Teachers Talking
Talk 2 – The Heart of the Matter
This year I met a visitor at church, accompanied by his wife and young family, who is approaching his fourth decade of life. We both recognised one another and began to reminisce about his school days when I was in leadership where he attended school. Yes, I did remember him and his brothers; one in particular who had spent considerable time in my office related to discipline that involved rebuke, correction and instruction. It was clear that he saw the discipline process with different eyes now that he had grown in maturity and was a parent himself, responsible for the growth of his own children. It was such a blessing to see the man he had become as well as to hear about what the Lord had done in his brother’s life. Those difficult and challenging times at school and the discipline process were like seeds sown into their lives which did ultimately bear fruit.
The word ‘disciple’ means learner and according to God’s Word, everyone needs discipline and correction to learn and grow as the human being God designed them to be; for “My Son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline and do not resent his rebuke.”(Proverbs 3: 11). For discipline is designed to lead to discipleship. Discipline includes both positive commendation of that which is good, correction of inappropriate attitudes and behaviour and restoration of relationship.
Hebrews 12 tells us that our Heavenly Father “disciplines the one He loves and He chastens everyone he accepts as his son” (v 5) because even though “no discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful” (v 11). “God disciplines us for our good, in order that we might share in His holiness” (v 10) so that in the future “it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (v 11).
Deep in our hearts, we know this is the right way, but why is it so hard to exercise discipline in our present context? All teachers will have good and bad days, but the bad days caused by difficult students or classes, can bring much suffering to the teacher over an extended period of time. As Christian teachers, we are called to love our students (which involves discipline), so it is important to critique the ‘water we swim in’ so we can help each other to walk this journey in our own school context and not fall into wrong thinking or just give up.
According to Tom Bennett, Chief Behaviour Advisor to the UK’s Education Department, “ideologically‑bent academics have disastrous ideas about behaviour management that are harming schools.” [1] This situation is common in western education because the way we answer the fundamental question “what does it mean to be human?” and “how do humans flourish?” is distorted. Students are seen as just products of nature (biology) and nurture (social environment) and basically good. They are seen as coming into the world with ‘a clean slate’ and just need encouragement. This shift in understanding of students from fallen image-bearers to non‑spiritual beings has reduced discipline to behaviour management rather than involving the ‘heart’. The focus has become on the subjective feelings and values of the individual rather than objective moral truth that provides a framework for character formation. This belief in the autonomous individual comes at the expense of the wellbeing of the community, focusing each person on self- interest , rather than love of neighbour. G.K. Chesterton acknowledged this reality when he responded to the question in the Times newspaper, “What’s wrong with the world?” with the response “Dear Sir, I am.”[2]
Many students are presenting broken lives at younger ages and anxiety and mental health issues are rife amongst adolescents. These cannot be separated from the cultural confusion. Coupled with this, in our culture we now “have two generations of children raised by parents who are trying to be liked. These are kids who have received a lot of unconditional love but virtually no authentic authority in their lives.” [3] As a result, many children have been shown unconditional love where they are cared for but remain as well‑loved infants who don’t practise submission to authority, take personal responsibility for their choices or respond to boundaries. We must recognise that behaviour flows from the orientation of a person’s heart and so each child comes into the world as a self‑centred being. Students need to be seen as a fallen image‑bearer with intrinsic worth and value but who needs to experience the grace found in Christ and this demonstrated through God’s people.
Effective discipline begins in the classes with teachers who embody the reality of Christ’s life within them. Teachers who know they are loved by God and are precious in His sight, will not be too afraid to admit their own mistakes and their need of God’s grace in the demands of daily life and relationships in schools. Teachers who live out of fear can easily become protective and rigid in their approaches to discipline. They can be fearful and seek to raise barriers to protect themselves because they fear criticism, or they compare themselves to other teachers, or they lack confidence in their ability, knowledge and experience. Christian teachers are to be motivated by love as love casts out fear and enables one to act in love and truth, not being afraid to rebuke, correct and provide consequences where needed. The teacher is to rightly use their authority, “not to lord it over the children” to make the teaching task easier, but to shepherd the children in the right pathway. In this way, students learn to respond to authority, as the teacher constantly demonstrates what it means to treat one another with dignity and respect. In doing so, students learn what it means to submit their wills to God’s authority in their lives.
It is important however, to realise that this is a journey teachers are to do together. Each teacher needs continuous training and support to be effective in discipline that leads to discipleship. If you are an experienced teacher who implements effective discipline in the class, come alongside another teacher who may be struggling. If you, for example, are a first year‑out teacher, don’t be afraid to come to your school leader to ask for support in the class, as well as advice in addressing student issues with parents.
Always recognise that the Holy Spirit is present in your class and working through you. For only the Spirit can transform hearts and minds. Trust the Lord to work in your students’ lives each day and to give you the keys to unlock the hearts of those challenging students.
“Therefore, as teachers who represent Christ, they enter the students’ lives as incarnations of the truth, not to control them but to nurture, love and discipline them in their fallenness.” [4]
Grace and Peace
The Excellence Team
[1] newsletter@educationhq.com
[2] https://www.chesterton.org./wrong-with-world/.
[3] Bethany Mandel & Karol Markowicz, Stolen Youth: How Radicals are Erasing Innocence and Indoctrinating a Generation, (Nashville: Daily Wire Books, 2023), 235
[4] Donovan L. Graham, Teaching Redemtively- Bringing Grace & Truth into Your Classroom(2nd Ed), (USA: Purposeful Design Publications, 2009), 240