When the editors of CEJ decided to produce an issue on “The Changing Christian School,” it seemed important to start by describing that change with a snapshot of what’s happening in constituent schools. It wasn’t possible to do a comprehensive survey of Christian schools in the Reformed tradition, so we contacted over a dozen school […]
Surrey Christian School (SCS) was founded in 1964 by a group of Dutch immigrant families who were part of the Christian Reformed Church of North America (CRCNA). They held a conviction that their children, and all children of Christian families regardless of denomination, should be trained up in “the way they should go” (Prov. 22:6). […]
by Bill Boerman-Cornell, Steven Harrison, and Neil Okuley When we taught in various Christian schools, there were moments when each of us thought, “What must it have been like for the founders of our schools to start afresh, with no preconceptions, no established traditions, no tried and true ways of doing things?” You may have […]
John Walcott: When the editor shared with me that the February 2016 issue would focus on LGBTQ-related issues in Christian schools, my first response was that I would like the contributors to this column to have the opportunity to participate in the discussion. I have both appreciated and learned from the ideas, suggestions and perspectives […]
Recently I heard from a friend who went to a relative’s one hundredth birthday celebration. The dear lady claimed that she achieved the century mark by eating lots of turnips and carrots, which she had stolen from her mom’s garden, first wiping off the dirt. Upon reflection, I realized that though I grow lots of […]
This issue may cause a certain amount of discomfort in our school communities or even within us personally as Christian educators. No matter how carefully the matters affecting LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning) students (or staff or parents) in our Christian school communities are raised, there is no avoiding the complex range […]
“The foreigner living among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the Lord your God” (Leviticus 19:34). I am a pre-service elementary teacher. Sometimes I am overwhelmed by the complexity of the profession I hope to get into post-graduation. It seems like all […]
In many ways, the lives and experiences of students with disabilities have improved since the late 1970s when federal legislation requiring an appropriate public education for these students began to be implemented. Christian day schools, however, have been slow to accommodate the needs of children and youth with disabilities, often focusing only on students […]
Last November, I was blessed to be a part of leading a wonderful, integral, and responsive discussion on the role of special education in Christian schools. During the Ontario Christian School Teachers Association Convention in fall 2009, participants of the “Educators Helping Educators: Special Education” session passionately probed key questions surrounding this ever-growing area of […]
November 17, 2010 Al Boerema introduces the topic: The theme of this issue of CEJ is diversity. Let’s talk about this from the perspective of whether diversity is a value that Christian schools should seek. What does it mean for a Christian school to be diverse, and what are barriers to creating and maintaining diversity […]