Engaging Faith

No matter what subject or level of theology course you are teaching, it’s wise to continue to teach students new vocabulary terms and assess their comprehension of these terms. You can do this in several ways, including having the students study and memorize the correct spelling and definitions of terms, and then repeat them back to you o a written text. You might also make a vocabulary assessment as part of regular opening or closing period of a class session. Here is one idea for assessment to use without having to have the students write responses. First, prepare a list of ten vocabulary terms and definitions and give them to the students. Or assign, particular terms and definitions from the glossary of their textbook. For example: Annulment— An official church declaration that what appeared to be a Christian marriage never existed in the first place. Beatific Vision—Seeing God “face-to-face” in heaven, the source of our eternal happiness; final union with the Triune God for all eternity. Catechesis—Process of systematic education in the faith for young people and adults with the view of making them disciples of Jesus Christ. Concupiscence—An inclination to commit sin that can be found in human desires and appetites as a result of original sin. Dogma—A central truth of revelation that Catholics are obliged to believe. Encyclical—A letter on some important topic written by the pope and sent to the whole Church or to the whole world. An encyclical contains the ordinary teaching of the Magisterium. Magisterium—The official teaching authority of the Church. The Lord bestowed the right and power to teach in his name on Peter and the apostles and their successors, that is, the bishops and the pope as their leader. Sanctifying grace—The grace, or gift of God’s friendship, that heals our fallen human nature and gives us a share in the divine life of the Blessed Trinity. A habitual, supernatural gift, it makes us perfect, holy, and Christ-like (CCC, 1999). Subsidiarity—A principle of Catholic social justice that holds that a community of a higher order should not interfere in the internal life of a community of a lower order, depriving it of its functions. For the sake of the common good, higher order societies should support and help lower order societies as needed. Transubstantiation—The term used to describe that at the consecration of the bread and wine at Mass their entire substance is turned into the entire substance of the Body and Blood of Christ, even though the appearances of bread and wine remain. Next, come up with two lists of sentences — one with correct usage of vocabulary words and one with incorrect usage. Write both lists and keep them with you. Read each sentence aloud, pausing between each one so that students can identify the vocabulary word and determine if the word is used correctly or not. If you have digital options for students to respond “correct” or “incorrect” you will be able to gain an accurate understanding of the class’s comprehension of the terms. If not, simply use hand signals to respond correct (e.g., thumbs up) or incorrect (e.g., thumbs down).

Here are three simple ways for you to learn the names of your students and for them to know a little bit more about each other. 1. Give each person a 3 x 5 card with his or her first names printed in capital letters. Next, tell the students to arranged everyone’s first names in capital letters in a “circle” around the four corners of the room. The person with the first name should be at “12 o’clock” against the front wall. The person with the last name at 11:59. When the ordering is done, have the students hold up their cards wo that everyone can read them. Then tell them to go around the room beginning with the person at 12 o’clock and say their names. Next, have the participants turn their cards around. Call on several people to try to name everyone beginning with the first person and going all the way around the room. When the person misses a name, allow others in the class to give some help. 2. Give each person a 3 x 5 card with his or her first names printed in capital letters. Ask them to move around the room and find at least two people with whom they can form a word using the first letters of their name. For example: William, Eva, Nancy form NEW. When everyone is in a word group, have them share their word and names with everyone. Take a second turn through and have them share only the “word.” Call on volunteers to tell their names. 3. Randomly pass out 3 x 5 cards making sure that no one gets their own name. Tell the students to find the person who is named on the card and to give them the card. When the students all have their own cards, they should go around the room meeting new people and collecting signatures on their card. The person with the most signatures wins! Photo Credit: hiclipart.com