Course Description: This course focuses on ministry with adolescents (ages 11-18). The aim is to broaden our understanding of Christian education and its role in engaging in spiritual development and faith formation with youth. The course will examine human development and culture of the current adolescent generation, the context necessary for spiritual development to take place, and various ministry strategies and pedagogical models that can be used to companion youth in their spiritual passage from adolescence to young adulthood. We will engage the interplay between youth, culture, and the church, paying particular attention to the global context and the variety of subcultures in which youth develop. The foremost goal of this course is to provide a setting in which course participants can develop a working theology of ministry with youth that equips and fosters their leadership in congregations and other faithful community organizations.
Student Learning Outcomes: As a result of this course, learners will:
know and appreciate the complex roles, contexts, and challenges youth navigate daily in their lives, including issues of gender, race/culture, economics, orientation, etc.
know practices and strategies of youth ministry, faith formation, and theological reflection and choose helpful strategies for a context
listen deeply to youth and lead them in ministry to and with one another and the congregation, integrating theory and practice
assess a context and lead the congregation in designing and selecting the most effective strategies for the particular faith community context
understand themselves as resident theologians who invite youth and their families into relationships that equip them to make meaning of their lives in light of their faith
seek to become a trusted partner with congregations, community partners, families, youth, and other staff as an adult who companions youth in their faith development
be integrated whole selves as youth ministers, pastors, and advocates with the capacity to give and receive in relationships with youth while developing/maintaining appropriate boundaries
- Editing Teacher: Gina Robinson