Normally it’s best to tailor teacher training to the age of the students being taught, the setting in which they teach, and the needs of teachers based on knowledge, skills, and learning preferences. There are, however, topics relevant to all teachers so training general enough for all teachers may at times be appropriate.
When Teacher Training That’s More General May Be Best
These topics may be best suited for ….
- prospective teachers who want to learn a little more about teaching before committing.
- new teachers who need to see the big picture as they embark on their teaching journey.
- veteran teachers who need reminders of their overall purpose or mission.
That sounds like it includes about everybody who might be involved in a teaching ministry. So, while it’s best to tailor training to the needs of individual teachers, we mustn’t get so caught up on specific topics that we forget the big picture. That’s the foundation upon which to build the particulars.
Broad Topics Relevant to All Teachers
We should want all teachers to come under the umbrella of a biblical teaching philosophy with goals that align with God’s intent for learning His Word. Hence, we might provide general training on the following topics. (Click on links to read articles to further your understanding of these topics.)
- overall goal of Bible teaching — that toward which we proceed
- The Ultimate Goal of Bible Teaching
- Grasp of the God of the Bible
- Pray Bible Teachers Present a God Great Enough
- Teaching for Changed Lives?
- The End Result of an Effective Bible Learning Process
- Is Changed Lives Everyone’s Overall Goal?
- Teachers with Shaky Foundations
- Bible Teachers Goal to Advance God’s Work?
- Bible Teaching has an Important Objective
- Do We Have the Same Objectives as Jesus?
- Leaving Church Changed?
- Let’s Not be Shortsighted
- teaching-learning process — how we arrive at our goal
- What’s the significance of using a process?
- Foundations for Teaching-Learning Process
- Role of the Teacher in the Teaching-Learning Process
- Methodology in the Teaching-Learning Process
- Bible Teaching-Learning Process
- Questions About the Teaching-Learning Process
- Four Elements in the Bible Learning Process
- A Starting Point in the Bible Learning Process
- An Often Missing Element in the Bible Learning Process
- An Element Often Not Taken Far Enough in the Bible Learning Process
- The End Result of an Effective Bible Learning Process
- From Knowledge to Understanding
- From Understanding to Application
- From Application to Bearing Fruit
- From Fruitfulness to Knowing God Better
Teacher Training Resources for All Teachers
The following resources cover our overall goal and teaching-learning process:
The Aiming for Empty-less Teaching resource stresses the importance of aiming toward our overall goal with a process that will get us there. If we don’t, it will be like as though our students were never there. This training session challenges teachers to examine their own teaching.
The workbooks in the Teacher Training Workbooks Download Bundle fill in some of the particulars. They can be useful in bringing everyone under the umbrella of the same overall goal and teaching-learning process. You may want to start with the Teaching for Changed Lives Workbook. (You’ll find suggestions for how to use the workbook at: Teaching for Changed Lives Training Sessions) — Though you would save by ordering the bundle, any of these workbooks can be ordered separately.