Every Child Matters

Our school has a Mission Statement and a pile of Vision statements that the school has put a lot of thought and effort into over the years.

But to be honest, there's too much there for me to keep it all in my mind all the time.

So I've found myself gravitating to one of the statements in particular.

"Every Child Matters"

I do my best to live this out each day in my classroom as best as I am able.

What strikes me though, as we stand at a crossroads in Christian Education, is that I think that this statement is one of the fundamental ideas that should drive the way we teach.

I look at things like A School of One, Khanacademy, iTunes U, the Minerva Project, MOOCs, Coursera, Rocketship Schools, the Arrowsmith program, the Fast ForWord program, and so many more to see the possibilities that lie on the road ahead.

We can create schools where "Every Child Matters". As Christian Educators I think that it is our calling.

Even though I don't know what lies at the end of the road, I'm ready to start the journey.

Are you?

Crossroads

"Which way do we go?"

"Are we at a crossroads?"

"Do you feel we are at a crossroads?"

"Is Christian Education at a crossroads?"

These are some of the questions and conversations I've been having over the last couple of months with many different people.

I've felt for some years now that Christianity, Education, and the small subset of those two, Christian Education, is coming to a crossroads. (Feel free to replace crossroads with crisis or opportunity if you'd like.) I've often wondering if my perception has been accurate. I am a very passionate person and I often get carried away with things and go overboard. As I've had these conversations over the past month I've heard many others say similar things. I've become convinced that my perceptions match reality.

First, Christianity in North America is facing very different circumstances. Secular society, post-modernism, the incredible growth of the Church in Africa and elsewhere in the world, and so much more. There are others who have written and spoken about this far more eloquently than I.

Second, change in education continues to grow. The impact of technology, brain research, parental expectations and more sweep through the education field. Here in Ontario, Canada we've been relatively insulated from many of these changes due to the nature of education here. But when you look south of the border there are a multitude of approaches to education that are being explored.

Combine these two and we have some serious thinking to do about the place and role of Christian Education.

I don't think we can keep doing what we've always done. We stand at a crossroads.

"Which way do we go?"