Practical Paideia

Lindsey Ralls (Summit Christian Academy)

Yesterday I spent the entire day as a shadow student with the 9th grade class. I sat on the floor with them before school started (where the main topic of conversation centered around the Super Bowl). I went to all four classes with them, ate lunch with them, and followed them to Ministry Team. My purpose (dare I say telos?) was two-fold. At the Upper School we often have shadow students and I want to be able to tell those prospective families that I’ve done it too while also having an accurate understanding of what the experience entails. Secondly, I wanted to remember what it was like to be a student. The goal of the exercise wasn’t to observe any specific teacher, but simply to walk in the shoes of our 9th grade students and experience the school day through their eyes. 

It was a wonderful experience overall. I was engaged throughout the entire day, I learned new things, I had fun, and I was impressed with the level of discussion generated by our students. My main takeaway though, was how connected our content is.

In first block (World History), we learned about ancient Japan and Shintoism. At the end of the class, the teacher had them compare each of the religions they’ve learned about this quarter to our own Christian beliefs, with the specific goal being to prepare them to defend their faith when they encounter others who have different beliefs. 

In second block (Bible), the teacher also spent a few minutes discussing eastern religions through the lens of apologetics. He also brought up The Hiding Place while addressing the question of ‘is lying ever ok?” Last week, in 7th Grade English we had this exact discussion!  

In third block (Algebra), Mrs. Wissmann focused on analyzing surveys and samples (and we got to analyze a pile of Skittles!) Throughout the class, the students kept saying “we’ve talked about this in Psychology!”)…which just so happened to be our fourth and final block for the day. 

 Last night, as I thought back on the day, I kept reveling in the frequent overlaps in material that occurred over the four classes I went to. I found myself asking, “how can we share our weekly content with one another so that we can be even more intentional about capitalizing on these overlaps?” This is one of the things I will be thinking about this week, and I invite you all to share your thoughts as well.

My shadow day was an absolutely wonderful experience. I left encouraged and incredibly grateful to be working alongside each and every one of you.