Religious education history exercise

Goals of the exercise

"Educating in faith," the book that we are reading this week, is a rich and densely textured piece. It's difficult to glean all that you need from it simply by reading. For that reason, we will work together on developing a deeper understanding of its ideas in this exercise.

Here are the primary goals of this exercise:

1 / To work with Mary Boys' grid defining a "classic expression" of religious education

2 / To better understand the pedagogical commitments of a specific classic expression by trying to work with them yourself in planning a lesson

3 / To begin to develop a framework by which you can identify the specific theological commitments of a given curriculum

4 / To take the "learning on the page" and find ways to transform it into "learning in your heart and mind"

What to do

Identify in your small group the major elements of the classic expression that you have been assigned.

Choose a learning environment that will allow you to demonstrate this classic expression. Prepare a description of where this environment is, how many people would likely be present, the ages, contexts, etc., and what the classic expression looks like. Both of these descriptions (of the basic expression, and of the environment you're choosing) need to be part of your report to the large group discussion.

Develop a learning event for that environment that is -- as much as is possible, since we no longer inhabit these historical periods! -- a clear example of this classic expression.

Outline the goals of the event, the materials needed, and something of the manner in which the learning is supported.

Make a list of what was hard about this exercise, what you learned about the classic expression, and what (if anything) you might use from that expression in the contemporary context.

Post all of this in some concise fashion to the large discussion board. Feel free to attach links or other resources to your report.

Keep in mind...

Each of the classic expressions that Boys outlines are historically embedded.

Each of these is only a "map," as Boys points out. Don't make the mistake of assuming that her brief description is all there is to a specific classic expression.

Watch for the ways in which the "pendulum" swings back and forth between various expressions.

Although Boys does not deal with hymnody, Grindal does in the auxiliary materials I provide. Think about the ways in which specific kinds of hymns reflect elements of each classic expression.

Don't forget to have fun with this! In the past students have done all manner of creative things with this exercise. Music is welcomed, as are appropriate illustrations, processes, etc.

Be respectful! Even if a particular classic expression is the polar opposite of your own convictions of how religious education needs to be lived, do not short circuit your own learning by ridiculing or trivializing specific elements of the expression.

Elements of each classic expression are now being fused in our contemporary context. While this exercise asks you to "perform" for your colleagues a specific, historically situated expression, it is often helpful to highlight ways in which elements of such an expression have found their way into present day practices.