Questions on the Quest to Online Ministry Preparation
Do you sense God calling you to Christian ministry? Are you exploring ways to receive ministry preparation? Here are some questions to ask as you search out your options and consider online training.
Is the school/class synchronous or asynchronous? And what do those words mean?
Synchronous based delivery focuses on students in a course being online at the same time (not unlike attending a class). Usually chat rooms and conference calls are key in this strategy.
Asynchronous based delivery focuses on threads of discussion and stand-alone presentations (articles and books that you read on your own schedule, videos or audios that you view/listen to at your leisure, etc.).
You must ask yourself: “Can I order my life so that I can be online at 3 PM (or midnight, or whenever class meets) on a regular basis? [synchronous]” OR “Do I prefer doing things at my own leisure? [asynchronous]
Is course content designed from the outset for online delivery, or is it a face-to-face class that is merely being delivered online?
A growing number of traditional seminaries are beginning to offer some online classes. In very many cases, these are face-to-face classes that a professor is simply delivering online. In this setting, a professor takes his/her teaching notes and loads them to an online portal. Students go to that website and open the documents and simply read the lecture.
Many educators consider online learning to have enormous educational potential. However, taking a lecture, absent of the personality and passion of a professor, simply reading it, is not the best possible application of online learning.
In some cases, schools will film the lectures of a face-to-face class and post the videos for viewing. While this does aid in communicating personality and some degree of passion, interaction is still greatly limited. In both cases, content may be learned, but is not processed or applied by many online students. Mere information delivery – even creative information delivery - is substituted for the real potential of transformation.
However, a growing number of institutions are designing courses from the ground up specifically for online delivery. The content to which students are exposed is usually unchanged, but the course blueprint assumes online learners – practitioner lifestyles, application questions, and so on. Additionally, virtual discussion is built into the course design so students are learning, not only from the content and professor, but from each other. The kind of spontaneous student interaction that we all enjoy in a face-to-face course seldom happens in an online course unless such preparatory steps are weaved into the course from the ground up.
Do my computer programs and/or service provider support the model of the school/course?
Some online programs are video and/or audio heavy. Usually this means that face-to-face course lectures have been filmed and loaded to the Internet. Sometimes there is PowerPoint support for those lectures that must be viewed simultaneously. Other programs are driven by written data. Still others require heavy use of forums or threaded discussions. Potential students should inquire about necessary computer requirements to participate in the school to which they apply.
What are the required face to face elements?
Another issue that figures into overall costs and time requirements has to do with face-to-face elements required by the school. Most online programs recognize that ministry preparation should include some face-time elements. When investigating a potential online school, students should ask about virtual community with colleagues, availability of faculty, required roles of local mentors, potential involvement with learning communities, etc. All of these elements enrich the learning journey but also add time and fiscal costs.
What are the costs (financially and in time)? How many texts? What constitutes ‘full time’?
Generally speaking, an online education is less expensive than a traditional school. After all, there is often no physical campus to maintain, faculty are often bi-vocational faculty – practitioners who teach (in the growing tradition of business schools), and so forth.
However, there are financial issues to consider in choosing an online school: tuition, texts, possibly new technology that you need to secure, etc. In addition, there are time costs: reading, posting, projects, etc. A potential student, preparing for ministry, should not choose or reject a school because of these factors. However, a wise student would learn these costs (and discuss them with family and Church) prior to registering.
While these questions are not exhaustive, they should serve to start the wheels turning as you begin your search. Most online schools (whether they are fully online or have online components to extension and face-to-face elements) have a F.A.Q. page. Be sure to spend time reviewing and comparing the answers to these and those questions. Then: seek the LORD for wisdom!
For further discussion on ministry preparation, contact Randy Millwood at 410-290-5290 ext. 217 or rmillwood@bcmd.org
NEW QUESTIONS ADDED JULY 22, 2008
Who are the faculty and what are their qualifications?
This is a really good question to ask whether you are considering a face-to-face classroom experience or an online school!
1. Check to see where/when they went to school. Was the school reputable? Was the degree credible? What continuing learning experiences do faculty participate in? Are they current in their field? Do they look outside of their academic world for ongoing learning?
2. Consider the real-life experiences of faculty. Since seminary should prepare a person to serve the Kingdom of God through local outposts we call Church, it is important that faculty have real-life, local Church experiences. Have they been part of a ministry team? Are they now? What kind of Church (or kinds of churches) have they served? What role/roles do they play in their own Church community right now?
Are you a self-starter, not really needing a scheduled class time in order to complete assignments?
Some folks need the kind of appointment that a physical classroom provides in order to stay true to the process. Some online learning communities provide a version of this by using chat rooms, conference calls, etc. -- times when you have to be online at the same time as others. However, many online schools have no set online time, giving you the freedom to schedule your class time whenever you wish. People who need the appointment sometimes will struggle in such an environment. Of course any school will likely provide a syllabus jam packed with assignment deadlines, so while you may not keep up, you will have times when you have to catch up!
How many hours can you expect to spend a week on a course?
Face-to-face schools take about 2 hours per class credit hour (i.e., 3 hours class = 6 hours out of class work = 9 hours per class).
Some folks opt for online classes thinking they will take less time. However, a good online course will usually require 10-15 hours per week, depending on your study skills. The great thing about online learning is you can determine when you study and dialogue online. Most online courses will require you to log-in and participate between 3 and 5 days each week of the course.