Pope Francis’s daily meditation on February 23, 2017 was titled “Do not delay conversation.” Pope Francis reflected on the “sin” of professing to be Christian yet living a life that does not follow God’s word. The Pope refers to the law of the Lord as being a means of finding strength and explains how, for the lord, sin is the same as destruction. The Pope then continued to define sin: “saying one thing and doing another; it is a double life” this double life “comes from following your heart’s desires, the capital sins which are the wounds of the original sin”. This meditation is concluded with the Pope asking each of us to think about whether there is a double life within us and not to delay this conversation with ourselves and explore the depth of our hearts to acknowledge that sin destroys. This reading connects greatly to the discussion around what makes Catholic schools separate from Secular ones. If a school is only Catholic in name, yet does not follow a Catholic way of life or is rooted in all of its practices then the faculty members and students of the school are all living a double life. This meditation calls upon us, as the Catholic community, not to stray away from this conversation with ourselves. As teachers we constantly reflect on every lesson and analyze how we can improve, as Catholics we must do the same and show our students how to as well. We all sin, but it is the denial of these sins and the continuation of them that destroys us. The daily meditation on March 2, 2017 that pop Francis delivered was titled, “The Christian’s Compass.” This meditation reflects on how our Christian compass is to follow Christ crucified and not some abstract God, and is a strong reminder during Lent. Pop Francis explained that “the Liturgy of the Word makes us reflect on three realities that lie before us as conditions for this conversion: the reality of man — the reality of life; the reality of God; and the reality of the journey”. These “are realities of the human experience, all three, but which the Church, and we too, have before us for this conversion.” In the reality of man you are faced with a choice between good and evil, it is the reality of freedom. This is an essential element in a Catholic worldview and especially for Catholic education as it is always a choice not only which school to attend, but which faith to follow. The second reality of God, that we must not see Jesus Christ and God as separate but rather as one. During the season of Lent it is very important for teachers to take on the position of religious guidance, as many students do not attend mass or are unaware of what the Lenten season truly means. It is important to implement a concrete God as a school-wide initiative. The third reality is the reality of the journey. This journey is the reason we have become Catholic educators, we pick up our crosses and follow on Jesus’ path and lead the way for our students to follow. This mirrors the Catholic school which serves as a road stop on this journey to show our students how they continue on the path God has carved out for them, and we as teachers are their temporary guides. These realities all work together to construct our realities as Catholics and point us in the right direction. The morning meditation of Pope Francis on February 28, 2017 is called “Everything and Nothing.” This reflection is on the joy of sacrifice in responding to Jesus’ call to follow him. These reflections came days before Lent and the relationship between “God and riches” This is extremely important as a future educator. Our students are coming from different economic backgrounds and all have different relationships themselves with money. It is important to come back to Scripture and remind students that wealth comes in many different forms, the least gratifying is the wealth of money. This reading also draws a comparison between the educator and Christ to say that “The Lord does not know how to give less than everything; when he gives something, he gives himself, which is everything.” This is why teaching is a vocation, I give it everything that I have into it. This reflects the Catholic school as a whole because it is important for the community to build a space in which each student has the same opportunities as the other regardless of economic background. I have witnessed beautiful donations from parents, the church, staff members, all to help students buy prom dresses, attend graduation, attend class trips, participate in paid school lunches; the selflessness is a beautiful thing to witness and a reminder that wealth comes from our relationship with God and with others.
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The daily reading for March 26, 2017 begins with a reading from the first book of Samuel. This reading focuses on outward appearances and how Yahweh sees through people to their heart whereas humans see outward appearances. Yahweh’s spirit takes hold of David once Samuel follows God’s word to anoint him with oil, because he is the chosen one. The response to this reading was Psalm 23 which celebrates Yahweh as our shepherd who provides for us, allows us to live in abundance, social justice, tranquility, and ends with the affirmation that we make our house in Yahweh’s name forever and for all of eternity. The next reading comes from Ephesians from the letter of the Apostle Paul. This letter details how we have come from darkness and now live in the light under God and take no part in acts of darkness. How we must “wake up from the dead and Christ will shine on you.” John (9) details a story in which Jesus crosses a man who is blind and gave him the gift of sight. This man believed Jesus was a prophet, whereas others could not believe. This man’s parents agreed that their son was born blind but let their son speak for himself. When he tried to speak again, they still would not believe him, and hurled abuse at him and ejected him. When Jesus heard of this and that it is for judgment that he has come into this world, so that those without sight may see, and those with sight may become blind.
This reading collectively calls upon several different areas of scripture to show how God provides sight. In terms of how we view others: instead of focusing on how someone looks and basing their worth on that we must call upon the Lord’s message and see others through his eyes. To be cable to see your students for their hearts and thoughts is crucial, a student should never be judged for their outward appearances and they must learn to not judge others for their appearances as well. God also provides lightness to the dark, this is crucial in high schools where students have several opportunities to stray away from the light and be consumed by darkness. It is our job to guide them constantly towards the light of God and using this scripture specifically is a great way to ground them back in their faith. Finally, this reading concludes with the Gospel according to John where it solidifies this theme of God providing sight when Jesus gives a blind man his sight. What we learn from this is that only the man with sight is able to believe in Jesus and defend him, even his parents and especially his community all disbelieve in Jesus. This is especially significant for our Catholic schools who are surrounded by secular communities and families. The connection between Jesus and the experience many Catholics face is crucial in our understanding of what it means to truly believe. Jesus never wavered in his faith and trust in God, and neither should we as teachers and should be there to help our students when they are faced with blindness. The daily reading for March 28 begins with a Reading from the prophet Ezekiel (47). Ezekiel explains how he was led through a steam which went deeper and deeper until it was a river that was too impossible to cross. When he is brought to the bank of the river he is told that “wherever the river flows all living creatures will thrive.” The response from Psalms 46 asks us to admire the wonders of Yahweh, the astounding deeds he has done on the earth. This reading concludes with a reading from the Gospel according to John (5). There was a festival which Jesus attended in Bethesda, where many sick people covered the land. Jesus asked one of the sick men if he would like to be healed, and he told the man to pick up his mat and walk around, and he was healed. It was the Sabbath so many people were upset that this man was walking around, and the healed man told them that is was Jesus who healed him which led the community to harass Jesus. These readings begin by reminding me how important it is to take care of not only the physical world, but the humans who inhabit it as well. Our global citizenship and global climate change are constantly at risk and are suffering more and more every day. This first reading is crucial in educating youth, to remind them that this life and this world are not just simply here for us to use and abuse. We must take care of our planet, and of fellow humans, and thank the lord for giving us both. The final Gospel reading reminds us that believing in God is active work. This reminds us that learning and teaching in faith must be an active duty. We must incorporate our faith into the everyday atmosphere and lives of our students so that they are actively participating in their faith every day. In unity of atmosphere and self the goal is to ground ourselves and our school community in faith. The daily reading for March 27th begins with a reading from the prophet Isaiah (65). This scripture explains how God has removed a troubling past from the minds of the people in Jerusalem and how he has extended life and at 100 the sinner will be absolved. Psalms (30) exclaim that we make music for Yahweh and that his favour will last for a lifetime. He turns our mourning into dancing, and we will sing for Yahweh to celebrate our gratitude. The Gospel according to John (4) explains how Jesus arrived in Galilee and an official came to Jesus to ask him to heal his son. Jesus told him to believe and go home and his son shall be healed. The official was met on the road by messengers who told him that his son’s fever lifted him the moment Jesus told him that his son shall be healed. These readings really work together to remind us that God’s love is a celebration. Our faith is meant to uplift us, be celebrated, and heal us from grief. This is essential in a Catholic school. During prayer I remind students that this is a moment of reflection and a time when we can find strength from God and allow him to live through us and lead us towards lightness. These readings remind us of all the goodness he offers us and how we can celebrate and profess our faith proudly. Many students feel pride in attending a Catholic school and we must do all that we can to reinforce this pride and ensure that we, as Catholic educators, take time for celebration on a daily basis and remind ourselves just how much strength we can draw from our faith. The article, “How to Understand the Bible” surprised me in the fact that the author gave specific examples from sacred scripture, proving to an example for all those who live in the Catholic faith. I find that many Catholic educators, parents, and students have drifted from scripture and the church. This article presents a possible solution for this disconnection: go back to God’s written word.
"10. What does the Bible tell us we should do to understand truth? (2 Timothy 2:15) The Bible Answer: Study. It is very important to study the Bible for yourself. We can't rely on what others tell us. God invites you to go on a personal discovery of truth from His Word." One of my core beliefs as a teacher is that I am not there to lecture; I am there to guide students towards learning and critical thinking strategies and provide the tools and resources to do so. This aspect of studying the source itself is one that I implement in my classrooms every day. Students have been interacting with their faith primarily through their teachers, parents, or pastors, but rarely do they independently study the scripture itself. This is a crucial learning goal we should have for all of our students, to be able to critically engage with all material, but especially with scripture. We must give our students the opportunity to learn and grow independently, and as this article says, refrain from being closed-minded and unwilling to give up our own ideas, “God invites us to seek His way, not our own. He invites us to turn from the pride of our own understanding to humble acceptance of His revealed will in His Word.” I found it interesting that the introduction to the OCS curriculum policy document for religious education included the truths facing religious education today. The difficulty of teaching students who come from a home where religious education is not the primary motination is one that often goes ignored. We must be aware that many of our students do not attend mass every Sunday or have a strong knowledge of scripture, and above all are on shaky ground with their faith and belief systems; “And yet they are loved by God.” This quote perfectly synthesizes why I do what I do on a daily basis. This love that is produced by our faith is one that must be fought for and pursued vivaciously by our Catholic School community.
I also found the definition of what a teacher is called to do extremely interesting, and explains why this is a vocation. We are called to educate in faith, mentor young people in their journey, and to witness the gospel and speak on behalf of the faith community. These are core accepts to my teaching and what we must all remind ourselves of while teaching so that we never lose focus of our foundational beliefs and duties to our students. I also think the aspects of participation and experience are crucial in our faith. I will never forget when my French teacher orchestrated a class trip to a local homeless shelter in Toronto assisting any one (but especially English language learners) struggling in Toronto. We dedicated our day in preparing and serving lunch, but we also had time to circulate and speak with these people on a one-to-one basis. This really humanized homelessness for me at a young age and put my Catholic beliefs into action outside of the classroom. This is where exploration and explanation come into focus, after a trip like this it is a necessity to bring this back to the school community and within ourselves. My teacher had us write out reflections and truly analyze how our core faith system has led us onto this path of love and community. Not only this, but then we utilized application by collecting lightly worn clothing items to donate to this shelter within the month after visiting, and we turned this into a school-wide event. My goal in teaching is to orchestrate similar outings during my career and allow students to have similar eye-opening and possibly life-changing experiences. Finally, I like that the curriculum strands are encompassing in their focus on Sacred Scripture, Profession of Faith, Christian Moral Development, Prayer/Sacramental Life, and Family Life Education. These strands work to cover the foundation of our faith but also build upon previous knowledge and really provide opportunities for spiritual growth. Before the document breaks off into these specific strands, the hopes for our students in religious education are outlined. “Religious Education seeks to develop not only knowledge and disciplinary skills but also to foster in students the attitudes and values that are part of faith and constitute the Catholic stance within the world” (11). This quote perfectly reflects how I approach teaching English on an every day basis. My teaching in general is working towards this greater good: to foster in students attitudes that will make this world a better place to live in, one in which all peoples are faith filled and respect one another beliefs and live in and through God’s love. This image may be a utopia, but I truly believe it starts and is born in a classroom and we are the gateways into young minds that can really be moved and begin a spiritual journey from just one thing that we discussed, or showed them. This is the only “job” in the world worth having to me for this reason alone. Ways of promoting Catholic identity within our classrooms and schools:
These ideas form the very foundation of my future vocation. In my practicum I have already implemented many of these techniques because it allows for an integrated and permeated approach to religious education. I also have seen from my students more of a moral consciousness emerge and it is beautiful to allow students to have opportunities to connect to their faith outside of the classroom or just the religious education course. Every method currently explored in engaging with religious curriculum poses its strengths and weaknesses. Religious separation is a subject-specific task which promotes religious literacy as an academic subject and within the curriculum framework of religion classes. The biggest weakness this method presents is its narrow vision of religious education. It does a good job of building a foundation for religious literacy and ensuring that faith is taken as a serious area of both study and growth. The problem is that it limits student’s opportunities to take their faith outside of one classroom and be able to see it in their every day life. Many students also “give up” on religion classes. I have seen and heard of several students who stop coming to class and feel as though this is a “bird” course. These are the challenges that our separation theory has been creating for years in Catholic schools across the province. In a a growing secular environment I feel that this method is no longer enough to sustain our Catholic faith and spirituality in our students. Faith must be a living and breathing entity circulating around and outside the entire community.
Religious permeation proposes this idea of faith being a school-wide task which incorporates the Catholic school’s culture and communal features in the process of learning (24). This method poses many strengths for me as I have been lucky enough to attend a school which I believe successfully achieved religious permeation and integration. So, the weakness here is when one solely focusses on permeation. It is not enough for the school to commit to creating an environment that creates connections with faith and life, church and school, communal life and living in Jesus’ name, if the teacher in each classroom is not implementing these beliefs and creating these connections as well. It is as if religion were like learning a new language. If students are not fully submersed in it, they will not learn it and implement the language in their every day lives. Permeation is the first essential step in ensuring the school’s mission reflects the Catholic faith and works hard to ensure each student is walking into an environment that makes their faith palpable; in the artwork along the halls, the chapel, the time for prayer, and the time spent in mass and listening to God’s word. Finally, we have religious integration which is a cross-curricular task which shifts the construction and delivery of curriculum away from specific subject material to address themes, skills, and role performances in a holistic, interdisciplinary way (24). This method I feel is the reason why this is my future vocation, I see the ways in which my subject area blends very nicely with our core Catholic beliefs and provides student’s with an opportunity for social justice and to procure real change. The true difficulty lies in subjects that do not offer this easy avenue for self-exploration and initiating social justice. The biggest weakness is that religious integration is not yet reflected in our curriculum documents. My goal is to one-day write curriculum, and one of my first missions will be to work with everyone (parents, students, and teachers) to create a curriculum that reflects our society but also works hard to better it. This will not be able to happen unless we find a way to design the curriculum in a way that integrates a foundation of religious education and opportunity for students to grow spirituality. We are in the business of educating citizens, not only in subject-specific matter, but ethically, morally, and spiritually. This can no longer be a task that remains at the margins of our curriculum. Religious separation— the curriculum and program development of religious study or experience functions as a separate area of learning (23). This subject-specific task is defined by a curriculum framework working to develop religious literacy and it is to be treated as other academic disciplines. This method of religious education is one in which many students, including myself, have encountered when attending a Catholic school. Religion is a subject on its own and has its own content, learning goals, strategies, and evaluations. Where I felt my religious education lacked was “a practice which gives credibility to the term ‘religious across the curriculum.’” In my secondary education I chose to take philosophy as my grade 12 religion credit and finally saw a cross-curricular connection. We studied religion historically and had several multimodal tasks that incorporated both art and drama. I feel as though more of an effort could have been made during grades 9-11 as well, however, considering separation is the task perhaps this curriculum is still being built without the consideration of permeation.
Religious permeation— is a school-wide task which incorporates the Catholic school’s culture and communal features in the process of learning (24). This method focuses on learning that takes place beyond the classroom and integrates the outside climate into the curriculum. This task is primarily confessional as it identifies the connections between faith, life, church, school, learning, and the call to community service (24). I was lucky enough to attend St. Theresa of Lisieux Catholic High School, one of the top performing schools in the province for my 12th grade year. The difference in atmosphere was shocking. This school really makes their Catholic beliefs the core of the school and is adapted to the everyday life of the student. The halls were covered in scripture and beautiful student created art with religious themes. The school also allowed me to take several trips to the local parish, and even go on a class trip (for French class) to volunteer at a homeless shelter downtown. I truly felt my faith go stronger every day I was at this school. Religious integration— This is a cross-curricular task which shifts the construction and delivery of curriculum away from specific subject material to address themes, skills, and role performances in a holistic, interdisciplinary way (24). Curriculum exists, with this method, in a transformative way because subjects are no longer confined or narrowed to a set list, but rather learning can take on several different shapes and open up opportunities for social justice, self-growth, and self-love. This is the most difficult, and one that I personally have only seen executed, as a student, in my Grade 12 French class. Yet, I strive to meet this goal every day as an English teacher. I have seen this again as a student teacher as my MT linked several of our novels not only to scripture, but to social issues as well. I mirrored this in one of my lessons on post-apocalyptic fiction to show how this genre uses fiction to expose truth. The class analyzed the ways in which humanity fails to place love and community first, and the ways in which we can help, which prompted a school-wide fund for Fort McMurray initiated by my students. These ideas affect my future vocation because they are the ways in which I will engage with religious education on a daily basis. I find that I find a balance between permeation and full integration. The reasons why integration is difficult, as mentioned by this document, is the lack of a comprehensive integrated religious curriculum in all subject areas. I think this is a real area that teachers need to call upon and inspire change. Curriculum documents are constantly being re-worked and formed by the challenges and difficulties in each specific community. That is why permeation is a great way to initiate change now. The Ontario Catholic School Trustees’ Association (OCSTA) has safeguarded and promoted the interests of Catholic education in Ontario for more than 85 years. They are the central source of information about government funding and initiatives affecting Catholic education. Their mission it to be the “provincial voice, leadership and service for elected Catholic school trustees to promote and protect publicly funded Catholic education in Ontario.” I recently attended an event where several Trustees from across Ontario Boards attended, and it was very interesting to hear their role in our education system. The interesting fact that many people are unaware of is that this is an elected position, that many parents do not participate in. There are few qualifications for this position, and I think there needs to be more of a focus on this position as they are the link between the students and the government. One trustee I was talking to is one of they key individuals who began the Student Voice initiative. These representatives can give opportunities to students and add yet another enriching element to the education system.
The Halton, Niagara, Kenora, York, and Toronto Catholic District School Boards all use unique and precise language to reflect the difference in missions across Ontario. The similarities these boards all share is that their cored educational focus for students is rooted in faith. How this faith translates into practice is what differs greatly not only from board to board, but from school to school, and more importantly from teacher to teacher. The Kenora Board is the only one to specifically tie their faith to the Roman Catholic faith, possibly as a reflection of the community and their goal to link family, community, and the Church. This connection is the strongest connection to the YCDSB, TCDSB, and the HCDSB. Each of their mission statements seek to create a partnership between home and Church. This similarity speaks volumes on the important role the Church must play in every Catholic School across Ontario. Through the discussion posts so far in this course, many teachers and as former Catholic school students, did not feel the connection as strongly as it should be considering this is the common link and core mission of the Catholic School Boards. Perhaps because it is the mission it is still in development and growing towards implementing the role of the Church into more aspects of everyday education.
The Niagara board had a slightly different phrasing of this connection and chose to focus on “social justice, support and leadership” through a faith-based lens which, “nurtures an enriching Catholic learning community for all to reach their full potential and become living witness of Christ.” I thought this was a different, and perhaps more detailed mission focusing on specific goals that this board would like their students to achieve, but the focus is not on connecting the Church to the home/school, but rather implementing a Catholic learning community inside of the school. Similar to the specific direction each board would like to go, YCDSB and TCDSB. TDSB’s statement focuses on inclusion, a very important word that I believe should be in every Board’s mission statement, as it reflects the diversification of students cultures, learning styles, and identities. Whereas YCDSB focuses on inspiring students to reach their full potential in a safe and caring environment, which is also extremely important, but identifying student’s full potential is whose call? I think engaging with these statements critically is the first step in progress and constantly shifting the vision of our schools is how we will reflect the changing need of our communities and faith. If I had to create a board mission statement for the YCDSB (the area to which I live and can best reflect the needs of the community) my statement would be: The York Catholic District School Board is committed to creating a safe, caring, and equitable learning environment uniting home, Church, and school. We are committed to providing an inclusive educational experience that allows students to grow spiritually and intellectually to lead lives centered around love, faith, and charity. To create this mission statement, I took the very best parts of each board statement that I researched and added a few of my own ideas to fully encompass the goals that I myself have as a teacher, and feel each school board should have for their schools as well. Larry Trafford’s “Educating the Soul” begins with a brief overview of Education Reform in Ontario starting in the late 1990s. These changes, as Trafford articulates, are crucial in building a framework for curriculum design, and its challenges define and threaten Catholic schools specifically. Some of these issues are particularly interesting to me, as an individual who has studied curriculum design and is interested in writing it one day I understand Trafford’s concern for a lack of Catholic representation in the Curriculum. Language, as Trafford explains, “establishes a particular world of meaning, communicates a particular point of view and produces subjectivity” (4). If Catholic schools continue to operate under a “One size fits all” curriculum the Christ-centred and spiritual centre that is at the core of our teaching pedagogy will begin to be unable to hold its weight under curriculum design.
Trafford outlines in details these issues in Curriculum design in 4 ways: a) Provincial Curriculum Feature, b) Curriculum Example, and c) Curriculum Challenge. One of these factors, the “Culture of Secularism” is extremely important to me. Recently in my practicum my MT shared a story with me where one of our students said they, like their parents, are Atheists. She said she attends this school because she was bullied at her last school, and students here are welcoming and kind to her. It is interesting to me, and a proud thought that the Catholic community accepts and loves everyone first, as perhaps opposed to our Public school counterparts; however, we must promote an openness to faith for all of our students, so that this student has a choice not only about the existence of God but to live a life of love, which is my overall teaching doctrine that I follow. The second part of Trafford’s work focuses on the purpose of Catholic education: “initiation, human growth, citizenship, and preparation for the world of work” (7). This section really spoke to the reasons why I would like to teach in a Catholic school, specifically. A Catholic education allows a view of life that puts empathy, and humanity at the forefront of educational progress. It allows students to view themselves, and others with a Christ-like vision, and promotes self-growth and educational development in the highest degree possible. This education also builds a community that is hopefully connected to the church (an area I believe needs to be further pushed in all Catholic schools). Mostly, teaching is my vocation because of the moral and spiritual formation that we inspire. I often connect issues we discuss in class to our Catholic faith and strengthen their moral compass, because that is what will allow them to become amazing faith based people. The third part explores the foundations of a Catholic curriculum and the fourth focuses on Catholic curriculum design. These sections work together to reveal how curriculum, “presupposes and involves a definite understanding of what it means to be human, of how to live together, and the wisdom necessary to sustain life on this planet. The key component that gives direction to curriculum matters is the educational vision which shapes it. And that component is a worldview” (12). This worldview is essential in understanding the concept of humanity and celebrating life. Trafford goes into further detail by breaking down exactly what this worldview is, and I feel as though I work very hard to integrate world views into my lessons wherever I can. It is important for students to gain a consciousness outside of the walls of the classroom, and do so through a Catholic lens. The Catholic Curriculum expectations focuses on all of the factors I work very hard for my students to develop: effective communication, reflective and creative thinker, a discerning believer in the Catholic faith community, self-directed, responsible and a life-long learner, a collaborative contributor, a caring family member, and a responsible citizen. I feel like these expectations push the standard provincial curriculum expectations, because as Trafford explains we are not simply preparing students to enter the work force and become good workers. We are trying to create good people, citizens who have gained a deeper understanding of what it means to be a human and live through God. Finally, course profiles for Catholic schools is the last area of focus in Trafford’s work. This section offers resources so that the excuse of, “I can’t find any resources!” no longer cuts it. There are several documents out there, and Catholic teachers must commit to being active participants in their Catholic faith and be a model for their students. If teachers are dedicated, and willing, the Catholic curriculum really can me applied in every subject and on an everyday basis, because like I and Trafford have said, we are in the business of helping students onto a path of enlightenment, wholeness, and above all, goodness through God. |
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