Abstract
This volume’s title accurately announces that it contains “tales of challenges and opportunities,” though the title under-promises what the book delivers. The 20 stories contained in Prep Talks: Tales of Challenges & Opportunities in Christian Education prompt the reader to wrestle with questions, challenges, and themes that are “increasingly common” (p. 12) in Christian education today. The book’s design, which includes questions for reflection and discussion following each chapter, is well suited for either individual or group consideration of the issues.
The chapter, “A Tale of a Great Teacher and a Grade Awakening” was particularly powerful and timely. Current thinking about grading has alerted educators to the limitations of averaging a student’s grades over time, because averaging early work with later work may not reflect the student’s performance at the point of the final or milestone evaluation. This chapter illustrates that dilemma with a realistic and helpful narrative about Michaela and Michelle. Michaela is a particularly good student who does not need to put in much effort to demonstrate mastery and earns a “solid A+” in the fictitious story (p. 78). Michelle, however, is the “hardest working and most focused student who had ever gone through this class … [She] demonstrated the greatest level of mastery in the course. Yet she finished the class with a B+ because of those early grades” (p. 78). Bernard Bull, the author of this chapter, does not tell the reader the “right answer” and instead focuses on chronicling the teacher’s journey as she reflects on Michaela and Michelle’s growth, learning, and grades.
Another story that I found particularly thought-provoking and challenging was Michael Uden’s “Making a Call When the Lines Are Crossed.” In this story, a young teacher wrestles with an apparent bullying situation in her classroom between David, the son of a single-parent family with a deeply involved mother, and Josiah, the son of a board of education member. Political issues emerge because Josiah seems to be the bully, but the principal does not support the teacher because of Josiah’s parents’ role in the school community. Unfortunately, in real life, tales like this one do not always have the positive outcome of the book’s fictitious tale.
Though some of the tales are helpful and thought-provoking, others seem to have a more obvious answer, such as “It’s All About Jesus: Can a School Integrate Faith and Learning If Its Faculty Do Not?” Additionally, some chapters do not explore the questions they ask with significant depth. In “Mixed Messages: Creation and Evolution,” Jim Pingel attempts to highlight different views on the topic, but the chapter contains several distracting elements, one of which was the author’s creation of unusual teacher names by scrambling the letters of their position. For example, one teacher is Rennis Demeeder, which is “redeemed sinner” backwards. Another teacher, Mr Llud, has his “senses dulled to the specific content he was allowing into his class” (p. 41). A one-paragraph explanation of Mrs Atad’s (“data” spelled backwards) approach to the controversy is simply too limited to provoke significant thought. The chapter’s reflection questions focus on mixed messages that schools might inadvertently send to their students. While thinking about mixed messages and the importance of clearly aligning mission and instruction is indeed critical, I found myself confused and frustrated by the chapter rather than being helped to wrestle with the issue.
Because the first few tales were the weakest of the book, I might have abandoned the book had I not been committed to writing this review. Given my responsibility as a reviewer, I pressed on and found thought-provoking and helpful insights in the later chapters, so I am glad I stuck with it. Though a Lutheran press published Prep Talks, I nevertheless found it off-putting that every school includes “Lutheran” in its name. “Town Christian School,” for example, might have helped the cases feel more inclusive and applicable beyond Lutheran schools. While I would not say that every Christian schoolteacher should run out and buy this book, I would encourage principals or those responsible for educator professional development to consider the book as a conversation starter for profitable learning with their faculty. The tales do not need to be read in order, and a school can select the tales that are most relevant to its situation.