Jul 17, 2023

Understanding the Student – How they learn and discover their needs? – The Rev. Dr. Frank Newell

Institution: St. Athanasius Provincial Seminary

Language: English

Post Format: Text

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Full text transcript

We want to think about the idea of teaching adults.How to teach them in a way that's effective?Now we don't just want to give them information.The Bible is really clear about God's word, especially if you read in Psalm 119.And you see how we're supposed to learn.God's word. It says that we're to supposed to know what, to memorize it, and to hide it in our hearts. But we're also too love it, that we should find it more tasty and more wonderful than even honey or more valuable than gold.And of course, we need to live it and to live out God's word. That's true biblical teaching, not just delivering information to people.So how does that happen?Especially with adults.Now a lot of us.Almost all of us were taught in a certain way.And so naturally, we teach others the way we were taught in elementary school or in high school.That we learned one style just by watching them, and then we repeat the same style. For most of us, that's lecture. You stand in front of a class, we have a lot of information that we've gathered and we talk, we talk, we talk maybe a question or two, but we deliver information.The question is, is that really helping people to grow and to change and to learn the way that the scriptures?Wants us to learn.I don't think it is.I think there's a better way.And the the the way to do that, the first step in doing that really.Is to understand your student.That may seem out of order, course. Someone's asked me to teach the Bible. Someone's asked me to teach on the book of Ephesians or to teach the 10 Commandments. So what do we do? We run to the 10 Commandments and we study them, and we get books about them and commentaries, and we read and read and we prepare our lesson.And there, it's ready.And we stand in front of the class and we give a lecture.What's missing in that process is.Understanding who Our student it's We're really good at understanding the text.That what we're going to teach.But we leave out the step of understanding who our student is.What are their needs? What are they like?How can we help them? What are their circumstances in life that they're struggling with?In adult education, when we're teaching adults.There are four principles.That have won a doctor Newell triedied and given to us to kind of help us understand the learner who he or she is.The first one is, is that the adult learner is one who's independent or one who can share in the learning process. Think of children, children to sit there and whatever you teach them is what they have to learn.But in adults can be self-directed. They can be. They can go out and research and look for different information. They can be part of the process.The second principle that Doctor Newell gives us is that adults bring experience to the learning process. They've already studied, they already have life experience. They've made mistakes. They've been successful.So if we want to be good teachers of our adults, then let's build on their experience. Let's use it.Don't just be the only one in class who speaks as the as the lecturer or the professor or the teacher.Ask them for their ideas. Include them in the lessons.Because they can be part of the lesson and they have experience that all of us can benefit from.The third principle in teaching adults is that adults learn best in their roles of life that they are involved in.So, for instance, think about a teenager.Think about their struggles and their roles of life. What did they have? They're they're a child.There are also a student.There also have friends that they struggle with as peers who give who want them to do certain things.So when you're thinking about teaching, think about.Who your listeners are.And what they need.Of course, if we're teaching students, that's a lot different than saying teaching a mother or a wife. What are her needs?She's a a wife and she's a mother. She's part of a church.You may have the same information on the Book of the Physicians or the 10 commandments.But how you teach it should be different depending on your audience, the roles of life that they're in.So adult learners are independent.Adult learners have experience. Adult learners learn in the different roles of life. And finally, adult learners want to solve a problem or meet a challenge.If they're struggling with something.They'll have a question, and so they'll be much, much more interested.In listening to your teaching and really learning.If it's addressing a problem or challenge that they have.So let me encourage you as you're thinking about teaching.It's wonderful that you've studied the Scriptures. It's wonderful that you know theology. It's wonderful that you know that well. You know your subject, what you want to teach well.But let me encourage you before you step into the classroom.To take time to understand who your student is.What are they like?What are they able to do?What are their roles? What are their struggles? What are their needs? Those are all things that you and I need to understand to help make our teaching effective.And of course, when we say effective, we go back to Psalm 119, right?We talk about how can I help them change the way they think.How can the Bible really?Encourage them to be motivated to use what they've learned.And then thirdly, how can they know?Or have the skills to be able to do.What they need to do?These are the things that we need to do when we think about.Teaching adults.Don't just take time and.Text Now take time to understand your student. Another example is what's their level of learning?Are they someone who can barely read and write and they're simple and they're understanding? Then that's going to change the way you deliver the information.Or do they have a background in Bible and theology and such? Again, that's going to change the way you teach.Are they? Are they a group of women? Are they a group of men? Are they in different stages of life? All these things are quite important.To the process of preparing your lessons.So yes.Know your text well.Let me encourage you.As part of the preparation of your lesson, take time to know your people well.That way you'll be able to connect what.They're teaching to their hearts, to their lives and to their needs. That's what brings about real change, as we talked about in Psalm 119.So let us pray.Dear Father, we thank you for your word that it's alive and active, that it changes our hearts.It's not just information to fill our brains.But it's words to live by.It's words that are more precious than gold.Oh Father God, would we believe that as teachers and as professors first?Would you do that in us? And then would you help us to do that as we teach our students, not just the dump information into their brains?Oh Lord.That we would give information that you use.To really change their lives and to help them to grow in Christ likeness. This we ask in the name of Christ. Amen.

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Understanding the Student – How they learn and discover their needs? – The Rev. Dr. Frank Newell

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