Avoid Faulty Assumptions (#6): My students are learning—so they’re flourishing, right?

/ mkessenburg

Photo by Ben Mullins on Unsplash

Please note: Consistently pursuing a granular vision (aka vision script) of flourishing students, staff, and leaders helps international Christian schools to flourish. This post reflects my vision.

Learning! It’s wonderful when students are learning about God, His world, and their place in it. Learning, particularly transformative learning, is integral to flourishing. However, learning does not equal flourishing. Consider:

  • Is an aimless student flourishing?
  • Is a student who is learning only for grades and who is not using what s/he learns to help others flourishing?
  • Is a student who isn’t getting enough sleep and who has mental health issues flourishing?
  • Is a student who has no friends flourishing?

My response: Just because your students are learning doesn’t mean they’re flourishing.

But let me ask you some questions about flourishing students:

Question 1: What does a flourishing student at an international Christian school look like to you? To me, what a flourishing student at an international Christian school looks like includes someone who…

Photo by Jason Sung on Unsplash

Question 2: What’s your definition of a flourishing student at an international Christian school? Here’s my working definition: A flourishing student consistently experiences the 5 elements of flourishing* and helps others do the same. Or to put it another way, a flourishing student consistently experiences abundant life in Jesus and helps others do the same. (To learn more, please read What do flourishing students at international Christian schools consistently experience?)

*Note: The 5 elements of flourishing (based on ACSI’s model):

  1. Passionate purpose
  2. Resilient well-being
  3. Healthy relationships
  4. Transformative learning
  5. Helpful resources

Question 3: What faulty assumptions might you need to address about flourishing students? Here are 5 examples of faulty assumptions about being a flourishing student:

(1) Passionate Purpose:  “I guess we’re not really supposed to ask deep questions. You know, like sometimes when I have doubts, I’d like to ask questions. But it doesn’t come up in class, and I’m pretty sure my teacher would say I shouldn’t have doubts, so I don’t ask. So I guess a good Christian doesn’t have doubts—that’s why I shouldn’t ask my questions, right?” 

This just makes me sad. At a Christian school, we’re supposed to help our students grow in faith, which includes processing their doubts (see construct on questioning in Flourishing Schools, p. 14). I know that in my own life, processing my doubts has helped me grow—like doubts about God’s sovereignty when some gets cancer. 

Students learn from asking questions. We all know this. And when students aren’t encouraged to ask questions about their real experiences, about their real doubts, they lose out on an opportunity to grow. And when the message is that they shouldn’t ask certain questions, their takeaway could be that being a Christian means never having doubts and behaving in such a way that no one gets uncomfortable. (To learn more, please read My Christian High-School Students Have Doubts. Here’s How I Respond.)

Note: If your students don’t ask their questions in a Christ-centered environment, there’s a good probability that they will eventually ask their questions in environments that aren’t Christ-centered

(2) Resilient Well-Being: “Reading, writing,  and math—that’s important. I’m in 2nd grade, and we spend the most time each day on reading, writing, and math. We used to get more recess and more PE, but now recess is shorter and we don’t get PE. I guess those aren’t important.”

Reading, writing, and math are important—as are Bible, science, and social studies. As are music, library, art, and computer. And for 2nd graders, for all students, “regular exercise” is important (Flourishing Schools, p. 18). It’s good for physical health and helps students concentrate and behave.

Most international schools are in cities, and most students have significant commute time and homework, and not a lot of space at home to play. What can get squeezed out is physical activity. God created students with bodies—bodies which need regular exercise if those students are to flourish. Find time for students to sufficiently exercise each day—the CDC recommends recess for all grade levels.

(3) Healthy Relationships: “I’m working hard to learn, to reach my potential, to get into a good college, a really good college. I get along with my basketball teammates—which will look good on my college applications. At some point, I’ll have the time and energy to focus on helping others. Right now, though, I need to stay focused on getting into college. My parents agree.”

It’s good to have goals. It’s good to be focused on reaching your potential and on getting into a good college. But your goals don’t have to exclude helping others. Helping others doesn’t take hours—it usually takes seconds or minutes and it’s a way of living. Being known as someone who shows “love and care” (Flourishing Schools, p. 15) will look good on your college applications—the opposite won’t. 

God says we are to love our neighbors—and keep in mind that part of reaching your potential, of flourishing, is helping others flourish. It looks like an unintended consequence of your goals could be being self-absorbed. Not good. Really good colleges are not looking for self-absorbed students.

(4) Transformative Learning: “I just follow directions and do what the teacher tells the whole class to do. I’m not really sure what you mean about what else helps me learn. And I don’t really understand what you mean about my strengths. Do you mean which classes I get better grades in? I basically get all Bs—so that’s not much help.” 

Following directions and doing what the teacher tells the class to do is important for students to do. And while each student is a member of the class, each student is also an individual created by God with learning tendencies and with strengths. When a student isn’t aware of how s/he learns best and what their strengths are, they will find it harder to learn, harder to flourish. Teachers, please provide “[i]ndividualized instruction…[that helps students know] how they learn best and…identify their natural strengths” Flourishing Schools, p. 16).

(5) Helpful Resources: “It’s not that I’m not grateful for being able to attend an international Christian school. It’s just that I really like science. I’m thinking about majoring in science in college. But last year, stuff happened and I had 3 different biology teachers. This year I had a really good chemistry teacher, but she left in March. An English teacher with some background in science filled in, but it’s not the same and, to be honest, it’s not as good. I guess I’m getting a little concerned for my future, but maybe that’s just what happens at Christian schools.”

I’m glad the student wants to pursue science, wants to learn about God’s creation. I can see why she’s concerned about his future—pretty difficult to have 5 science teachers in 2 years and to basically have an English teacher for the last quarter of chemistry. And I recognize that stuff happens. However, I also recognize that students need helpful learning resources, the key one being qualified teachers who are flourishing. Providing unhelpful resources shouldn’t be “just what happens at Christian schools.”

Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich

Question 4: What change(s) do you need to make to help your students flourish? Please keep in mind that ongoing change is part of flourishing, that you don’t need to do everything (though you do need to do something), and that you should start with yourself.

Options for changes related to helping students flourish include:

  • Praying for students by name on a regular basis.
  • Encouraging students to ask difficult faith-related questions.
  • Subscribing to the Culture Translator, an e-newsletter that helps you understand and disciple your students.
  • Giving students time to reflect on their progress on the student outcomes.
  • Establishing classroom libraries.

Note: To help yourself successfully make a change, be sure to identify what helps you.

What about you? 

  • What does a flourishing student at an international Christian school look like to you? 
  • What’s your definition of a flourishing student at an international Christian school? 
  • What faulty assumptions might you need to address about flourishing students? 
  • What change(s) do you need to make to help students flourish? 
  • What helps you make the changes necessary for helping students be the international Christian school students God is calling them to be?

Get flourishing!

Michael