Poverty as a curriculum topic in Christian schools

Abstract

The purpose of Christian education is to incorporate Biblical values in the curriculum, and one essential message in the Bible is to reach out and liberate the poor. Through interviews, writing protocols, a focus group meeting, and document analysis of mission statements, this narrative study focuses on the questions, how do Christian educators create "pedagogical spaces" (Dantley, 2005, 0. 512) in their classrooms in order to address issues of poverty and connect these issues to Biblical ideas, as well as how do teachers' own beliefs and practices about poverty influence their curriculum and classroom practices. Important themes that are discussed include teachers' definitions of poverty and connections to social justice, students' attitudes towards poverty topics, classroom activities and desired outcomes for students, the importance of community service, and personal influences on teachers. In the final analysis, a critical spirituality framework is implemented to discuss possible obstacles to teaching about poverty to higher socio-economic students in a Christian environment.