Training the Teacher

by A. F. Schauffler; Martin Grove Brumbaugh; Antoinette Abernethy Lamoreaux; Marion Lawrance

The Sunday-school Teacher

72. The Teacher's Office.—Next to the minister of the gospel, the Sunday-school teacher occupies the highest office in Christian service. The central and most important feature of every Sunday-school session is the Bible-teaching period. All the other exercises of the school should be so arranged as to make the teaching period as effective as possible. The teachers do the teaching; hence the importance of the office. The character of the teacher and the efficiency of the teaching usually determine the efficiency of the school; like teacher, like school.

73. The Teacher in Prospect.—Probably the greatest problem in Sunday-school work, at present, is that of securing a sufficient number of good teachers. The only solution of this problem is for every school to have at least one teacher-training class each year. Any school which sets itself definitely to the task of training its own teachers, from its own ranks, for its own classes, will reduce the teacher problem to a minimum. Such a class should be composed of young men and women between the ages of sixteen and thirty, specially chosen by the pastor and superintendent because of their interest in the work and apparent fitness for it. The class should be taught by the best teacher obtainable, though he need not be an expert. It should meet at the church, at the regular Sunday-school hour, thus solving the difficulty as to time and place. Substitute teachers should never be drawn from this class. A teacher's diploma should be issued to each student completing the course and passing the required examination.

74. The Teacher Trained.—Many who are now teaching desire to take a teacher-training course. Difficult though it is to maintain a class for such workers, it can be done. Evidently it cannot meet at the Sunday-school hour, as the teachers are already occupied. A full week-night is preferable, if it can be had; if not, it may come before or after the Workers' Meeting or prayer-meeting, though this arrangement is always more or less detrimental to both meetings. Interdenominational training-classes are much better than none, but the training-class in the local church is the ideal, and should be maintained wherever it is possible. When it is impossible to attend a teacher-training class, or there is none, individuals may take a course alone, and this is often done.

75. The Teacher Chosen.—The teacher should be chosen and appointed by the proper authority representing the church and the Sunday-school. The committee for appointing teachers should be composed of three persons: the pastor of the church, the superintendent of the Sunday-school, and the superintendent of the department where the teacher is to teach. If there is a separate superintendent of teachers in the Sunday-school, he may represent the superintendent of the school in this capacity. No one should be set over any class as teacher whose appointment is not satisfactory to the three persons named above.

76. The Teacher Installed.—The Sunday-school is a church service, hence the teacher should be properly recognized by the church. It is desirable that all the officers and teachers should be assembled and installed in their offices for the coming year with fitting exercises, at a regular service of the church. Such a service as this dignifies the office of the Sunday-school teacher, places upon him the approbation of the church, and makes him feel that his work is appreciated. The installation service should be in charge of the pastor of the church, and the officers and teachers should be seated in a body. Appropriate exercises for such a service have been arranged, and may be easily secured from the denominational publishing houses.

77. The Teacher Protected.—During the general opening and closing exercises of the Sunday-school session the superintendent is in charge. But during the teaching period the teacher outranks everybody else, and is entitled to the full time set apart for teaching without any interruption. The officers of the school should not be allowed to disturb the classes in any way. The making of the class reports, gathering of the offering, and similar matters, should be attended to before the recitation begins, and in such a manner as to make the least interference with the class work. It is a sin to disturb a class unnecessarily after the teaching has begun.

78. The Teacher Between Sundays.—The wise teacher will regard the intervening week between two sessions of the school as the time of his greatest opportunity. He will review in his mind the experiences of the previous Sunday, endeavoring to learn therefrom how to improve his work in the future. He will give himself diligently to the preparation of his lesson and to the visiting of the absent, and will be especially careful to call upon the sick members of his class. He will attend the Workers' Meeting, and avail himself of every opportunity for improvement. He will seek personal interviews with those of his scholars who have been troublesome in the matter of discipline, and will talk individually with all the members of his class in order to win them to Christ. He will identify himself with the International Reading Circle, as a member of which he pledges to read at least one good Sunday-school book each year, and thus keep in touch with the Sunday-school movements of the world.

79. The Teacher's Aim.—The teacher should aim, first of all, to win the confidence and esteem of his scholars. Until this is done little else is possible, because there can be no effective teaching without co-operation. He should give his scholars faithful and efficient instruction in the Word of God. The lesson itself should be taught each Sunday, and not allowed to be brushed aside by the discussion of any other topic, though other topics may be used to introduce or illustrate the lesson. He should endeavor to lead his scholars to an acceptance of the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour. This is oftener accomplished by a personal interview than in the class. He should aim to lead his scholars into membership in the local church. He should aim, by careful training and instruction, to build his scholars up into strong Christian characters, and to fit them for the duties of civic and religious life. Let him remember that his work is for eternity.

80. The Teacher's Reward.—The teacher receives much of his reward as he goes along, but not all of it. The privilege of being associated with the Great Teacher, and laboring in obedience to his command; the joy of leading souls to Jesus Christ, and sending them out into the world as witnesses for him; the consciousness of growing power in service because of work well done; the companionship of kindred spirits engaged in the same great work—these are surely rewards enough. But there is another reward when the work is done. It is God's "Well done" to the faithful.