Philosophy of Christian Education

By Teresa Bourgeois
 Philosophy of Christian Education

By Teresa Bourgeois

As every human being, my perception of life and my personal Philosophy of Life is based

upon what I believe is real, true and significant. For the answers to all three of these questions I

have turned to God’s Word. His Word says that He is real, He is true and He is good. My

Philosophy of Life is based upon the truth that God is the Creator and Sustainer of all.

• He is eternal because He is GOD.

• He spoke the world into existence (from nothing) and continues to sustain all that

is in it.

• He planned me (and every human being), loved me (and every human being), and

chose me (and every human being) before the foundations of the earth.

These three truths exhibit to me His absolute power, His perfect wisdom and His

unending, incomprehensible love. God’s Word, His creation, and my personal relationship with

Him continually confirm to me the reality of these truths.

While the purpose of this essay is not to document my own Philosophy of Life, my

Philosophy of Life is an important element in my defining and the reader understanding my

Philosophy of Education. The Power, Truth, and Love of God are the foundation on which I

must build my Philosophy of Education. My Philosophy of Education is the core framework on

which I will arrange all of the components of the educational experience into a meaningful and

effective pattern to lead students to gain knowledge of God and His truth, respond to God and

His truth, to live in harmony with God and His truth, and to impact others with the knowledge of

God.
 According to Dr. Ollie Gibbs, every good Philosophy of Education must address at least

five major ingredients; the purpose/ goal of education, the nature of the learner, the role of the

teacher, the nature of the learning process, the nature of the teaching process, and the

scope/sequence/selection of subject matter. In the next few pages, I will attempt to explain these

components as they relate to the development of my own philosophy of Christian education.

The Purposes of Christian School Education

According to Derek Keenan, Ed.D., the four major purposes of a Christian education are

to “learn the knowledge of God, respond to God and His truth, to live in harmony with God and

His truth, and to impact others with the knowledge of God and His truth”. This is accomplished

by continually striving to view every aspect of this world as it aligns with the truth of God’s

Word. This means, seeing everything in the light of God’s Word, measuring everything against

His Word, and accepting and acting on His truth. If a student is to ‘plumb’ everything against

God’s Word, he must first know God and his Word.

The Goals of Christian School Education

A Christian teacher should have a clear understanding or picture of the student the school

desires to produce. Our Christian schools should produce young people “who know whom they

have believed, have begun to have a godly direction, translate the Gospel into their lives, give

primacy to the Bible, reverence their bodies as a gift from God, live in conflict with this pagan,

secular age, have a Christian mind, display virtue in their work ethic, grasp eternal priorities

while living in the temporal and live in obedience to God.”(Keenan, 1998)

 The Nature of the Learner

The Bible teaches us that human beings were made in the image of God, but were

separated from God by Adam’s sin. God, because of His love for us, has provided the only way

to redeem His human creation - through His son Jesus. The Bible says, “All have sinned and

come short of the glory of God.” Since the time sin entered the world through Adam, every

human being has been flawed by sin. Every aspect of our human life has been affected by sin.

Our bodies, our thinking, and our judgment are all flawed.

Although created and loved by God, we are totally dependent upon Him not only for our

personal salvation, but also for our very life, and our perception of our life and the world around

us. Each student needs to understand why the world we live in is the way it is and they need a

moral and ethical foundation for life. Each person needs absolutes that stand the test of time -

eternal absolutes mandated by eternal God.

Role of the Teacher

As a Christian teacher, my two main responsibilities are to be an academic leader and a

spiritual leader to my students.

As an academic leader to my students, I must maintain a safe environment to give my

students a sense of security in my classroom, maintain and create stability through discipline and

procedures, and highlight the awesome potential and the eternal worth of every student. I want

to convey my excitement for learning more about God by learning about His creation and

express my confidence in Him and His truth.

A Christian teacher must whole-hearted believe that the Bible is God’s inerrant,

infallible, and authoritative Word. I also believe that I must continually be a student of God’s
Word. As a spiritual leader, my role as a teacher is to love my students, understanding that they

too, were loved and chosen by God before the foundations of the world.

Every choice I make in the classroom must be based on the understanding that I am a

representative of truth to my students. I should always represent what is right, true and good. A

teacher must keep in mind the importance of herself in the curriculum and instructional process.

The teacher is the living curriculum. The students will remember the teacher long after they

remember what was taught. I pray that I am a vessel of God’s love, a human representation of

His son Jesus.

Nature of the Learning Process

Learning involves accepting a truth, making a heart-level commitment to that truth, and

then acting upon that truth. Because students are created in the image of God, each has an

intrinsic motivation to do something that really matters. Creative tension can be used to activate

this intrinsic motivation and to energize a student’s inquisitive nature. Teachers should design

the learning experience to generate, in the student, a consciousness of a need for the information

that is to be taught and then channel this creative tension to lead students to learn the desired

material.

Harnessing this creative tension and using this intrinsic motivation is important because,

learning controlled primarily by extrinsic rewards is short-lived and has little transferable

positive effect. Since the goal of Christian education is to affect a student’s life, we must focus

our efforts on that which produces long-term, life-changing benefits.

In addition, a Christian teacher must teach her students to do all tasks to glorify God, as this is

the ultimate intrinsic motivation.

 Since students choose what they will believe to be true, commit themselves to that truth

and then act on that truth, Christian teachers must make every effort to present the truth to their

students. Because God is the author of truth, all truth in God’s world is His truth. If scientific

facts or discoveries seem to contradict God and His Word then there must be a flaw in the human

logic used to derive the information and further investigation is needed. God’s Word is the final

authority on truth.

Because the major goal of education is to impact a student’s behavior, the information

should be somehow linked to the student’s personal life and experience. Students can only learn

and understand a new concept as it relates to something that they have already understood, seen,

or experienced.

Selection/Scope/Sequencing of Subject Matter

Bible truths should be applied within the planning and delivery of integrated curriculum.

There must be the unification of Truth and Knowledge. God’s Word shows us how to see as

God sees. It helps us tie all subject areas together.

Each educational subject area in some way reveals attributes of the Creator. The

following is quoted from our Northlake Christian Elementary School Philosophy of Education.

This passage describes how each of our subject areas clearly confirms God and His truth.

“ART
God is the Creator of all that exists. Since we were made in His image, we
are creative beings. Out art program provides a necessary opportunity for the
development of creative expression as well as the refinement of art skills. The
inclusion of at history further enhances the learning experience. Using a variety
of art materials, our students explore elements of art such as line, form, design,
color, value, texture, and perspective.
 BIBLE
We believe that God revealed Himself through a written record, the Bible.
The study of the Bible provides our students with the opportunity to develop a
personal relationship with the living Lord Jesus, and to discover their true identity
as a believer. From this relationship will spring faith, knowledge, wisdom, hope,
purpose, and love.
“…I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of
knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.” Philippians 3:8a

FOREIGN LANGUAGES
Although the need to study foreign languages began at the Tower of Babel
when God “confused the language of all the earth”(Gen. 11:9), Jesus personalized
the mission and created the urgency for Christians in Mark 16:15 to “go into al
the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” Therefore, our goal in the
study of foreign languages is to develop competency in reading, writing, and
translating the target language, while providing ample exposure to the spoken
language. Students develop the skills to communicate cross-culturally in order to
share their Christian experience and expand job opportunities. Exposing the
student to the literature, music and art of the target language will provide the
opportunity to embrace cultural diversity and to foster an appreciation of other
cultures. By learning the structure and sequence of foreign languages, the student
will also strengthen his skills in the English language.

LANGUAGE ARTS
The language arts are based on the belief that our Master is the Father of
language as evidenced when he spoke the world into existence. As Christian
educators, we strive to equip our students with the ability to communicate
powerfully and truthfully with God and with others through listening, speaking,
writing, and reading proficiently. Mastery of language arts, both oral and written,
prepares students to readily and appropriately express themselves in all areas of
life. Language empowers us to “go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew
28:19).

LIBRARY MEDIA CENTER

God, in His sovereignty, has chosen to impart His knowledge to mankind
though a multi-media approach, which is supported by the Library Media Center.
The Media Center is a vital instrument that integrates classroom curriculum and
experience with media skills to reinforce classroom learning. Cooperative work
with the entire school staff in providing learning experiences and resources will
enable students to effectively locate, comprehend, analyze, question, and
communicate ideas and information.

MATH
God reveals Himself through His Word and His creation as the Master of
Truth and Order. Mathematics reflects the infinity, sovereignty, and precision of
God. It is also the only universal language, creating a common thread between
peoples and cultures. Our goal as Christian educators is to prepare the students’
minds for success in using mathematics in everyday life situations. In addition,
we will build upon those concepts that will lead to student proficiency in higher-
level reasoning, critical thinking, logic, and problem solving skills. “Let al things
be done decently and in order.” 1 Corinthian 14:40

MUSIC
Throughout both the Old and New Testaments, music is closely connected
with worship. Scripture clearly establishes music making as an important part of
worship for all Christians (Col. 3:15, Eph. 5:19). Knowing that the Bible is true,
we must recognize the emphasis God has given to music as a part of every
person’s life.
Music can embrace, enhance, and support all other subject areas and still
maintain its own integrity as that special intelligence we call music. Moreover, a
degree of success in music is attainable with every student.
As we perceive the depth of emotion expressed in a musical masterwork,
we begin to get a glimpse of the depth of God’s love to man. Even a child’s song
can reflect the purity and simplicity of our God, who came to earth as a child that
He might die to make sinners pure. Our goal for music instruction is to give
students a deeper understanding of God, in order to assist them in growing “in the
knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

PHYSICAL EDUCATION
Physical Education for Christians is critical to understanding our physical
well being in relation to God’s purpose for our lives. Christian bodies are God’s
physical temples. We are encouraged to exercise our bodies to keep it healthy,
strong, and durable. Physical education is designed to help us understand how to
keep in shape. The objective of Physical Education at NCS is to increase each
student’s abilities and performance through physical, mental and spiritual
instruction and training. We learn that exercise for the body strengthens muscles,
creates endurance and tone, and enhances our overall mental and physical well-
being. With these attributes in tack we truly are able to run the race for victory in
Him (I Corinthians 9:24-27). Our physical victory is for His eternal glory.

SCIENCE
We believe that God is the Creator of all that exists, and science is the
study of His creation. Our purpose as Christian educators is to facilitate the
exploration and discovery of the Divine Order and structure of the universe. The
Christian student is equipped to function in harmony with God’s order through
observation and experimentation, which challenges him to higher order thinking.
By acknowledging the wisdom of God, the student recognizes the responsibility
to be a steward of His perfect design.
 SOCIAL STUDIES
From Creation, God orchestrated His plan for mankind’s redemption and
sanctification. We believe social studies reveals who we are and how God works
through people’s lives and events over time. Our charge as Christian educators is
to pass civilization onto the next generation by enabling students to articulate
ideas, appreciate one’s heritage, and gain an awareness of the world around
them.” (NCS, 2005)

Just as developing godliness in my life is a lifelong task, so is developing my personal

philosophy of Christian education. While my understanding of the purpose and goal of

education, the nature of the learner, the role of a teacher, the nature of the learning process, and

the selection/scope/sequencing of subject matter will surely continue to evolve, the basic

foundation of my life and minister as a wife, mom and teacher (or whatever my vocation) will

continue to be grounded in my conviction that God is the ultimate authority in all matters.
 Bibliography

Foundations of Christian School Education. Colorado Springs, CO: ACSI, 2003 (800) 367-0798.

Humanism: Its Meaning and Influence. Video lecture by Dr. Ollie Gibbs.

Keenan, Derek Ed.D. Philosophy of Christian Education. seminar handout. Nov. 1998.

Love Your God With All Your Mind. J. P. Moreland. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 1997.
Available through ACSI, Colorado Springs, CO: (800) 367- 0798.

Philosophy of Education, Northlake Christian School Website. Retrieved November 20, 2005
from http://www.northlakechristian.org/educational_philosophy.htm.

Teaching Redemptively: Bringing Grace and Truth into Your Classroom.

Donovan Graham. Colorado Springs, CO: ACSI, 2004. (800) 367-0798

The Necessary “Ingredients” For a Christian Philosophy of Education. Video lecture by Dr.
Ollie Gibbs.

Reclaiming the Future of Christian Education. Albert E. Greene. Colorado Springs, CO: ACSI,
1998. (800) 367-0798.

Understanding Educational Philosophy: A Contrast of the Christian and Secular Approach.

Video lecture by Dr. Ollie Gibbs.