The Role of the Christian Teacher

The role of a Christian teacher in a multifaith society can be confusing. Let's take a look at how ideas developed by Christians working in other cross cultural situations can apply to work in the classroom.

The Times Educational Supplement used to run a weekly feature called My Best Teacher. In it famous people were interviewed about a teacher who had a shaping influence on their lives. Its popularity demonstrates the huge influence that teachers have. Try asking people you know to reminisce about the teachers they remember.

Not every memory of a teacher is a good memory however. How can we ensure that we are remembered by our pupils as a teacher who had a positive impact? This is a particularly important question today as many pupils and teachers do not share our Christian beliefs. Christians do not always have a good reputation, indeed we may be viewed as people who foist their views on others. It is very important, therefore, to have a clear grasp of the role of a Christian teacher. Here we can be helped by ideas developed by Christians working in cross cultural ministry.

Video - What Christian headteachers say

Cross Cultural Ministry

Many of us live and work in multi-cultural situations. Others experience this diversity through overseas holidays, global television and events like the Notting Hill Carnival. We are all used to encountering different cultures from our own, but there is the world of difference between visiting another culture or enjoying the entertainment offered by another culture, and working closely with people whose culture is very different from our own.

Britain is now a multi-cultural society. Our schools have to cater for a wide variety of needs. Even though there is cultural diversity, it is also true that there is a dominant culture, which is largely secular and consumerist. Terence Copley, the Professor of Religious Education at Exeter University, calls it the 'me' culture. Many people think it is no longer significantly influenced by Christian beliefs and values. How can Christian teachers, contribute to this culturally complex situation?

Commentators suggest three approaches:

1. We can retreat into our Christian enclave and see the rest of the world as the enemy to be resisted. We regard all other cultures as a threat and try not to be contaminated by them.
   
   
2. We can emphasise what is shared by people of all cultures and faiths. We ignore the differences between us and focus on our shared humanity. This approach treats culture and faith as irrelevant outside people's private lives.
   
   
3. We can seek to understand and interact with the different cultures we encounter, including the majority secular culture. In this way we will discover what people share in common, we will learn from other people's ways of life and we will be able to offer our own insights as Christians. This approach treats interaction with other cultures as an opportunity both to learn and to have influence. It is based on a theology of respect for other people. It is this third approach which offers the way forward.

An Incarnational Approach

An incarnational approach is modelled on Jesus who came to live amongst humans as 'one of us'. There are two notable characteristics of this approach:

1. Loving Identification
   
   Jesus identified fully with those around him. He shared their experiences and lived their life. He became part of the culture of 1st century Palestine.
   
   
2. A Costly Counter Cultural Stance.
   
   Jesus had very different values and faith from many of those around him. People knew he was different although he was rarely abrasive or confrontational. In the way he lived he modelled a different quality of life, which others found immensely attractive, although some opposed him. His life transformed many around him.

For Christian teachers working in schools following Jesus' example means that we too can fully identify with the people we work with and the many different cultures and faiths they represent. It also means that we will not be shy in sharing our own faith in appropriate ways and will seek to model the difference being a Christian makes by the way that we live.

This incarnational approach also means that we will work hard to understand and appreciate the educational culture in which we are working. This is our professional responsibility. Whatever we are teaching, we will strive for the highest standards and keep up to date with current educational thinking, but at the same time we won't simply follow the crowd. We will seek to offer better ways of teaching that are Christian at depth and can transform the way everyone teaches.

This approach may raise questions about the relationship between our Christian vocation and our professional responsibilities as teachers.

One of the toughest issues is in dealing with the fact that Christian beliefs are often considered highly controversial by others. Handling conflict between different truth claims is one of the most challenging tasks for schools in multi-faith societies. Schools are rightly concerned to promote religious harmony. How does a Christian remain true to their own faith whilst showing respect for others?

A Biblical Model

There are many Bible characters who emulate this incarnational approach. One of them is Daniel. He became a highly influential public servant in the Babylonian culture that was very different from his own Jewish one. Read more . . .