Online Learning – Making the Grade in Ministry

The new mantra for learning has become – Information at just the  right content, to just the right person, at just the right time, on just  the right device, in just the right context, and in just the right way. In  fact, that is the overwhelming demand of today’s consumer. Since the Internet has  combined the world, time zones seem to melt away, and information, services  and access expectations have changed many of the limitations we used to have  set upon us.

No longer is learning thought of as 12 grade levels and perhaps college if you’re fortunate. Learning now is anytime, anywhere. And many areas of ministry are benefiting from new online capabilities to advance personal and organizational growth.

Can you relate to this scenario?

“It’s hard to believe Mrs. Burton is retiring after all these years as church financial secretary,” Beth sighed. “She really had her own way of doing things in this office – so much paper, so many files and ledgers – there has to be a better way to organize all this information.  If only I had time to take some refresher courses for my computer skills. But, with Scott and Katie’s schedules – their church activities, as well as soccer, guitar, and dance – I don’t know when I would find time to take a class.”

Or does this sound familiar?

“Pastor Dave, I really need to talk with you about something, but not here,”Tim whispered in the pastor’s ear during the invitation on Sunday morning.  Later that week, Tim confided to his pastor that he was struggling with an addiction to Internet pornography, and it was ruining his marriage. Dave remembered reading about Pure Online and told Tim, “I know where you can get the help you need.” 

Most leaders have been in this situation: 

“I really just don’t see how I am going to get away from the church to attend the training session. I’d like to be there, but I just can’t,”  Martin told the Association Director.  “We’re in the midst of a building project, my student minister just resigned, and I’ve got two weddings this week; you know how it is.” Dr. Freeman smiled and nodded, having been in the same position when he was a pastor. He said, “What if I told you we’re going to webcast the seminar and you can watch it any time you want – from your home or office?”

Beth is going to get the training she wants and needs without making a major life shift. Dave is sending Tim to an online resource to help people struggling with pornography or sexual addiction. And Martin is signing up for training delivered live on the web, but also recorded so he can get it even if he has to miss the live session. These are all real examples of how online learning is being applied to ministry.

The Lifelong Learner Challenge

It’s easy to recognize the need to be lifelong learners, but finding the time to learn new things is often complicated. Determining the most effective way to learn according to
one’s personal style is another challenge.  The pace of change, especially with technology, even further complicates the learning equation.

Adult learners learn best when they are given the opportunity to apply their learning and evaluate whether or not they are ‘getting it.’  For most of us, learning is accomplished
through a set of strategies.  These strategies allow us to use metacognition, the process of self-assessment and self-correction, to apply what we have learned.

For today’s adult learner, especially those involved in ministry, the classroom training event doesn’t allow us to best take advantage of our metacognitive skills, and just getting to the traditional training can be difficult.

A recent study by Ellison Research determined 91 percent of all senior pastors in Protestant churches have attended at least one class, seminar or conference in the last two years. The same research, however, showed that only 45 percent of all ministers believe their budget for continuing education is sufficient. Pastors felt even more strongly that not enough was being done to help their staff and lay leaders get the education and training essential for personal development.

The consensus? There isn’t enough time and there doesn’t seem to be enough emphasis through the budget process for education and training needed by today’s adult learners in the church.

Enter Online Learning

Online learning is beginning to build a bridge between what is needed and what is being accomplished in ministry. The real value to participants is that learning is being delivered that allows adult learners to take advantage of strategies they employ to accomplish personal growth.

Online learning can be delivered in a live format or as self-paced content.  In either instance, it is conducted at a time and place chosen by the learner.  This learning can be read, applied, reviewed, applied and read again…providing the learner an opportunity to develop requisite knowledge or skill to retain the information well after the learning event has concluded.

Online learning also provides learners access to subject-matter experts they might otherwise never meet. For example, consider the benefits to your worship leader by interacting with a panel of top worship leaders going through a similar challenge. And he can dialogue with them via the web from his home or office.

LifeWay’s New Online Learning Experience

LifeWay Christian Resources recently unveiled a service in cooperation with Thompson NetG, one of the world leaders in computer-based training. Learning@LifeWay offers ministry leaders a growing suite of courses to help meet the demand for anytime, anywhere learning.  Practical for ministerial staff, administrative staff and lay leaders,  Learning@LifeWay provides access to more than 110 courses for 12 months for $100. All of the webbased resources are available as many times as a user wants to access them from any computer with Internet access.  “One of the best aspects of the new service is that it provides immediate feedback,” said Bruce Mills, LifeWay’s online learning manager. “Because the sessions are online and include testing, a learner instantly knows if he or she is absorbing the content.”  LifeWay designed the learning
subscription model to help present useful information for practically all areas of ministry, as well as for personal development. Another key driver was affordability. “At less than a dollar per class (average), ministries of any size can benefit,” said Mills.  Examples of operational classes include “Microsoft Excel,” “Designing a Web Site,” and “Getting Started with Flash.” Sessions offering more personal development skills include “Dealing With Difficult People,” “Leadership,” and “Strategic Planning.”

Making Online Learning Practical and Relevant

“One of the best things I quickly realized is that I could learn skills for my responsibilities as a ministry assistant, and that I then could apply them to lots of other areas of my life,” said Donna Coffee, one of the first participants in LifeWay’s service.

“For example, I used some new skills with Excel for my daughter’s soccer team.”  Learning@LifeWay is designed to be convenient for typically any lifestyle and learning style. For learners who want to be reminded of quick answers without interacting with an entire session again, they easily can capture snippets of how-to information. “Why struggle through a large help file or conduct a full session when all you really need is a refresher on how to use a pivot table in Microsoft Excel?” said Mills. “Our training enables subscribers to apply knowledge right now.”

Ministry leaders tend to find online learning helps with scheduling. The more time opted to dedicate to online learning translates into less time leaders have to be away from ministerial responsibilities due to off-site seminars or similar. They can choose to learn at times convenient to their schedule. Examination of 200 initial users of Learning@LifeWay showed learners accessing classes from early in the morning to very late at night.

Realtime Learning with Webcasting

Another key element of Learning@LifeWay is the opportunity to bring subject matter expertise right to the desktop using online meeting technology.  Though not necessarily new, webcasting is gaining in popularity as an effective way to link presenters and learners in live sessions. Applications to ministry are just as numerous as those in the secular market.

An example is the new relationship between LifeWay and Pure Online, a Dallas-based ministry dedicated to helping people begin the recovery process for sexual addiction and pornography. Through webcast awareness sessions, LifeWay and PureOnline are able to help pastors and others get to information they need to know in a timely and cost effective manner. Especially useful for sensitive topics such as pornography, webcasting enables learners to participate in privacy as they see fit.

Other topics being delivered in this format include, “Better Bible Study Through Storytelling,” “Developing a Sports and Recreation Ministry,” and training for LifeWay event coordinators. “Webcasting provides me an opportunity to interact with my constituents in a way not possible before,” said John Garner, Recreation & Sports Ministry Specialist with LifeWay. “And we all can connect at a time convenient to everyone involved…without the travel costs.”

What About Me?

Recall the three scenarios at the beginning of this article? Now consider your own scenario. You may wonder if online learning really is applicable to your ministry needs.
You also may ask “Does this mean the demise of classroom learning I am used to?” Of course not; there always will be a need for people to gather and learn. It just may sound the death knoll for bad classroom learning.  Online learning opens a world of opportunity to explore. It offers endless knowledge in a focused, engaging manner customized to the specific needs of the learner. Right content, right person, right time, right device, right context, and in just the right way. Can you use that in your ministry?

Getting Started

Getting started with a Learning@LifeWay subscription is accomplished via online registration at lifeway.com/learning. The registration is automated so users are able to start learning within minutes. The subscription is good for 12 months, and users will be notified as their subscription comes up for renewal.

By Steve Hewitt

Steve Hewitt is Editor-in-Chief and Founder of Christian Computing Magazine (CCMag) http://ccmag.gospelcom.net, who for over 14 years, has helped to keep its readers informed on software, services and other areas of technology, pertaining to how it relates to the Christian community, the church and ministry.  Steve can be contacted at [email protected].

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