Read an Excerpt
Chapter Two
Ten Components of Effective Teaching
My intention for this chapter isn't to provide you with a doctoral thesis on methods of biblical instruction. There are several outstanding books available on teaching methods. In this chapter I want to highlight ten ways students learn. I'm sure there are more, but these are the ten I keep in front of me as I prepare a lesson. I use this list as a reminder of how students learn and as a challenge for me to use a different method than I used before.
Doing
When you are able to get your students to do something with your message, you have succeeded! Participation shoots a student's learning curve straight up.
I could teach on servanthood for six years, and my students could have all the head knowledge needed to articulate a theology of service and proudly quote a few Scriptures, but it doesn't mean they'll be servants. When I provide an opportunity for my students to serve a widow in our church, they learn more about servanthood through this one act than through hours of listening to me talk.
The Christian faith can be experienced, and your students will become more mature when you give them opportunities to experience and practice God's truth.
Seeing
Many of your students were weaned on Sesame Street and MTV and are accustomed to learning through observation. They watch loads of TV and are primed to learn through this medium. When you can make your message one they can see, you create a visual memory that will last for a significant length of time.
Acting
Many students love the opportunity to read Scripture and act out their interpretations. Acting gets your students up, moving, involved, interacting, and thinking of how God's Word might be translated in today's vernacular. This medium helps cement passages into your students' memories.
Writing
Creative writing or the expression of feelings on paper is an effective way for adolescents to communicate and learn. Many students dabble with poetry or songwriting; they can apply these methods to exploring biblical truths when given the opportunity.
Creating
If you encourage your students to channel their creative juices in the direction of God's Word, you may find that it is more difficult to slow them down than to get them started. Each summer I encourage my students to be creative in the way they report back to the church about their summer missions trips. I have never ceased to be amazed at the variety of methods they find to communicate their experiences.
Playing
By the time my oldest daughter was a year old, she had developed a very definite food preference. She preferred not to eat vegetables. While my daughter did not like vegetables, she did love cheese. My wife and I started putting cheese on every vegetable dish we made. Our daughter became so busy enjoying the melted cheese she hardly even noticed that she was eating all those healthy vegetables.
Some of our kids are conditioned to resist learning in the same way my daughter resisted eating what was good for her. It is always good to have a little 'melted cheese' to help whet the appetites of your students. Playing games is one of the best ways I know to encourage your kids to learn. The wonderful thing about play is that it is designed to be fun. When kids are playing games, they are usually having so much fun they don't seem to mind learning. Sometimes they don't even notice.
Hearing
Few students learn best by listening to a teacher. They still may learn, but lecturing is one of the least effective forms of communication.
What increases the effectiveness of teaching through speaking is when stories are used. As you know, storytelling was a favorite method used by Jesus, and it was very effective. Though students won't admit it, I'm convinced they still love stories. Your teenagers have heard hundreds of stories during their childhood; if given a choice between listening to a talk or hearing a good story, I'm sure they'll choose the story every time.
Drawing
Some of the most creative and artistic students in your youth group are the last people who will volunteer to act out or publicly share their feelings. Many artistic students are reserved and choose to express themselves through their art. Give them an opportunity to share their faith by drawing what they 'see' from Scripture. Give them a passage and allow them to interpret it through their drawing. You'll see some interesting results, and you'll minister to students who are hard to reach through traditional methods.
Cooperating
Some of your students may learn best by working with other students. I know some highly relational students who can't do anything alone, but when given the opportunity to work with others, they discover a new depth of understanding.
Living
This last component is directed to you as the teacher. Your students are learning much from you and how you live your life. They are absorbing messages about God's love and the Christian faith each time they interact with you or watch you in action. Don't underestimate the power of your lifestyle.
I really don't remember very many messages I heard as a teenager, but the truths I observed in my leaders made a lasting impression. Adolescents are quick to sniff out phonies. They are looking for real people to be real models of what it means to love God and live as a Christian. Maybe that's why James wrote in his letter, 'Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly' (James 3:1).
