My Christian faith is foundational to who I am and how I seek to live out my life. Because of how God has significantly shaped me (and continues to do so!), I believe in the importance of living out my life in service to Him and being faithful in the spaces and places to which He has called me. And yet, determining how to best incorporate my faith in the classroom was an aspect of teaching at ACU that I really struggled with at first, particularly after having completed my doctoral work at a secular, research-based institution where I was not able to do so in an explicit manner. Outside of a few comments related to my Christian character (see below), in my first semester of teaching, my student evaluations included very little mention as it relates to the integration of faith into the classroom.
- “She played Christian music before class sometimes and had upstanding character”
- “Dr. Easter always encouraged us to apply the Christian viewpoint to any case we evaluated and she frequently spoke of how we should incorporate our Christ-like character into our careers.”
As I have wrestled with what this looks like for me in a way that is authentic and not contrived, I have found that actively integrating my faith into the classroom can be as simple as sharing devotional thoughts with students from the daily devotionals I read, as relevant, and playing worship music before class. I’ve been surprised by how positively students have reacted to these minor tweaks, in both my written evaluations and anecdotally to me in class. As well, I think it has helped to humanize me as an instructor and to allow me to connect with my students on a more personal level.
The former course assessment tool, IDEA-CL, included the question: What specific actions and attitudes did you notice from your instructor that demonstrated his/her Christ-like character and conduct? Below are some student responses:
- “Dr. Easter was always kind and respectful to all students. She was patient in answering all questions and waiting for class participation.”
- “Dr. Easter plays great uplifting Christian music before class and carries herself in a way that exemplifies her love for the Lord!”
- “Dr. Easter came into the classroom every day with the love and joy of Christ shining through her. She genuinely cares about each student and reflects Christ in her work. She was very kind, understanding, and got to know us as people as well as students.”
In addition to sharing devotional thoughts and striving to demonstrate Christ-like behavior to my students across all classes, I have sought to integrate faith into specific courses relative to the content area. I have found this task easier to implement in some classes more so than others. For example, in Business & Sustainability, students read and write book reports on two books focused on different aspects of sustainability, both of which are written from Christian lenses. Students noted the following about the integration of faith in this particular course:
- “This course incorporates faith into the class more seamlessly than any other business class I have taken.”
- “Made it a point to be active and involve subject matter in a Christ-like way”
- “Encouraging us to participate in God’s call to use us as stewards in His Kingdom in ways that represent Him without hurting others”
Similarly, in Social Enterprise Consulting, Dr. Laura Phillips and I wanted students to consider the project they worked on from a faith-based perspective through the lens of serving others. Therefore, while not a Global Service Trip, we incorporated materials provided by the Halbert Center for Missions and Global Service into our curriculum to help prepare students to work alongside the female entrepreneurs we served in Costa Rica. Below are a few student comments in this regard:
- “As a team, we were thoughtful of why we were doing this and had several intentional conversations, so I think it helped prepare us well for ‘Christian service and leadership’”
- I appreciate the professors equipping us as young and inexperienced consultants, while encouraging a humble posture in light of our privilege as American college students”
Yet, other courses, such as Strategic Management, have been more challenging as the specific subject matter does not tend to lend itself as easily to a clear integration of a Christian-based lens. I have worked to better encourage students to consider different frameworks and organizational scenarios from the perspective of a Christian decision maker in our discussions. Consider the following sample student comments:
- “As this was a management class, it is always apparent how to apply ethics to what we are learning. We did case studies that would ask us what we would do in a position, and that exemplifies our character and if we choose to do what would be considered a “Christian” perspective or action”
- “Her stories in the work industry shows how her faith has grown. She tries to help us see how we can bring Christ-like characteristics in the workplace. Her views of business ethics and values.”
By far, though, the greatest opportunity to integrate my faith with my work has taken place in my individual relationships with students outside of the traditional classroom – in my office and home, in coffee shops, and through study abroad experiences. It has been a great joy and privilege to be able to walk alongside students as they navigate their college experiences, both those that are joyful and those that are hard, and as they consider where God will lead them while at ACU and beyond.
Sunday evening devotional during 2018 COBA Oxford Study Abroad Program