cultivate “communal imagination.” The article finishes with practical suggestions for educators in theology and religion.
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This essay highlights a range of questions that arise when white suburban students engage urban neighborhoods of poverty and color in the United States. How can involvement in an “other” context move beyond “educational tourism”? The essay presents a pedagogical style that raises questions of the kind of socialized body one inhabits: either one shaped by presumptions of control and rights of academic observation, or one mobilized to risk involvement ...
This essay highlights a range of questions that arise when white suburban students engage urban neighborhoods of poverty and color in the United States. How can involvement in an “other” context move beyond “educational tourism”? The essay presents a pedagogical style that raises questions of the kind of socialized body one inhabits: either one shaped by presumptions of control and rights of academic observation, or one mobilized to risk involvement ...
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This essay highlights a range of questions that arise when white suburban students engage urban neighborhoods of poverty and color in the United States. How can involvement in an “other” context move beyond “educational tourism”? The essay presents a pedagogical style that raises questions of the kind of socialized body one inhabits: either one shaped by presumptions of control and rights of academic observation, or one mobilized to risk involvement in a differently communalized episteme. And while the pedagogy described may not be replicable by faculty who do not share the author's background or cross-cultural orientation, the rhetorical style of the essay itself enacts the tensions that this pedagogy contends with: the efforts of a white male educator – altered by decades of inner city involvement – to open “white” space in the classroom to other norms of embodiment and other modes of learning. Here is the necessity and impossibility of moving beyond “educational tourism.”
This essay highlights a range of questions that arise when white suburban students engage urban neighborhoods of poverty and color in the United States. How can involvement in an “other” context move beyond “educational tourism”? The essay presents a pedagogical style that raises questions of the kind of socialized body one inhabits: either one shaped by presumptions of control and rights of academic observation, or one mobilized to risk involvement in a differently communalized episteme. And while the pedagogy described may not be replicable by faculty who do not share the author's background or cross-cultural orientation, the rhetorical style of the essay itself enacts the tensions that this pedagogy contends with: the efforts of a white male educator – altered by decades of inner city involvement – to open “white” space in the classroom to other norms of embodiment and other modes of learning. Here is the necessity and impossibility of moving beyond “educational tourism.”
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In addition to the pragmatic concerns that often drive the use of technology in theological education, there is a need to develop theological justification and direction for online education. Several Roman Catholic Church documents propose the "divine pedagogy," the manner in which God teaches the human race, as a model for catechesis or religious education. This can provide a rich resource for developing a theological pedagogy for online education. This ...
In addition to the pragmatic concerns that often drive the use of technology in theological education, there is a need to develop theological justification and direction for online education. Several Roman Catholic Church documents propose the "divine pedagogy," the manner in which God teaches the human race, as a model for catechesis or religious education. This can provide a rich resource for developing a theological pedagogy for online education. This ...
Additional Info:
In addition to the pragmatic concerns that often drive the use of technology in theological education, there is a need to develop theological justification and direction for online education. Several Roman Catholic Church documents propose the "divine pedagogy," the manner in which God teaches the human race, as a model for catechesis or religious education. This can provide a rich resource for developing a theological pedagogy for online education. This is especially relevant to the justification for online education, because critics sometimes refer to the incarnational character of the divine pedagogy to argue against the disembodied nature of virtual education. This article addresses such criticisms and more constructively, relates several aspects of the divine pedagogy such as adaptation, community, and participation to teaching and learning in the online environment. (This paper was presented at Theology and Pedagogy in Cyberspace II conference in Evanston, Ill. on April 17, 2004.)
In addition to the pragmatic concerns that often drive the use of technology in theological education, there is a need to develop theological justification and direction for online education. Several Roman Catholic Church documents propose the "divine pedagogy," the manner in which God teaches the human race, as a model for catechesis or religious education. This can provide a rich resource for developing a theological pedagogy for online education. This is especially relevant to the justification for online education, because critics sometimes refer to the incarnational character of the divine pedagogy to argue against the disembodied nature of virtual education. This article addresses such criticisms and more constructively, relates several aspects of the divine pedagogy such as adaptation, community, and participation to teaching and learning in the online environment. (This paper was presented at Theology and Pedagogy in Cyberspace II conference in Evanston, Ill. on April 17, 2004.)
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The theological pedagogies which dominate degree-granting schools originated in the courses of study and graduate programs of the teachers. These pedagogies foster a deep rift between theology as an academic or scholarly discipline (science?) and the situations and interests of students. Students are taught to imitate what scholars do: interpreting texts, making formal arguments, and writing essays. Accordingly, theology recedes from the present and future of students including future clergy, ...
The theological pedagogies which dominate degree-granting schools originated in the courses of study and graduate programs of the teachers. These pedagogies foster a deep rift between theology as an academic or scholarly discipline (science?) and the situations and interests of students. Students are taught to imitate what scholars do: interpreting texts, making formal arguments, and writing essays. Accordingly, theology recedes from the present and future of students including future clergy, ...
Additional Info:
The theological pedagogies which dominate degree-granting schools originated in the courses of study and graduate programs of the teachers. These pedagogies foster a deep rift between theology as an academic or scholarly discipline (science?) and the situations and interests of students. Students are taught to imitate what scholars do: interpreting texts, making formal arguments, and writing essays. Accordingly, theology recedes from the present and future of students including future clergy, having little to do with their religious life or career. By defining theology as scholarship, academic pedagogy obscures its primary meaning, the critical and creative thinking of the situations of life and world under the perspective of the Gospel. If theology's primary meaning is scholarly knowledge and its preoccupation with text interpretation and doctrinal exposition, the result will be to ignore religion's actual practices, especially its idolatrous tendency to literalize its own language and absolutize its institutional mediations. A pedagogy that reflects theology's primary meaning will focus on contemplation, reflection, and thinking and thus order methods, texts, and doctrines to that.
The theological pedagogies which dominate degree-granting schools originated in the courses of study and graduate programs of the teachers. These pedagogies foster a deep rift between theology as an academic or scholarly discipline (science?) and the situations and interests of students. Students are taught to imitate what scholars do: interpreting texts, making formal arguments, and writing essays. Accordingly, theology recedes from the present and future of students including future clergy, having little to do with their religious life or career. By defining theology as scholarship, academic pedagogy obscures its primary meaning, the critical and creative thinking of the situations of life and world under the perspective of the Gospel. If theology's primary meaning is scholarly knowledge and its preoccupation with text interpretation and doctrinal exposition, the result will be to ignore religion's actual practices, especially its idolatrous tendency to literalize its own language and absolutize its institutional mediations. A pedagogy that reflects theology's primary meaning will focus on contemplation, reflection, and thinking and thus order methods, texts, and doctrines to that.
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Using an autobiographical approach for pedagogical reflection, the author raises questions about how to include "hospitable kinship" and "gift exchange" in teaching and learning. Her experience with a Zimbabwean community circle of hospitable kinship has prompted her to consider how this method of community formation might be employed in classroom situations. Definitions for hospitable kinship and gift exchange are woven throughout the narrative. Attention to the role of the teacher ...
Using an autobiographical approach for pedagogical reflection, the author raises questions about how to include "hospitable kinship" and "gift exchange" in teaching and learning. Her experience with a Zimbabwean community circle of hospitable kinship has prompted her to consider how this method of community formation might be employed in classroom situations. Definitions for hospitable kinship and gift exchange are woven throughout the narrative. Attention to the role of the teacher ...
Additional Info:
Using an autobiographical approach for pedagogical reflection, the author raises questions about how to include "hospitable kinship" and "gift exchange" in teaching and learning. Her experience with a Zimbabwean community circle of hospitable kinship has prompted her to consider how this method of community formation might be employed in classroom situations. Definitions for hospitable kinship and gift exchange are woven throughout the narrative. Attention to the role of the teacher as host is provided as well. The essay prompts readers to turn their attention toward specific strategies that will aid in the formation of classroom community.
Using an autobiographical approach for pedagogical reflection, the author raises questions about how to include "hospitable kinship" and "gift exchange" in teaching and learning. Her experience with a Zimbabwean community circle of hospitable kinship has prompted her to consider how this method of community formation might be employed in classroom situations. Definitions for hospitable kinship and gift exchange are woven throughout the narrative. Attention to the role of the teacher as host is provided as well. The essay prompts readers to turn their attention toward specific strategies that will aid in the formation of classroom community.
Additional Info:
This article elucidates theoretical underpinnings for the use of one’s self in the pastoral theological classroom. The contemplative bow is developed as a capacious metaphor to describe appropriate self use and its necessary importance in the teaching and learning of pastoral arts in a theological curriculum. Central to the argument is the assumption that effective teaching and learning in pastoral care emerges from awareness and knowledge of self as ...
This article elucidates theoretical underpinnings for the use of one’s self in the pastoral theological classroom. The contemplative bow is developed as a capacious metaphor to describe appropriate self use and its necessary importance in the teaching and learning of pastoral arts in a theological curriculum. Central to the argument is the assumption that effective teaching and learning in pastoral care emerges from awareness and knowledge of self as ...
Additional Info:
This article elucidates theoretical underpinnings for the use of one’s self in the pastoral theological classroom. The contemplative bow is developed as a capacious metaphor to describe appropriate self use and its necessary importance in the teaching and learning of pastoral arts in a theological curriculum. Central to the argument is the assumption that effective teaching and learning in pastoral care emerges from awareness and knowledge of self as well as letting go of self in beneficial service with others. Analytical engagement of educational, theological, and psychological theory informs practice for the professional school classroom.
This article elucidates theoretical underpinnings for the use of one’s self in the pastoral theological classroom. The contemplative bow is developed as a capacious metaphor to describe appropriate self use and its necessary importance in the teaching and learning of pastoral arts in a theological curriculum. Central to the argument is the assumption that effective teaching and learning in pastoral care emerges from awareness and knowledge of self as well as letting go of self in beneficial service with others. Analytical engagement of educational, theological, and psychological theory informs practice for the professional school classroom.
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Two troublesome portraits of religious studies professors often exist in the minds of some students at any given time: the Guru, or wise spiritual teacher, and the Deceiver. These metaphors capture student perceptions of us that may be ill-informed and beyond our control. We will examine and compare how our own chosen metaphors for teaching – theological typologist and neutral enthusiast – respond creatively to the unchosen metaphors of guru or deceiver. ...
Two troublesome portraits of religious studies professors often exist in the minds of some students at any given time: the Guru, or wise spiritual teacher, and the Deceiver. These metaphors capture student perceptions of us that may be ill-informed and beyond our control. We will examine and compare how our own chosen metaphors for teaching – theological typologist and neutral enthusiast – respond creatively to the unchosen metaphors of guru or deceiver. ...
Additional Info:
Two troublesome portraits of religious studies professors often exist in the minds of some students at any given time: the Guru, or wise spiritual teacher, and the Deceiver. These metaphors capture student perceptions of us that may be ill-informed and beyond our control. We will examine and compare how our own chosen metaphors for teaching – theological typologist and neutral enthusiast – respond creatively to the unchosen metaphors of guru or deceiver. We cannot avoid being cast as gurus/deceivers, but we can discern how our own metaphors for teaching engage "unchosen" student metaphors for us. This exercise can enhance our self-awareness about our own normative agendas in the classroom, and help to sharpen colleagues' conversations about our sometimes differing assumptions regarding the discipline and teaching of religious studies.
Two troublesome portraits of religious studies professors often exist in the minds of some students at any given time: the Guru, or wise spiritual teacher, and the Deceiver. These metaphors capture student perceptions of us that may be ill-informed and beyond our control. We will examine and compare how our own chosen metaphors for teaching – theological typologist and neutral enthusiast – respond creatively to the unchosen metaphors of guru or deceiver. We cannot avoid being cast as gurus/deceivers, but we can discern how our own metaphors for teaching engage "unchosen" student metaphors for us. This exercise can enhance our self-awareness about our own normative agendas in the classroom, and help to sharpen colleagues' conversations about our sometimes differing assumptions regarding the discipline and teaching of religious studies.
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Many faculty members reach for powerful clips or entire films to give background information to a topic or to provoke discussion. We do this because we have a sense that such materials engage students in a way that more theoretical texts, speculative discussions, or even case studies do not. In the field of ethics, however, one meets resistance to employing narratives that are too engaging. The wary ethicist doubts that ...
Many faculty members reach for powerful clips or entire films to give background information to a topic or to provoke discussion. We do this because we have a sense that such materials engage students in a way that more theoretical texts, speculative discussions, or even case studies do not. In the field of ethics, however, one meets resistance to employing narratives that are too engaging. The wary ethicist doubts that ...
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Many faculty members reach for powerful clips or entire films to give background information to a topic or to provoke discussion. We do this because we have a sense that such materials engage students in a way that more theoretical texts, speculative discussions, or even case studies do not. In the field of ethics, however, one meets resistance to employing narratives that are too engaging. The wary ethicist doubts that a medium that manipulates the viewer, engages the emotions, and elicits a personal connection to the characters is the best resource for ethical reflection. This paper argues that film, like other narrative forms, is indeed an appropriate medium for teaching ethics and suggests methods for doing so effectively.
Many faculty members reach for powerful clips or entire films to give background information to a topic or to provoke discussion. We do this because we have a sense that such materials engage students in a way that more theoretical texts, speculative discussions, or even case studies do not. In the field of ethics, however, one meets resistance to employing narratives that are too engaging. The wary ethicist doubts that a medium that manipulates the viewer, engages the emotions, and elicits a personal connection to the characters is the best resource for ethical reflection. This paper argues that film, like other narrative forms, is indeed an appropriate medium for teaching ethics and suggests methods for doing so effectively.
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Drawing on his own work in educational theory as well as his classroom experience, the author identifies important dialogical vices that he finds in his students: pride and cowardice. These vices are put both in the theoretical context of a greater understanding of the role of dialogue in learning and in the social context of the contemporary multicultural ethos from which the students come. In opposition to the vices, the ...
Drawing on his own work in educational theory as well as his classroom experience, the author identifies important dialogical vices that he finds in his students: pride and cowardice. These vices are put both in the theoretical context of a greater understanding of the role of dialogue in learning and in the social context of the contemporary multicultural ethos from which the students come. In opposition to the vices, the ...
Additional Info:
Drawing on his own work in educational theory as well as his classroom experience, the author identifies important dialogical vices that he finds in his students: pride and cowardice. These vices are put both in the theoretical context of a greater understanding of the role of dialogue in learning and in the social context of the contemporary multicultural ethos from which the students come. In opposition to the vices, the author proposes dialogical virtues (humility, charity, and courage) and a concept of tolerance that help us to avoid pride and cowardice. In this way, we achieve genuine dialogue and multiculturalism and avoid what the author calls a pernicious multiculturalism
Drawing on his own work in educational theory as well as his classroom experience, the author identifies important dialogical vices that he finds in his students: pride and cowardice. These vices are put both in the theoretical context of a greater understanding of the role of dialogue in learning and in the social context of the contemporary multicultural ethos from which the students come. In opposition to the vices, the author proposes dialogical virtues (humility, charity, and courage) and a concept of tolerance that help us to avoid pride and cowardice. In this way, we achieve genuine dialogue and multiculturalism and avoid what the author calls a pernicious multiculturalism
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The article is a reflection on what I perceive to be a confusion about the relation between theoretical judgments and judgments of pedagogical efficacy. My interest in the issue originated with my own confusion over persistent student resistance to certain assigned texts that I had initially felt confident would prove valuable in the classroom. The essay unfolds in three segments. In the first, I recount how this concern about the ...
The article is a reflection on what I perceive to be a confusion about the relation between theoretical judgments and judgments of pedagogical efficacy. My interest in the issue originated with my own confusion over persistent student resistance to certain assigned texts that I had initially felt confident would prove valuable in the classroom. The essay unfolds in three segments. In the first, I recount how this concern about the ...
Additional Info:
The article is a reflection on what I perceive to be a confusion about the relation between theoretical judgments and judgments of pedagogical efficacy. My interest in the issue originated with my own confusion over persistent student resistance to certain assigned texts that I had initially felt confident would prove valuable in the classroom. The essay unfolds in three segments. In the first, I recount how this concern about the relation between theoretical judgments and judgments of pedagogical efficacy evolved out of my own teaching. I next list three tentative conclusions about the correlation or lack of correlation between theoretical judgments and judgments of pedagogical efficacy. In the concluding segment, I call for concerted resistance to the tendency of pure rationality to colonize the aesthetic and dramatic components of experience so essential to transformative teaching and learning.
The article is a reflection on what I perceive to be a confusion about the relation between theoretical judgments and judgments of pedagogical efficacy. My interest in the issue originated with my own confusion over persistent student resistance to certain assigned texts that I had initially felt confident would prove valuable in the classroom. The essay unfolds in three segments. In the first, I recount how this concern about the relation between theoretical judgments and judgments of pedagogical efficacy evolved out of my own teaching. I next list three tentative conclusions about the correlation or lack of correlation between theoretical judgments and judgments of pedagogical efficacy. In the concluding segment, I call for concerted resistance to the tendency of pure rationality to colonize the aesthetic and dramatic components of experience so essential to transformative teaching and learning.
Additional Info:
At the same time that teachers in theology and religion have been encouraged to consider how their personal identities affect their teaching, there has also been increased interest in active learning strategies. This essay argues that these two initiatives may be in conflict if the communal commitments of the instructor do not mirror the democratic commitments inherent to most active learning pedagogies. As a teacher of theology and ethics who ...
At the same time that teachers in theology and religion have been encouraged to consider how their personal identities affect their teaching, there has also been increased interest in active learning strategies. This essay argues that these two initiatives may be in conflict if the communal commitments of the instructor do not mirror the democratic commitments inherent to most active learning pedagogies. As a teacher of theology and ethics who ...
Additional Info:
At the same time that teachers in theology and religion have been encouraged to consider how their personal identities affect their teaching, there has also been increased interest in active learning strategies. This essay argues that these two initiatives may be in conflict if the communal commitments of the instructor do not mirror the democratic commitments inherent to most active learning pedagogies. As a teacher of theology and ethics who is ultimately not committed to democracy but to the Kingdom of God, I have sought to develop learning strategies which avoid student passivity while focusing on the church as a foretaste to God's Kingdom. My consideration of this dilemma has drawn me to the educational philosophies of both John Dewey and Stanley Hauerwas, and in response to them I outline an active learning strategy which envisions the Christian church as a living tradition with students as dialogue partners and contributors to it.
At the same time that teachers in theology and religion have been encouraged to consider how their personal identities affect their teaching, there has also been increased interest in active learning strategies. This essay argues that these two initiatives may be in conflict if the communal commitments of the instructor do not mirror the democratic commitments inherent to most active learning pedagogies. As a teacher of theology and ethics who is ultimately not committed to democracy but to the Kingdom of God, I have sought to develop learning strategies which avoid student passivity while focusing on the church as a foretaste to God's Kingdom. My consideration of this dilemma has drawn me to the educational philosophies of both John Dewey and Stanley Hauerwas, and in response to them I outline an active learning strategy which envisions the Christian church as a living tradition with students as dialogue partners and contributors to it.
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By reclaiming the role of confession in the classroom, we can rethink the fundamental question of what it means to teach religion. That is, the project of thinking about the religious dimension of pedagogy should also force us to rethink religious studies in general. Pedagogy, after all, is not an incidental expression of religious commitments but is instead one significant place where the religious imagination takes shape and form. All ...
By reclaiming the role of confession in the classroom, we can rethink the fundamental question of what it means to teach religion. That is, the project of thinking about the religious dimension of pedagogy should also force us to rethink religious studies in general. Pedagogy, after all, is not an incidental expression of religious commitments but is instead one significant place where the religious imagination takes shape and form. All ...
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By reclaiming the role of confession in the classroom, we can rethink the fundamental question of what it means to teach religion. That is, the project of thinking about the religious dimension of pedagogy should also force us to rethink religious studies in general. Pedagogy, after all, is not an incidental expression of religious commitments but is instead one significant place where the religious imagination takes shape and form. All religious reflection is confessional, because scholarship is only one form of pedagogy, and teaching is the act of saying who we are, where we are from, and where we are going.
By reclaiming the role of confession in the classroom, we can rethink the fundamental question of what it means to teach religion. That is, the project of thinking about the religious dimension of pedagogy should also force us to rethink religious studies in general. Pedagogy, after all, is not an incidental expression of religious commitments but is instead one significant place where the religious imagination takes shape and form. All religious reflection is confessional, because scholarship is only one form of pedagogy, and teaching is the act of saying who we are, where we are from, and where we are going.
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The Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion has its most direct influence on faculty members who teach in colleges, universities, and theological schools. These faculty members, in turn, have an impact upon churches through their leadership and teaching in local communities. Wabash workshops encourage faculty to continue to develop four qualities that make a difference in their teaching and scholarship, in the lives of students who ...
The Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion has its most direct influence on faculty members who teach in colleges, universities, and theological schools. These faculty members, in turn, have an impact upon churches through their leadership and teaching in local communities. Wabash workshops encourage faculty to continue to develop four qualities that make a difference in their teaching and scholarship, in the lives of students who ...
Additional Info:
The Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion has its most direct influence on faculty members who teach in colleges, universities, and theological schools. These faculty members, in turn, have an impact upon churches through their leadership and teaching in local communities. Wabash workshops encourage faculty to continue to develop four qualities that make a difference in their teaching and scholarship, in the lives of students who become community and church leaders, and ultimately in the life of the church: these are the abilities to (1) help pastoral leaders integrate multiple kinds of knowledge, (2) value context and particularity, (3) strengthen their skills as public theologians and community leaders, and (4) cultivate the encouragement to live lives of wholeness. The gift of hospitality at Wabash workshops provides the environment and space for faculty to engage these qualities in their teaching, research, scholarship, and living.
The Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion has its most direct influence on faculty members who teach in colleges, universities, and theological schools. These faculty members, in turn, have an impact upon churches through their leadership and teaching in local communities. Wabash workshops encourage faculty to continue to develop four qualities that make a difference in their teaching and scholarship, in the lives of students who become community and church leaders, and ultimately in the life of the church: these are the abilities to (1) help pastoral leaders integrate multiple kinds of knowledge, (2) value context and particularity, (3) strengthen their skills as public theologians and community leaders, and (4) cultivate the encouragement to live lives of wholeness. The gift of hospitality at Wabash workshops provides the environment and space for faculty to engage these qualities in their teaching, research, scholarship, and living.
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This essay explores and challenges the two primary ethical arguments for assessment, accountability, and professional responsibility, by demonstrating their strengths and exposing their weaknesses, which are rooted in their limited notions of community, contract, and guild respectively. In contrast, I argue for assessment on the basis of an ethic of covenantal obligation which incorporates both accountability and responsibility but grounds them on a broader view of community, a view of ...
This essay explores and challenges the two primary ethical arguments for assessment, accountability, and professional responsibility, by demonstrating their strengths and exposing their weaknesses, which are rooted in their limited notions of community, contract, and guild respectively. In contrast, I argue for assessment on the basis of an ethic of covenantal obligation which incorporates both accountability and responsibility but grounds them on a broader view of community, a view of ...
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This essay explores and challenges the two primary ethical arguments for assessment, accountability, and professional responsibility, by demonstrating their strengths and exposing their weaknesses, which are rooted in their limited notions of community, contract, and guild respectively. In contrast, I argue for assessment on the basis of an ethic of covenantal obligation which incorporates both accountability and responsibility but grounds them on a broader view of community, a view of the teaching-learning environment as a covenant community replete with mutual obligations and responsibilities, one of which is assessment. While the notion of covenant community has deep roots in American society, its theological underpinnings make the ethic of assessment as covenant obligation most relevant to church-related institutions of higher education, the context in which I teach and learn. I conclude the paper by delineating some principles for ethical assessment practice which follow from a covenantal perspective.
This essay explores and challenges the two primary ethical arguments for assessment, accountability, and professional responsibility, by demonstrating their strengths and exposing their weaknesses, which are rooted in their limited notions of community, contract, and guild respectively. In contrast, I argue for assessment on the basis of an ethic of covenantal obligation which incorporates both accountability and responsibility but grounds them on a broader view of community, a view of the teaching-learning environment as a covenant community replete with mutual obligations and responsibilities, one of which is assessment. While the notion of covenant community has deep roots in American society, its theological underpinnings make the ethic of assessment as covenant obligation most relevant to church-related institutions of higher education, the context in which I teach and learn. I conclude the paper by delineating some principles for ethical assessment practice which follow from a covenantal perspective.
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Good teaching is both powerful and cautious. It is powerful insofar as it creates engaged students. Because an engaged mind is particularly receptive, however, good teaching is also cautious insofar as it provides students with focused guidance through the process of appropriating the learning material. This article reflects critically on expressionist pedagogy by evaluating a classroom situation in which students reacted in unexpected ways to the professor's disclosure of a ...
Good teaching is both powerful and cautious. It is powerful insofar as it creates engaged students. Because an engaged mind is particularly receptive, however, good teaching is also cautious insofar as it provides students with focused guidance through the process of appropriating the learning material. This article reflects critically on expressionist pedagogy by evaluating a classroom situation in which students reacted in unexpected ways to the professor's disclosure of a ...
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Good teaching is both powerful and cautious. It is powerful insofar as it creates engaged students. Because an engaged mind is particularly receptive, however, good teaching is also cautious insofar as it provides students with focused guidance through the process of appropriating the learning material. This article reflects critically on expressionist pedagogy by evaluating a classroom situation in which students reacted in unexpected ways to the professor's disclosure of a personal story. It concludes that effective teaching exceeds the goal of merely facilitating student engagement. That is, the use of self-disclosure has the power to create engaged students, but it also requires cautious content consideration when facilitating post-disclosure learning. If, by using the powerful expressionist pedagogy of self-disclosure, we engage students but fail to cautiously guide them through the learning material, we have not taken seriously the ethical responsibility that teaching also implies.
Good teaching is both powerful and cautious. It is powerful insofar as it creates engaged students. Because an engaged mind is particularly receptive, however, good teaching is also cautious insofar as it provides students with focused guidance through the process of appropriating the learning material. This article reflects critically on expressionist pedagogy by evaluating a classroom situation in which students reacted in unexpected ways to the professor's disclosure of a personal story. It concludes that effective teaching exceeds the goal of merely facilitating student engagement. That is, the use of self-disclosure has the power to create engaged students, but it also requires cautious content consideration when facilitating post-disclosure learning. If, by using the powerful expressionist pedagogy of self-disclosure, we engage students but fail to cautiously guide them through the learning material, we have not taken seriously the ethical responsibility that teaching also implies.
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This paper explores the relationship between assessment and ethical value. It starts by reflecting on the traditional assessment convention that distinguishes strongly between process (the ways in which a student constructs a piece of work) and conclusion. The paper then examines three case studies from Holocaust studies, feminist theology, and Providence. The argument of the paper is that these three case studies illustrate that imparting certain values is part of ...
This paper explores the relationship between assessment and ethical value. It starts by reflecting on the traditional assessment convention that distinguishes strongly between process (the ways in which a student constructs a piece of work) and conclusion. The paper then examines three case studies from Holocaust studies, feminist theology, and Providence. The argument of the paper is that these three case studies illustrate that imparting certain values is part of ...
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This paper explores the relationship between assessment and ethical value. It starts by reflecting on the traditional assessment convention that distinguishes strongly between process (the ways in which a student constructs a piece of work) and conclusion. The paper then examines three case studies from Holocaust studies, feminist theology, and Providence. The argument of the paper is that these three case studies illustrate that imparting certain values is part of the teaching process, and therefore it should not be excluded from assessment.
This paper explores the relationship between assessment and ethical value. It starts by reflecting on the traditional assessment convention that distinguishes strongly between process (the ways in which a student constructs a piece of work) and conclusion. The paper then examines three case studies from Holocaust studies, feminist theology, and Providence. The argument of the paper is that these three case studies illustrate that imparting certain values is part of the teaching process, and therefore it should not be excluded from assessment.
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The author believes that the value of teaching in the academy will continue to be diminished as long as teaching and scholarship are viewed as separate and unequal. Thus, pedagogical proficiency is a fundamentally important component of religious and theological scholarship. Pedagogical skills allow scholars to be in dialogue with people outside of their content specialization and outside of the academy; therefore, they enable dialogue with the people of a ...
The author believes that the value of teaching in the academy will continue to be diminished as long as teaching and scholarship are viewed as separate and unequal. Thus, pedagogical proficiency is a fundamentally important component of religious and theological scholarship. Pedagogical skills allow scholars to be in dialogue with people outside of their content specialization and outside of the academy; therefore, they enable dialogue with the people of a ...
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The author believes that the value of teaching in the academy will continue to be diminished as long as teaching and scholarship are viewed as separate and unequal. Thus, pedagogical proficiency is a fundamentally important component of religious and theological scholarship. Pedagogical skills allow scholars to be in dialogue with people outside of their content specialization and outside of the academy; therefore, they enable dialogue with the people of a religious tradition who are not scholarly specialists, but who are the living community of the religious tradition. The article seeks first to articulate a clear understanding of teaching competency, drawing on the concept of pedagogical proficiency. The case is then made for the role of teaching in scholarly research and, finally, its specific role in religious and theological research, showing that research accountability to a living religious tradition necessarily demands teaching competency.
The author believes that the value of teaching in the academy will continue to be diminished as long as teaching and scholarship are viewed as separate and unequal. Thus, pedagogical proficiency is a fundamentally important component of religious and theological scholarship. Pedagogical skills allow scholars to be in dialogue with people outside of their content specialization and outside of the academy; therefore, they enable dialogue with the people of a religious tradition who are not scholarly specialists, but who are the living community of the religious tradition. The article seeks first to articulate a clear understanding of teaching competency, drawing on the concept of pedagogical proficiency. The case is then made for the role of teaching in scholarly research and, finally, its specific role in religious and theological research, showing that research accountability to a living religious tradition necessarily demands teaching competency.
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“Greenscreen Teaching” explores how the stresses of institutional and social change impact teaching and learning, and the creative resourcefulness born out of instability. In precarious institutions and social contexts, relevant outcomes for theological learning include developing attentiveness, robust moral discernment, and courageous speech seasoned by maturing convictions and pastoral sensitivities. I utilize greenscreen acting as a suggestive metaphor for describing four creative teaching strategies targeting these outcomes. Subsections gather insights ...
“Greenscreen Teaching” explores how the stresses of institutional and social change impact teaching and learning, and the creative resourcefulness born out of instability. In precarious institutions and social contexts, relevant outcomes for theological learning include developing attentiveness, robust moral discernment, and courageous speech seasoned by maturing convictions and pastoral sensitivities. I utilize greenscreen acting as a suggestive metaphor for describing four creative teaching strategies targeting these outcomes. Subsections gather insights ...
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“Greenscreen Teaching” explores how the stresses of institutional and social change impact teaching and learning, and the creative resourcefulness born out of instability. In precarious institutions and social contexts, relevant outcomes for theological learning include developing attentiveness, robust moral discernment, and courageous speech seasoned by maturing convictions and pastoral sensitivities. I utilize greenscreen acting as a suggestive metaphor for describing four creative teaching strategies targeting these outcomes. Subsections gather insights from:
Etymology of disaster‐related words: Capitalize on the moment and “go big.”
Creative method: Improvise and keep it sharp.
Ritual theory: Creatively repurpose familiar but underutilized traditions.
Service learning: Widen the networks of community connection.
Each subsection also revisits moments and learning activities from a graduate course in feminist theology. Navigating constant transition impacts every aspect of the classroom. Nevertheless, a teaching scholar can resource this precariousness as creative agency for voice, solidarity, and mutual learning. 5/3/2018
“Greenscreen Teaching” explores how the stresses of institutional and social change impact teaching and learning, and the creative resourcefulness born out of instability. In precarious institutions and social contexts, relevant outcomes for theological learning include developing attentiveness, robust moral discernment, and courageous speech seasoned by maturing convictions and pastoral sensitivities. I utilize greenscreen acting as a suggestive metaphor for describing four creative teaching strategies targeting these outcomes. Subsections gather insights from:
Etymology of disaster‐related words: Capitalize on the moment and “go big.”
Creative method: Improvise and keep it sharp.
Ritual theory: Creatively repurpose familiar but underutilized traditions.
Service learning: Widen the networks of community connection.
Each subsection also revisits moments and learning activities from a graduate course in feminist theology. Navigating constant transition impacts every aspect of the classroom. Nevertheless, a teaching scholar can resource this precariousness as creative agency for voice, solidarity, and mutual learning. 5/3/2018
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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).
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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).
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Based on a real teaching experience in the classroom, the author reflects on the dynamics of gender, race/ethnicity, power, and privilege in the context of an undergraduate course in Christian sexual ethics. Through this analysis of pedagogical style and process initiated by a challenging moment at the midpoint of the semester, the author develops ten guiding principles for good teaching, using the metaphor that “good teaching is like good ...
Based on a real teaching experience in the classroom, the author reflects on the dynamics of gender, race/ethnicity, power, and privilege in the context of an undergraduate course in Christian sexual ethics. Through this analysis of pedagogical style and process initiated by a challenging moment at the midpoint of the semester, the author develops ten guiding principles for good teaching, using the metaphor that “good teaching is like good ...
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Based on a real teaching experience in the classroom, the author reflects on the dynamics of gender, race/ethnicity, power, and privilege in the context of an undergraduate course in Christian sexual ethics. Through this analysis of pedagogical style and process initiated by a challenging moment at the midpoint of the semester, the author develops ten guiding principles for good teaching, using the metaphor that “good teaching is like good sex,” which emphasize the necessary elements and outcomes of a positive learning environment: intimacy, flexibility, creativity, satisfaction, care and attentiveness, vulnerability, fun and playfulness, reciprocity, full engagement, and risk-taking. This experience provided the foundation for planning and assessment for the author's courses since.
Based on a real teaching experience in the classroom, the author reflects on the dynamics of gender, race/ethnicity, power, and privilege in the context of an undergraduate course in Christian sexual ethics. Through this analysis of pedagogical style and process initiated by a challenging moment at the midpoint of the semester, the author develops ten guiding principles for good teaching, using the metaphor that “good teaching is like good sex,” which emphasize the necessary elements and outcomes of a positive learning environment: intimacy, flexibility, creativity, satisfaction, care and attentiveness, vulnerability, fun and playfulness, reciprocity, full engagement, and risk-taking. This experience provided the foundation for planning and assessment for the author's courses since.
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Order and organization are valued in the classroom, and there is a prevailing understanding that chaos should be avoided. Yet chaos can also be potent space or a source from which new things spring forth. This article investigates biblical, scientific, and cultural understandings of chaos to discover how these contribute to a revelatory metaphor for teaching. It examines Catherine Keller’s engagement with chaos theory in creation theology for pedagogical ...
Order and organization are valued in the classroom, and there is a prevailing understanding that chaos should be avoided. Yet chaos can also be potent space or a source from which new things spring forth. This article investigates biblical, scientific, and cultural understandings of chaos to discover how these contribute to a revelatory metaphor for teaching. It examines Catherine Keller’s engagement with chaos theory in creation theology for pedagogical ...
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Order and organization are valued in the classroom, and there is a prevailing understanding that chaos should be avoided. Yet chaos can also be potent space or a source from which new things spring forth. This article investigates biblical, scientific, and cultural understandings of chaos to discover how these contribute to a revelatory metaphor for teaching. It examines Catherine Keller’s engagement with chaos theory in creation theology for pedagogical implications. Using a framework suggested in the work of Mary Elizabeth Moore, the author interprets powers and practices of chaos teaching and provides examples of how the metaphor plays out in the teaching of religion and theology.
Order and organization are valued in the classroom, and there is a prevailing understanding that chaos should be avoided. Yet chaos can also be potent space or a source from which new things spring forth. This article investigates biblical, scientific, and cultural understandings of chaos to discover how these contribute to a revelatory metaphor for teaching. It examines Catherine Keller’s engagement with chaos theory in creation theology for pedagogical implications. Using a framework suggested in the work of Mary Elizabeth Moore, the author interprets powers and practices of chaos teaching and provides examples of how the metaphor plays out in the teaching of religion and theology.
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This article is for those educators who want to become more intentional in their craft of teaching. The authors introduce eight different pedagogies through their historical lineage, intending for readers to gain an appreciation for, and understanding of, the broader trajectory of educational philosophies, and illustrate how common teaching techniques can be shaped by the pedagogies. By familiarizing themselves with a specific educational philosophy or philosophies, educators begin to identify ...
This article is for those educators who want to become more intentional in their craft of teaching. The authors introduce eight different pedagogies through their historical lineage, intending for readers to gain an appreciation for, and understanding of, the broader trajectory of educational philosophies, and illustrate how common teaching techniques can be shaped by the pedagogies. By familiarizing themselves with a specific educational philosophy or philosophies, educators begin to identify ...
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This article is for those educators who want to become more intentional in their craft of teaching. The authors introduce eight different pedagogies through their historical lineage, intending for readers to gain an appreciation for, and understanding of, the broader trajectory of educational philosophies, and illustrate how common teaching techniques can be shaped by the pedagogies. By familiarizing themselves with a specific educational philosophy or philosophies, educators begin to identify and name the ways they teach, how students best learn, what counts as knowledge, and the desired outcomes. In doing so, educators increase their opportunities to provide more meaningful and impactful education. This article also includes quick‐reference guides to the pedagogies for readers to return to frequently.
This article is for those educators who want to become more intentional in their craft of teaching. The authors introduce eight different pedagogies through their historical lineage, intending for readers to gain an appreciation for, and understanding of, the broader trajectory of educational philosophies, and illustrate how common teaching techniques can be shaped by the pedagogies. By familiarizing themselves with a specific educational philosophy or philosophies, educators begin to identify and name the ways they teach, how students best learn, what counts as knowledge, and the desired outcomes. In doing so, educators increase their opportunities to provide more meaningful and impactful education. This article also includes quick‐reference guides to the pedagogies for readers to return to frequently.
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This article explores the art form of dance as a metaphor for the teaching of theology. Employing the work of Maria Harris, the author contends that there are seven elements of dance than can serve as metaphors for teachers of theology: preparation, rhythm, movement, expectancy, response, embodiment, and performance. Each dance element is described in detail, and the correlations between specific elements of dance and how one might teach theology ...
This article explores the art form of dance as a metaphor for the teaching of theology. Employing the work of Maria Harris, the author contends that there are seven elements of dance than can serve as metaphors for teachers of theology: preparation, rhythm, movement, expectancy, response, embodiment, and performance. Each dance element is described in detail, and the correlations between specific elements of dance and how one might teach theology ...
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This article explores the art form of dance as a metaphor for the teaching of theology. Employing the work of Maria Harris, the author contends that there are seven elements of dance than can serve as metaphors for teachers of theology: preparation, rhythm, movement, expectancy, response, embodiment, and performance. Each dance element is described in detail, and the correlations between specific elements of dance and how one might teach theology are presented as possible methodological steps for teaching.
This article explores the art form of dance as a metaphor for the teaching of theology. Employing the work of Maria Harris, the author contends that there are seven elements of dance than can serve as metaphors for teachers of theology: preparation, rhythm, movement, expectancy, response, embodiment, and performance. Each dance element is described in detail, and the correlations between specific elements of dance and how one might teach theology are presented as possible methodological steps for teaching.
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A renowned child psychoanalyst, Erik H. Erikson (1902–1994) is perhaps best known for his work on developmental theory (Childhood and Society, 1950) and his studies of the lives of Martin Luther (Young Man Luther, 1958) and Gandhi (Gandhi's Truth, 1969). Twice he found himself intensely engaged in the role of teacher – once as a young artist who had been called by a friend to help in the progressive school formed for the children of ...
A renowned child psychoanalyst, Erik H. Erikson (1902–1994) is perhaps best known for his work on developmental theory (Childhood and Society, 1950) and his studies of the lives of Martin Luther (Young Man Luther, 1958) and Gandhi (Gandhi's Truth, 1969). Twice he found himself intensely engaged in the role of teacher – once as a young artist who had been called by a friend to help in the progressive school formed for the children of ...
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A renowned child psychoanalyst, Erik H. Erikson (1902–1994) is perhaps best known for his work on developmental theory (Childhood and Society, 1950) and his studies of the lives of Martin Luther (Young Man Luther, 1958) and Gandhi (Gandhi's Truth, 1969). Twice he found himself intensely engaged in the role of teacher – once as a young artist who had been called by a friend to help in the progressive school formed for the children of Sigmund and Anna Freud's patients in Vienna (1927–1932), and years later (1960–1970) as a tenured professor at Harvard. This essay describes Erickson's teaching experience in both settings and suggests some of the reasons he was honored by Harvard in 1980 as a “humane teacher.” Implications from Erikson's educational practice are drawn that demonstrate how Erikson moved beyond the rote memorization and authoritarian educational practice he experienced as a youth. The essay suggests Erikson's teaching stance at Harvard fits the author's theological tradition's use of the term “teaching elder.”
A renowned child psychoanalyst, Erik H. Erikson (1902–1994) is perhaps best known for his work on developmental theory (Childhood and Society, 1950) and his studies of the lives of Martin Luther (Young Man Luther, 1958) and Gandhi (Gandhi's Truth, 1969). Twice he found himself intensely engaged in the role of teacher – once as a young artist who had been called by a friend to help in the progressive school formed for the children of Sigmund and Anna Freud's patients in Vienna (1927–1932), and years later (1960–1970) as a tenured professor at Harvard. This essay describes Erickson's teaching experience in both settings and suggests some of the reasons he was honored by Harvard in 1980 as a “humane teacher.” Implications from Erikson's educational practice are drawn that demonstrate how Erikson moved beyond the rote memorization and authoritarian educational practice he experienced as a youth. The essay suggests Erikson's teaching stance at Harvard fits the author's theological tradition's use of the term “teaching elder.”
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This brief meditation on teaching was shared at a gathering of mid-career theological school teachers for a retreat in Scottsdale, Arizona. It draws upon the author's familiarity with the desert to provide a metaphoric exploration of the "desiccation and delight" that surprises us repeatedly in our classrooms and instructs us in humility and hope.
This brief meditation on teaching was shared at a gathering of mid-career theological school teachers for a retreat in Scottsdale, Arizona. It draws upon the author's familiarity with the desert to provide a metaphoric exploration of the "desiccation and delight" that surprises us repeatedly in our classrooms and instructs us in humility and hope.
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This brief meditation on teaching was shared at a gathering of mid-career theological school teachers for a retreat in Scottsdale, Arizona. It draws upon the author's familiarity with the desert to provide a metaphoric exploration of the "desiccation and delight" that surprises us repeatedly in our classrooms and instructs us in humility and hope.
This brief meditation on teaching was shared at a gathering of mid-career theological school teachers for a retreat in Scottsdale, Arizona. It draws upon the author's familiarity with the desert to provide a metaphoric exploration of the "desiccation and delight" that surprises us repeatedly in our classrooms and instructs us in humility and hope.
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This article originated as a brief reflection on pedagogical issues intended to catalyze collegial discussions at a meeting of the Comparative Religious Studies faculty at San Jose State University. The author distinguishes four interrelated elements that motivate his own teaching: human meaning, dialogic inter-activity, responsible response, and multi-methodologic study. Dialogic pedagogy is illustrated with concrete examples of how theory fits in the classroom. To further clarify the discussion, Martin Buber's ...
This article originated as a brief reflection on pedagogical issues intended to catalyze collegial discussions at a meeting of the Comparative Religious Studies faculty at San Jose State University. The author distinguishes four interrelated elements that motivate his own teaching: human meaning, dialogic inter-activity, responsible response, and multi-methodologic study. Dialogic pedagogy is illustrated with concrete examples of how theory fits in the classroom. To further clarify the discussion, Martin Buber's ...
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This article originated as a brief reflection on pedagogical issues intended to catalyze collegial discussions at a meeting of the Comparative Religious Studies faculty at San Jose State University. The author distinguishes four interrelated elements that motivate his own teaching: human meaning, dialogic inter-activity, responsible response, and multi-methodologic study. Dialogic pedagogy is illustrated with concrete examples of how theory fits in the classroom. To further clarify the discussion, Martin Buber's theory of educating is applied to the teaching process, especially his understanding of "one-sided inclusion."
This article originated as a brief reflection on pedagogical issues intended to catalyze collegial discussions at a meeting of the Comparative Religious Studies faculty at San Jose State University. The author distinguishes four interrelated elements that motivate his own teaching: human meaning, dialogic inter-activity, responsible response, and multi-methodologic study. Dialogic pedagogy is illustrated with concrete examples of how theory fits in the classroom. To further clarify the discussion, Martin Buber's theory of educating is applied to the teaching process, especially his understanding of "one-sided inclusion."
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This article explores the resources that the philosophical hermeneutics of Hans-Georg Gadamer can bring to the challenge of teaching theology to undergraduates. The author offers a sympathetic reading of Gadamer but is influenced by the insights of liberation theology. In this interpretation of his work, Gadamer's contribution lies in his emphases on intersubjectivity and on praxis as the goal of historically conscious understanding — and thus of historically conscious theological education. ...
This article explores the resources that the philosophical hermeneutics of Hans-Georg Gadamer can bring to the challenge of teaching theology to undergraduates. The author offers a sympathetic reading of Gadamer but is influenced by the insights of liberation theology. In this interpretation of his work, Gadamer's contribution lies in his emphases on intersubjectivity and on praxis as the goal of historically conscious understanding — and thus of historically conscious theological education. ...
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This article explores the resources that the philosophical hermeneutics of Hans-Georg Gadamer can bring to the challenge of teaching theology to undergraduates. The author offers a sympathetic reading of Gadamer but is influenced by the insights of liberation theology. In this interpretation of his work, Gadamer's contribution lies in his emphases on intersubjectivity and on praxis as the goal of historically conscious understanding — and thus of historically conscious theological education. To suggest what philosophical hermeneutics can tell us about the process of teaching and learning in theology, this essay examines Gadamer's approach to historicity, conversation, truth, objectivity, subjectivity, practical wisdom, and praxis.
This article explores the resources that the philosophical hermeneutics of Hans-Georg Gadamer can bring to the challenge of teaching theology to undergraduates. The author offers a sympathetic reading of Gadamer but is influenced by the insights of liberation theology. In this interpretation of his work, Gadamer's contribution lies in his emphases on intersubjectivity and on praxis as the goal of historically conscious understanding — and thus of historically conscious theological education. To suggest what philosophical hermeneutics can tell us about the process of teaching and learning in theology, this essay examines Gadamer's approach to historicity, conversation, truth, objectivity, subjectivity, practical wisdom, and praxis.
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This essay presents Moses, the protagonist of the biblical books of Exodus and Deuteronomy in the Hebrew Bible, as a playful but generative metaphor for current teaching practices and experiences in higher education, including my own. Among numerous similarities (such as the fact that Moses, other teachers, and I are all bound by context), the most humbling insights come from Moses's role as a mediator or intermediary. It is a ...
This essay presents Moses, the protagonist of the biblical books of Exodus and Deuteronomy in the Hebrew Bible, as a playful but generative metaphor for current teaching practices and experiences in higher education, including my own. Among numerous similarities (such as the fact that Moses, other teachers, and I are all bound by context), the most humbling insights come from Moses's role as a mediator or intermediary. It is a ...
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This essay presents Moses, the protagonist of the biblical books of Exodus and Deuteronomy in the Hebrew Bible, as a playful but generative metaphor for current teaching practices and experiences in higher education, including my own. Among numerous similarities (such as the fact that Moses, other teachers, and I are all bound by context), the most humbling insights come from Moses's role as a mediator or intermediary. It is a role that we also inhabit – standing, as it were, between our students and the knowledge of our discipline – and that we might consider further, particularly in terms of our responsibilities.
This essay presents Moses, the protagonist of the biblical books of Exodus and Deuteronomy in the Hebrew Bible, as a playful but generative metaphor for current teaching practices and experiences in higher education, including my own. Among numerous similarities (such as the fact that Moses, other teachers, and I are all bound by context), the most humbling insights come from Moses's role as a mediator or intermediary. It is a role that we also inhabit – standing, as it were, between our students and the knowledge of our discipline – and that we might consider further, particularly in terms of our responsibilities.
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Through an analysis of Augustine's Confessions, this essay aims to identify the sources, tenets, and implications of the theological anthropology that grounds the author's pedagogy. The author describes classroom dynamics and teaching strategies in terms of the concepts of creation, sin, and redemption found in the Confessions. In relation to Augustine's doctrine of creation, the author argues that a theological anthropology that posits an ineradicable relationship of the human person ...
Through an analysis of Augustine's Confessions, this essay aims to identify the sources, tenets, and implications of the theological anthropology that grounds the author's pedagogy. The author describes classroom dynamics and teaching strategies in terms of the concepts of creation, sin, and redemption found in the Confessions. In relation to Augustine's doctrine of creation, the author argues that a theological anthropology that posits an ineradicable relationship of the human person ...
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Through an analysis of Augustine's Confessions, this essay aims to identify the sources, tenets, and implications of the theological anthropology that grounds the author's pedagogy. The author describes classroom dynamics and teaching strategies in terms of the concepts of creation, sin, and redemption found in the Confessions. In relation to Augustine's doctrine of creation, the author argues that a theological anthropology that posits an ineradicable relationship of the human person to God justifies optimism about student response to the study of theology. It also supports a sacramental understanding of the effectiveness of the teacher. In relation to Augustine's theology of sin, the author reflects on the effects of pride on both teacher and student. The section on redemption acknowledges that although the teacher cannot eradicate sin in the classroom, he or she can counter such effects through the responsible and sensitive exercise of authority. Throughout the essay, the virtues of humility and gratitude in the classroom are highlighted, and concrete pedagogical issues are examined in a theological light.
Through an analysis of Augustine's Confessions, this essay aims to identify the sources, tenets, and implications of the theological anthropology that grounds the author's pedagogy. The author describes classroom dynamics and teaching strategies in terms of the concepts of creation, sin, and redemption found in the Confessions. In relation to Augustine's doctrine of creation, the author argues that a theological anthropology that posits an ineradicable relationship of the human person to God justifies optimism about student response to the study of theology. It also supports a sacramental understanding of the effectiveness of the teacher. In relation to Augustine's theology of sin, the author reflects on the effects of pride on both teacher and student. The section on redemption acknowledges that although the teacher cannot eradicate sin in the classroom, he or she can counter such effects through the responsible and sensitive exercise of authority. Throughout the essay, the virtues of humility and gratitude in the classroom are highlighted, and concrete pedagogical issues are examined in a theological light.
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Thinking about teaching as an act of intellectual hospitality has the potential to shape productively how teachers conceive of their own roles in the classroom, their interactions with students, and their execution of crucial tasks. It also offers a path to helpful reflection about a persistent issue that arises particularly for the many faculty members who teach in small departments of religion and are therefore called upon to address a ...
Thinking about teaching as an act of intellectual hospitality has the potential to shape productively how teachers conceive of their own roles in the classroom, their interactions with students, and their execution of crucial tasks. It also offers a path to helpful reflection about a persistent issue that arises particularly for the many faculty members who teach in small departments of religion and are therefore called upon to address a ...
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Thinking about teaching as an act of intellectual hospitality has the potential to shape productively how teachers conceive of their own roles in the classroom, their interactions with students, and their execution of crucial tasks. It also offers a path to helpful reflection about a persistent issue that arises particularly for the many faculty members who teach in small departments of religion and are therefore called upon to address a wide range of topics in their teaching. In addition, adopting an ethos of hospitality in the classroom provides a salutary counterpoint to the pervasive and often corrosive academic practices of critique, refutation, and dispute.
Thinking about teaching as an act of intellectual hospitality has the potential to shape productively how teachers conceive of their own roles in the classroom, their interactions with students, and their execution of crucial tasks. It also offers a path to helpful reflection about a persistent issue that arises particularly for the many faculty members who teach in small departments of religion and are therefore called upon to address a wide range of topics in their teaching. In addition, adopting an ethos of hospitality in the classroom provides a salutary counterpoint to the pervasive and often corrosive academic practices of critique, refutation, and dispute.
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The Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion is a place of hospitality and its staff the epitome of the "good host." This essay explores the meaning of hospitality, including its problematic dimensions, drawing on a number of voices and texts: Jacques Derrida's Of Hospitality; Henri M. Nouwen's Reaching Out: The Three Movements of the Spiritual Life, N. Lynne Westfield's Dear Sisters: A Womanist Practice of Hospitality, ...
The Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion is a place of hospitality and its staff the epitome of the "good host." This essay explores the meaning of hospitality, including its problematic dimensions, drawing on a number of voices and texts: Jacques Derrida's Of Hospitality; Henri M. Nouwen's Reaching Out: The Three Movements of the Spiritual Life, N. Lynne Westfield's Dear Sisters: A Womanist Practice of Hospitality, ...
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The Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion is a place of hospitality and its staff the epitome of the "good host." This essay explores the meaning of hospitality, including its problematic dimensions, drawing on a number of voices and texts: Jacques Derrida's Of Hospitality; Henri M. Nouwen's Reaching Out: The Three Movements of the Spiritual Life, N. Lynne Westfield's Dear Sisters: A Womanist Practice of Hospitality, Arthur Sutherland's I Was a Stranger: A Christian Theology of Hospitality, and Kathleen Norris's "Hospitality." Beginning with the claim that hospitality is concerned with power and grace, the essay explores the relationship between hospitality and teaching, and the modes by which the Wabash Center helps teachers both find their identities and heal.
The Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion is a place of hospitality and its staff the epitome of the "good host." This essay explores the meaning of hospitality, including its problematic dimensions, drawing on a number of voices and texts: Jacques Derrida's Of Hospitality; Henri M. Nouwen's Reaching Out: The Three Movements of the Spiritual Life, N. Lynne Westfield's Dear Sisters: A Womanist Practice of Hospitality, Arthur Sutherland's I Was a Stranger: A Christian Theology of Hospitality, and Kathleen Norris's "Hospitality." Beginning with the claim that hospitality is concerned with power and grace, the essay explores the relationship between hospitality and teaching, and the modes by which the Wabash Center helps teachers both find their identities and heal.
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The study of religion seeks to understand life and life practices, which means that it is internally suited to dynamic teaching-learning methods such as exploration, conversation, and imaginative construction. Wabash Center hospitality enables reflective conversations about the nature of our craft, the shape of our vocation, and the direction of our discipline.
The study of religion seeks to understand life and life practices, which means that it is internally suited to dynamic teaching-learning methods such as exploration, conversation, and imaginative construction. Wabash Center hospitality enables reflective conversations about the nature of our craft, the shape of our vocation, and the direction of our discipline.
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The study of religion seeks to understand life and life practices, which means that it is internally suited to dynamic teaching-learning methods such as exploration, conversation, and imaginative construction. Wabash Center hospitality enables reflective conversations about the nature of our craft, the shape of our vocation, and the direction of our discipline.
The study of religion seeks to understand life and life practices, which means that it is internally suited to dynamic teaching-learning methods such as exploration, conversation, and imaginative construction. Wabash Center hospitality enables reflective conversations about the nature of our craft, the shape of our vocation, and the direction of our discipline.
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Assessing the impact of Wabash Center programs on theological education, this article focuses on the vocation of the theological educator, particularly on the impact of theological teaching on faith and on the institutions, values, and practices that shape living. Five contributions of the Wabash Center are highlighted: (1) guiding seminary faculty in the practices of teaching, (2) enhancing the teaching preparation of doctoral students for theological education, (3) linking effective teaching to the ...
Assessing the impact of Wabash Center programs on theological education, this article focuses on the vocation of the theological educator, particularly on the impact of theological teaching on faith and on the institutions, values, and practices that shape living. Five contributions of the Wabash Center are highlighted: (1) guiding seminary faculty in the practices of teaching, (2) enhancing the teaching preparation of doctoral students for theological education, (3) linking effective teaching to the ...
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Assessing the impact of Wabash Center programs on theological education, this article focuses on the vocation of the theological educator, particularly on the impact of theological teaching on faith and on the institutions, values, and practices that shape living. Five contributions of the Wabash Center are highlighted: (1) guiding seminary faculty in the practices of teaching, (2) enhancing the teaching preparation of doctoral students for theological education, (3) linking effective teaching to the development of seminary curricula, (4) enlarging the literature on teaching in theological education, and (5) nurturing the vocation of seminary educators.
Assessing the impact of Wabash Center programs on theological education, this article focuses on the vocation of the theological educator, particularly on the impact of theological teaching on faith and on the institutions, values, and practices that shape living. Five contributions of the Wabash Center are highlighted: (1) guiding seminary faculty in the practices of teaching, (2) enhancing the teaching preparation of doctoral students for theological education, (3) linking effective teaching to the development of seminary curricula, (4) enlarging the literature on teaching in theological education, and (5) nurturing the vocation of seminary educators.
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Using a representative anecdote, insights from Jürgen Habermas, Jacques Ellul, and Ivan Illich, and in the form of a collage, this paper advocates a pedagogy of questioning and explores some of the conflicts and consequences of adopting such a pedagogy in a technocratic culture, especially as related to conventional expectations for education framed by efficiency, practicality, and functionality.
Using a representative anecdote, insights from Jürgen Habermas, Jacques Ellul, and Ivan Illich, and in the form of a collage, this paper advocates a pedagogy of questioning and explores some of the conflicts and consequences of adopting such a pedagogy in a technocratic culture, especially as related to conventional expectations for education framed by efficiency, practicality, and functionality.
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Using a representative anecdote, insights from Jürgen Habermas, Jacques Ellul, and Ivan Illich, and in the form of a collage, this paper advocates a pedagogy of questioning and explores some of the conflicts and consequences of adopting such a pedagogy in a technocratic culture, especially as related to conventional expectations for education framed by efficiency, practicality, and functionality.
Using a representative anecdote, insights from Jürgen Habermas, Jacques Ellul, and Ivan Illich, and in the form of a collage, this paper advocates a pedagogy of questioning and explores some of the conflicts and consequences of adopting such a pedagogy in a technocratic culture, especially as related to conventional expectations for education framed by efficiency, practicality, and functionality.
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Joachim Wach's classic 1924 treatment of two types of teaching and learning relationships is summarized by Professor Denny and commented on from three contemporary perspectives by three teaching scholars who raise the basic question, "Are Wach's models of student and disciple adequate for the nineties?"
Following an introduction by Frederick M. Denny, the contributions presented are: I. Are Wach's Models of Student and disciple Adequate for the Nineties?, by ...
Joachim Wach's classic 1924 treatment of two types of teaching and learning relationships is summarized by Professor Denny and commented on from three contemporary perspectives by three teaching scholars who raise the basic question, "Are Wach's models of student and disciple adequate for the nineties?"
Following an introduction by Frederick M. Denny, the contributions presented are: I. Are Wach's Models of Student and disciple Adequate for the Nineties?, by ...
Additional Info:
Joachim Wach's classic 1924 treatment of two types of teaching and learning relationships is summarized by Professor Denny and commented on from three contemporary perspectives by three teaching scholars who raise the basic question, "Are Wach's models of student and disciple adequate for the nineties?"
Following an introduction by Frederick M. Denny, the contributions presented are: I. Are Wach's Models of Student and disciple Adequate for the Nineties?, by Margaret R. Miles, II. Response to Joachim Wach's "Master and Disciple: Two Religio-Sociological Studies": Buddhism, by Charles Hallisey and III. Wach and the Double Truth, by Earle H. Waugh.
Joachim Wach's classic 1924 treatment of two types of teaching and learning relationships is summarized by Professor Denny and commented on from three contemporary perspectives by three teaching scholars who raise the basic question, "Are Wach's models of student and disciple adequate for the nineties?"
Following an introduction by Frederick M. Denny, the contributions presented are: I. Are Wach's Models of Student and disciple Adequate for the Nineties?, by Margaret R. Miles, II. Response to Joachim Wach's "Master and Disciple: Two Religio-Sociological Studies": Buddhism, by Charles Hallisey and III. Wach and the Double Truth, by Earle H. Waugh.
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This article presents a methodology for a feminist theology of education based on reflection of women's educational experience in light of historical and contemporary theological works, especially the writing of Julian of Norwich. It argues for hospitality as a metaphor for theological education and suggests an understanding of the student, teacher, and environment of education that can create hospitality in the classroom.
This article presents a methodology for a feminist theology of education based on reflection of women's educational experience in light of historical and contemporary theological works, especially the writing of Julian of Norwich. It argues for hospitality as a metaphor for theological education and suggests an understanding of the student, teacher, and environment of education that can create hospitality in the classroom.
Additional Info:
This article presents a methodology for a feminist theology of education based on reflection of women's educational experience in light of historical and contemporary theological works, especially the writing of Julian of Norwich. It argues for hospitality as a metaphor for theological education and suggests an understanding of the student, teacher, and environment of education that can create hospitality in the classroom.
This article presents a methodology for a feminist theology of education based on reflection of women's educational experience in light of historical and contemporary theological works, especially the writing of Julian of Norwich. It argues for hospitality as a metaphor for theological education and suggests an understanding of the student, teacher, and environment of education that can create hospitality in the classroom.