EMPOWER CO-LEARNING

Teacher Tips by Jerry Bowling

Facilitating discussions in Bible study can anticipate, invite, and empower meaningful co-learning. Discussion as a learning tool can draw all students in a class into participation such that they feel they share a vital role in the lesson. As they discuss a Bible passage together, learners help others who are present grasp God’s truth and integrate it into life. That’s co-learning.

Preparing for Discussion

Teachers can empower co-learning when they prepare for it. Advance preparation for co-learning discussion comes in various forms: previewing resources such as blogs, Bible dictionaries, or videos; inviting students to bring their own questions; anticipating counterarguments; reflecting on the sets of questions in this teacher guide; etc. Successful discussion begins with good preparation!

To foster meaningful discussion in upcoming class sessions, teachers can communicate details about lessons through e-mail, social media, or web links. All this advance preparation will serve to engage the prior knowledge that students bring to the classroom, inspire deeper faith integration, and foster further reflection. The result will be enhanced discipleship.

Importance of Ground Rules

Ground rules are a simple set of agreed upon assumptions that clarify and guide the use of discussion. Having explicit ground rules is a fundamental prerequisite for Bible class discussions. Teachers can, of course, elect to introduce their own ground rules. But an even greater sense of ownership is created when teacher and students work together in developing them. Either way, it is imperative for class members to understand these guidelines before discussion begins.

An indispensable component of ground rules is that you, the teacher, model their use as you facilitate the lesson presentation and accompanying discussion. This creates student confidence and increases the likelihood that learners will honor the ground rules themselves in holistic collaboration.

A sample set of ground rules might include some of the following:

• Open-minded and nonjudgmental dialogue.
• Confidential and respectful discussion.
• No interruptions, demeaning comments, or other disruptive behavior.
• Active attention when a classmate is talking.
• Using “I language” (rather than “you language”) to challenge ideas.

Results of a Co-Learning Culture

Having ground rules to frame Bible class discussions serves to create an inclusive learning environment as it welcomes diverse viewpoints. Establishing trust is the key for doing so. When that trust is established, the result will be a classroom setting that is open to insights—insights that empower growth in faith and service. Discussions in a co-learning classroom environment create the dynamic of shifting learning expectations toward students’ participation. Discussions can underscore previously overlooked values that come to light in the hearing of others’ views.

The ultimate perspective the students must hear is, of course, that of the author’s original intent in writing the Scripture text. This is where you, the teacher, walk a tightrope. Invalid perspectives do exist (compare Galatians 2:11–21). But when you, the teacher, challenge wrong ideas within the framework of the ground rules, the co-learning culture is maintained as a learner comes to the conclusion on his or her own that the voiced perspective is in need of serious rethinking.

Jerry Bowling, “Empower Co-Learning,” in The NIV Standard Lesson Commentary, 2020–2021, ed. Ronald L. Nickelson, Jane Ann Kenney, and Margaret K. Williams, vol. 27 (Colorado Springs, CO: Standard Publishing, 2020), 8.