Integrating a Biblical Worldview into Your Curriculum

This post addresses Christian school teachers struggling to properly integrate the Bible into their lessons and teaching on a daily basis. The video and text do not completely match, so if you are truly interested in this topic I would recommend both!

In education, we are taught to evaluate our school and each class to determine the best way to teach based on gender, socioeconomic status, test scores, culture, etc. These are the contributing factors that influence teachers' best practices.

The same is true with Christian teachers and Christian schools.

Take a minute to evaluate your school and each class you teach, Christian teacher. Are you predominately in an evangelistic school environment or a discipleship environment?

There is a difference, and it is important for us to know that difference.

A school or a class within that school that is mostly filled with students who come from strong Christian homes and a background in church and years in a Christian school (etc.) falls into the discipleship category. It is still important to remember that not everyone who has this type of background is indeed saved; however, they at least possess enough of the knowledge base that oftentimes the Holy Spirit convicts them when applying the faith is taught, discussed and challenged.

A school or a class within that school that is mostly filled with students who come from broken homes, little to no church background, and perhaps no Christian family or friends falls into the evangelistic category. It is important to remember that not everyone who has this type of background is unsaved; however, the likelihood that these students know even the basics of Scripture so that the Holy Spirit brings them to the conviction of their sin, which brings them to repentance (and, therefore, salvation) is extremely slim.

So, once the school and/or class has been identified as needing evangelism or discipleship, then it is the teachers' turn to evaluate themselves.

• What are my strengths concerning my faith?

• Do I live out my faith clearly and can therefore speak to the inward working of salvation being shown through my words and actions?

• Can I articulate biblical passages and concepts, explaining their purpose and meaning?

• Do I have much of the Bible memorized and can cross-reference an Old Testament (OT) promise to the New Testament (NT) fulfillment?

• Am I more familiar with the OT or the NT?

• Can I see Christ and the gospel throughout the OT and not just in the NT?

• Am I comfortable initiating spiritual conversations?

And the ultimate question: Do I actually view life with a biblical worldview?

Notice, I didn't say a Christian worldview.

The term "Christian" originally meant "little Christ" to identify those who followed Christ and His teachings. Today, however, that term is like the umbrella term for all forms of religion that ascribe to the Bible in any form or fashion. Catholics are considered Christians, as are Baptists and Methodists and Church of Christ, Lutheran and Pentecostal. Some people join these variations based on how they interpret certain doctrines in Scripture, and some (quite frankly) simply make up their own opinions rather than basing them on anything Scripture says.

If the Bible truly is the source of all knowledge because it really is inspired (God-breathed), then it is in fact the Word of God and should be heeded as such.

My point is that a biblical worldview actually follows what the Bible says rather than merely subscribing to a particular denomination. So, be extra careful about that. ;)

The best way to ensure you are incorporating a biblical worldview into every one of your lessons is by simply viewing your content the way God would view it.

Ask yourself, "How would God respond to this, and therefore, how should I respond to this?"

Personally, it's easy for me as an English teacher to answer those questions. But, just like incorporating state standards, there may be a particular lesson (like grammar) that does not always have a clear connection to a biblical worldview.

The best ways to incorporate the Gospel in those situations is to show the value of the lesson.

So for grammar, I would use biblical concepts in my example sentences. I would perhaps even show a passage of Scripture that exemplifies the grammar lesson we were learning and help them see how grammar can help them better understand their Bible when reading for devotions.

Teachers who follow state standards know that some lessons merely support the main lesson, which may have been a few days ago. So, instead of trying to force a brand new concept or standard each day, it's okay to split the concept over a few days. In that case, the biblical integration may work best on one of those days instead of forcing it every single day. (I hope that makes sense!)

I hope this post has helped at least one Christian school teacher out there to better understand how to incorporate a biblical worldview into their teaching. If I missed something key, please let me know so I can fix it! And if you have any other thoughts regarding this topic, I would LOVE to hear from you. This topic is perhaps the one I am the most passionate about concerning teaching.