To: Stephen Howlett
From: Kevin Aaron
Subject: Practicum Report #3
Time: 2 hours (1 SS, 1 service)
Preparation: There was some confusion with the lesson this week, and as a result, no one had prepared anything for the class Sunday morning. Luckily, the series is a very open and easy study to put together. I simply went to the prep room and got a few Serendipity Bibles and picked a controversial topic in the Bible: James 2:14-26.
Lesson: James 2:14-26 focuses on faith with deeds. The big issue here is whether deeds are required for faith to get into heaven or not. It is a topic that is hotly debated and no one can find a simple middle ground. I had Caleb read the passage and then I proceded to ask questions. Most of the questions were found in the Serendipity Bible to go along with the passage, but some were questions that came to mind as we went through the passage. It was a challenge getting response from those in attendance. The problem was that most of them were tired and did not know much about the topic. Furthermore, I found that many did not feel like it was a topic they wanted to debate. It was a challenge the whole way through, although Adam was willing to speak up and give his insight. He simply believes that it is a topic with no final answer that we can debate for as long as we want with no solid conclusion. But he did concede that he felt like deeds were not required for heaven, but that if we truly loved God and had faith, we would want to do deeds. It was a challenge getting any response from Rebecca and her friend Rachel. Rachel was just visiting and did not want to be a big part of the discussion. Chelsea did not say much, though she said she enjoyed some of information we were able to discuss. The study ended quickly as Peggy, one of our youth leaders, came in to ask about helping with various youth events. It became apparent to me quickly that most of those in attendance Sunday did not have much interest in studying the Bible. They were mostly there because I harrassed them enough to get them there and for some fellowship. So my challenge now becomes getting them excited about Bible study.
Questions:
1. How do I get everyone excited for Sunday school?
2. How do I get individuals to give there opinions without awkwardly having to call them out?
3. Should I stray away from hotly debated topics in a Sunday school setting such as faith without deeds?
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RE: 1. Excited for Sunday school. There are many different ways that are affective for getting people involved in the class discussion. One of the ways is to have some type of snack or refreshment at the beginning of the class. This works because it tends to make people more awake and alert for the class. Another good and effective way to do this is to have some visuals to go along with the discussion. This one is a little bit harder, especially with a Sunday school class of only a few students. Both of these ways can be very effective however, even though they cost money and are a pain sometimes.
RE: 2. Individual’s opinions. Getting people to give their opinions is a hard enough task as it is, let alone when you throw in that the people in the Sunday school class are all college students who probably have stayed up and are tired as a result of that. I think however that calling on people is actually the best way to get the people in the class to participate. This might seem a little awkward for everybody, but that means that the next time they might just volunteer so that they do not get awkwardly called on.
RE: 3. Hotly debated topics. Straying away from hotly debated topics might seem like the right thing to do at the time, but it is also a great way to spark thought in the student’s minds, which will then lead to them actually participating in class. I think that often times it is better to talk about these things if for nothing else just to get their brains working and actually talking about it. If you are teaching on a boring subject most of the times the people in the class will tend to not listen and not participate.
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