Learning Methods: Approach and Methodology

 

All workshop sessions will be on Zoom. There will be a mix of whole group and small group activities. 

Required readings are provided to allow participates to come into the Zoom meetings with the information they’ll need for our work. They are also arranged to give you an solid overview of the field.  Note: The required readings will include segments from the seven books. The receiving the certificate involves reading all of the seven books. MORE - The reading list.    MORE - Certificate 

Presentations during the Zoom sessions will usually be short. They will assume you have read any required background reading. 

Small group work in the sessions will usually have you working with people from parishes across the US and possibly around the world. Small groups will have conversations on theories and models, practice skills, apply what you’re learning to your parish church, and engage exercises to help you better understand some material.


The issue of roles and how you carry out some of the assignments
Roles
Please take a look at “Initiating change and change roles” in Finding God in All Things. In another form it is available here “Roles from which parish development efforts can be initiated.” In the terms of that chart — what role are you in?

In some cases, when involving other parishioners, you can help them understand things by saying something along these lines, “I’m participating in an educational program about parish churches that includes carrying out assignments in the parish. I’d appreciate your help in doing that.”

Rectors (vicars, priest-in-charge, etc.)

The assumption is that you have the authority and the responsibility to initiate parish development efforts, including the mostly mini-exercises done as part of STP. Of course, you’ll want to consider whether some form of consultation with others is needed.  Wisdom is always helpful.

Lay members and other clergy (deacons, assistants and associates, etc)

You’ll want to be in conversation with the rector as you carry out assignments. Any of these exercises can set off feelings and questions in the minds of members. For example, let’s say there’s an assignment to use an assessment about parish life. The first question asks about the person’s overall satisfaction with parish life. Even if you are just involving 4 coffee hour friends. What happens if most of them offer a very negative rating? You have stirred the pot! That’s not a problem if the rector knows you’re doing it and is prepared to engage those involved if necessary. But most rectors would be rather unhappy if this came as a surprise. 

You know your situation best. We’ll leave it to you to do the needed advance work that allows you to engage this learning process in your parish. 

When you are part of a parish team

 1. As your rector is part of your STP team, the team is functioning as a parish development team in regard to the whole parish (whether formal or informal). The team’s authority to intervene — in this case complete assignments calling for others in the parish to participate — is based on a rector’s authority.

2. There will be times when the assignment is one the team can share the work. Most of the time we expect each individual to do their own work on the assignment. 

For example, in preparing for the second session in September one part of the assignment is — 

Complete two assessments using the Christian Life Model. Both found in the Shaping the Parish Resources www.orderoftheascension.org in “Assessments” section. Bring them to Session 2.

Each member of the team should do that on their own. That’s what we will deal with in the session. Once that is done, if you decide to meet as a team to collate and discuss the assessments, that would be wonderful. 

However a place where the team will want to collaborate is —

Between sessions 2 and 4: Interview three people from your parish using “Interview Questions - a worksheet ” Also available in the Five Core Models section Shaping the Parish Resources www.orderoftheascension.org (Note: The questions are also in “Nothing so Contagious as Holiness” in Chapters 3 and 5. 

Obviously, if you are part of a large team doing STP, if each person interviews 3 people in the parish: 1) It is a major intervention in the parish’s life and 2) It will require some management, e.g., you don’t want to have members of your STP team interviewing the same person. It would also be acceptable for the STP team to find ways to interview fewer people.  For example, they could interview one another or two members of the STP team could interview the same three people (Obviously you wouldn’t want 5 members interviewing the same person. It would probably feel too intrusive and awkward.) Our STP educational concern is that everyone has some experience interviewing, being interviewed, and making use of the questions provided.

The role of the training staff will be to design and facilitate the workshop sessions and manage the overall structure and process of the program. Staff members will not be available for individual consultations. Sister Michelle and Brother Robert are the lead trainers - they will be with you throughout the program and be facilitating most sessions. Brother Scott, Brother Poulson and Sister Susan will each be helping to lead specific modules and will participate in other sessions from time to time. More information on the trainers.