Consider this: Is there overlap between how Scripture wants to be taught and how teens want to learn? Good question. Let’s explore.
First, how does Scripture want to be taught? The words used throughout Scripture to describe how to engage God’s Word drip with radical intentionality—earnestly seek, heed, meditate, grasp, understand. And then there are analogies: digging for hidden treasure, searching for silver, building a house on the rock. All of these descriptions point to the notion that the more we press in, the more we get back. Bible engagement is not to be casual and haphazard but diligent and intentional. That, it seems is how Scripture wants to be taught.
Secondly, how do teens want to learn? It starts with that last word: learn. Learning is invigorating and it leaves you wanting more. We should never fear the word learn. But we should be smart about it. Research reveals more and more that we are all hard-wired for different learning styles, such as: visual, reading/writing, auditory, kinesthetic. Some of us have to see it, some of us have to write it down, some of us learn by hearing, others of us learn by doing. Many of us are some combination of styles. Teens, who are discovering their learning capabilities right before your very eyes, learn best when engaging their personal learning style.
The variety of genres found in Scripture plays right into the variety of learning styles we’ve identified. In fact, it’s a mash-up made in heaven. But isn’t it just like God to have us experience His written Word in ways that cater to how He wired us to learn?
One more thing: because the word “study” (as in, “Bible study”) seems to favor the “reading/writing” learner, maybe it’s time to lose that word and opt for a word that more closely identifies what we’re doing: engagement. So, at that point, here are some “rules of engagement” that will help you find the sweet spot overlap between how Scripture wants to be taught and how teens want to learn.
Rules of Engagement
- Voluntary: We teach to the lowest common denominator. If your ministry doesn’t single out a time for the spiritually hungry, their hunger will never get satisfied. Designate a time in your programming when you can invite the hungry.
- Scripture Interaction: Observe the Scripture in a way that leverages learning styles. Does the text lend itself to marking with symbols, or better yet, emojis? Can students act it out or tell it as a story? Is there a scene to be drawn? You might even suggest different ways to observe the same text.
- Scripture Reaction: After creatively observing the passage, ask questions that engage students with the text, such as: What is God expressing? What is God expressing specifically to you? What makes you go “wow!”? What makes you say “ouch!”? These kinds of questions keep students focused on what God is saying, a vital exercise that keeps us on track with how Scripture wants to be taught.
- Community Processing: After we have explored what God is saying in a passage, we’ve earned the right to discuss. Scripture is meant to be experienced in both solitude and community. We are to encourage each other with personal epiphanies and testimony of how we’ve seen truth in action. It’s here that we can allow for doubts and questions, including our own. It’s okay to say, “I don’t know what God was thinking here.”
- Personal Application: Application is another, and maybe the best, opportunity to engage learning styles in that you can give every student the chance to respond in his or her own way. Here are a few examples:
-visual: draw a picture or diagram that illustrates your personal convictions or adjustments
-reading/writing: memorize a verse or write a poem that expresses your heart
-auditory: make a recording (video or audio) for others that summarizes the teaching time
-kinesthetic: build an altar as a reminder of personal convictions or adjustments
We don’t have to be Bible scholars or learning experts to find the sweet spot between how Scripture wants to be taught and how teens want to learn. In fact, simple awareness of both is a reflection of the trait that Hebrews 11:4 says will bring great payoff: diligently seeking.
NOTE:
At InWord we take this seriously. Every session seeks to honor teaching Scripture the way it wants to be taught and the way teens want to learn. Admittedly, we have favored the “reading/writing” style of learning in the past but our web-based support and revised studies strive for a blend of all styles.
Check out our online catalog here.