“Genuinely Christian schools will not always fit what everyone else is doing in education. We need to give ourselves permission to go against the flow.” But it’s not sufficient to seek difficulty and resistance. We need a goal. A mission. A burning love. A beautiful vision. As Steven emphasizes in today’s episode, “Nonconformity is not enough. We need something to be conformed to. And for us, that something is a Someone.”

Educational orthodoxy. What is it and how does it impact us? You’ll hear about this in today’s episode, but basically, it’s the body of assumptions and principles that unify the majority of educational efforts around us. This orthodoxy shapes the way we describe a well-trained person and the educational experiences we dream of offering. Steven Brubaker, speaking from a long history in teaching and school leadership submits that the educational orthodoxy in north America is inadequate as a source of guidance for our schools and maybe even dangerously misguided.

But we will need a solid basis for doing something different, for swimming against the current. “Every nonconformity is a conformity to something,” Steven reminds us. Every resistance is a defense of something. What’s worth defending? Worth conforming to?

Drawing penetrating insights from the analogy of salmon, Steven lays out a challenge for Christian schools to identify and relentlessly pursue a worthy homing instinct.

What is a compelling and worthy final end for Christian education? The end beyond which we stop looking for some further fulfillment?

Schools conformed to Jesus. How could you and your staff make a practice of asking and seeking, “Jesus, how do I teach in my school?” And what would your school look like if you then boldly followed his leadership?

Links

• Contact us: https://thedockforlearning.org/contact-us/
• 3-minute feedback: https://forms.office.com/r/1G564EGQkn

It’s Christmas season and here on the Dock School Leader Podcast we’re running a special episode featuring a collection of stories chosen and read by two experienced educators that have appeared before on this show—Jonas Sauder and Ken Kauffman. Their selections range from fables to short stories to poems and all convey a timeless truth through the penetrating power of story. Take a break from the heavier content and enjoy these selections with us.

What we read often sticks with us at a subconscious level. Stories have the power to embed their message deep within us. They shape our worldview and affect our actions even after we’ve forgotten the details.

See below for the titles of the selections and the timestamps for each one.

Perhaps you’ll find something here for an upcoming devotional or a story time with family over the holidays.

[2:30] Wellspring of Wisdom – read by Jonas Sauder

• The free lunch
• The magic sticks
• Practical sympathy
• Community

[7:45] The King and the Seeds – read by Ken Kauffman

[16:30] George Washington Carver – read by Jonas Sauder

• Selection from a biography
• Testimony in Congress

[25:00] Dear Mrs. O’Neil – read by Ken Kauffman

[34:20] The Blind Man and the Elephant – read by Jonas Sauder

[37:30] The Church Walking With the World – read by Ken Kauffman

Links

• Contact us: https://thedockforlearning.org/contact-us/
• 3-minute feedback: https://forms.office.com/r/1G564EGQkn

Why teach Math? John Swartz is ambitious here. Hear him connect the question of why he teaches math with the question of why he exists along with stories of Almanzo Wilder and his own experience. He brings teaching experience as well as specific training in mathematics. He’s worked in curriculum at Christian Light and also served as a minister for many years.

In this episode, John quotes Larry Zimmerman who states that, “Christian teachers motivate their students to learn mathematics in two ways: first mathematics exhibits the glory of God, second mathematics equips students to care for the creation.” This comes from Zimmerman’s book, Truth and the Transcendent. John recognizes the utilitarian value of mathematics but is most interested in exploring the proposal that, “Math is the language of the universe,” and that it is not a neutral subject.

This talk provides a thought-provoking investigation of an underexamined subject that occupies quite a bit of space in all of our schools.

Links

• More recordings from CASBI 2013: https://thedockforlearning.org/series/casbi/casbi-2013/
• This recording was first published as “Why Teach Math?” on The Dock: https://thedockforlearning.org/lecture/why-teach-math/
• More information about Conservative Anabaptist School Board Institute: https://casbi.info/

Books

• When Are We Ever Going to Have to Use This? By Hal Saunders and Jill Marino: https://a.co/d/cBKrSfT
• Mathematics is God Silent? by J. Sire: https://a.co/d/56q16kb
• Truth and the Transcendent by Larry Zimmerman: https://answersingenesis.org/answers/books/truth-transcendent/
• Math Wonders to Inspire Teachers and Students by Alfred Posamentier: https://a.co/d/9v4c442
• Fascinating Fibonaccis: Mystery and Magic in Numbers by Trudi H. Garland: https://a.co/d/c30zp0n