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The Outrageous Idea of Christian Teaching
Hundreds of thousands of professors claim Christian as their primary identity, and teaching as their primary vocational responsibility. Yet, in the contemporary university the intersection of these two identities often is a source of fear, misunderstanding, and moral confusion. How does being a Christian change one's teaching? Indeed, should it?
Inspired by George Marsden's 1997 book The Outrageous Idea of Christian Scholarship , this book draws on a survey of more than 2,300 Christian professors from 48 different institutions in North America, to reveal a wide range of thinking about faith-informed teaching. Placing these empirical findings alongside the wider scholarly conversation about the role of identity-informed teaching, Perry L. Glanzer and Nathan F. Alleman argue that their Christian identity can and should inform professors' teaching in the contemporary pluralistic university. The authors provide a nuanced alternative to those who advocate for restraining the influence of one's extra-professional identity and those who, in the name of authenticity, promote the full integration of one's primary identity into the classroom. The book charts new ground regarding how professors think about Christian teaching specifically, as well as how they should approach identity-informed teaching more generally.
Inspired by George Marsden's 1997 book The Outrageous Idea of Christian Scholarship , this book draws on a survey of more than 2,300 Christian professors from 48 different institutions in North America, to reveal a wide range of thinking about faith-informed teaching. Placing these empirical findings alongside the wider scholarly conversation about the role of identity-informed teaching, Perry L. Glanzer and Nathan F. Alleman argue that their Christian identity can and should inform professors' teaching in the contemporary pluralistic university. The authors provide a nuanced alternative to those who advocate for restraining the influence of one's extra-professional identity and those who, in the name of authenticity, promote the full integration of one's primary identity into the classroom. The book charts new ground regarding how professors think about Christian teaching specifically, as well as how they should approach identity-informed teaching more generally.
272 pages, Hardcover
Published August 26, 2019
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July 11, 2021
At the time I'm writing this, there are no Goodreads reviews for "The Outrageous Idea of Christian Teaching," and only two reviews (one of which is mine). This is shocking to me.
I imagine the limited reach of this book is due to it being considered an "academic" work rather than a "popular" one. Not many people I know will jump at the chance to read something with a "Methodology" section in the Appendix. However, speaking as a non-academic and public high school teacher, I still found this Glanzer and Alleman's book to be incredibly helpful and stimulating.
Although for the past nine years I've often thought about and discussed the relationship between Christian faith and teaching (especially teaching in a public school setting), I haven't actively sought out arguments about what this relationship should/could look like. There are two main reasons for this: (1) My own experience gave me plenty to think about and mull over; (2) I was afraid any of the resources I found would be too simplistic or idealistic.
One of the strengths of "The Outrageous Idea of Christian Teaching" is that Glanzer and Alleman refuse to give easy and one-size-fits-all answers. In fact, they fully embrace the complexity and messiness of what it means for Christian teachers to teach, whether they are in Christian schools or public institutions. I also appreciated how they understood the particular issue in this book (the way Christian teachers integrate their faith) is part of a broader conversation about the degree a teacher's convictions should impact their work, whether they are feminists, Christians, Buddhists, Marxists, etc. Teaching doesn't allow for easy divisions between the "private" and "public" self.
Although when I began researching this topic I was looking for more abstract/philosophical approaches to this topic, I was pleasantly surprised by the authors' choice to survey responses from Christian teachers from a variety of higher-level institutions. These responses put flesh on so many ideas about teaching that tend to remain entirely conceptual. The second part of the book, which focuses primarily on issues of specific teaching contexts, is a significant shift in tone and style, but I also thought it was well-articulated and thoughtful.
A few more less-organized thoughts:
1) The authors stress two primary ways teachers attempt to integrate their faith into teaching: spiritual addition or Christian transformation. This was a helpful distinction that is used throughout the text as a way of considering how one’s faith might animate his/her teaching, especially in secular contexts.
2) In Chapter 6, the authors set forth a “set of purposes [they] think should define the pluralistic academy” (147). These objectives (especially the ideas of “truth, goodness, and beauty”) are things I’d like to reflect on more.
(a) Transmit culturally agreed-upon views about truth, goodness, and beauty in various fields of knowledge.
(b) Initiate students into a set of common academic and professional practices associated with academic identities (e.g., what it means to be a good historian) that help students create, discover, and/or care for truth, goodness, and beauty.
(c) Educate students about the similarities and differences between various identities and traditions and the implications for views of truth, goodness, and beauty, as well as academic and professional practices.
(d) Teachers seeking identify conversion or conversion to controversial moral beliefs may threaten or corrupt the previously mentioned ends of the university. Yet, the teachers’ own identities, beyond that of being a teacher, can be used to strengthen, amplify, or add to the three previously listed purposes. To strike the proper balance, teachers need to learn how to show fairness to the various traditions represented in the classroom.
(e) Teachers must model this commitment to pluralistic education in their teaching. To do so, they will need to exercise certain virtues, such as intellectual awareness and humility, and engage in certain practices, such as confession about the identity or identities that may influence their approach to teaching a particular class.
3) This is a great springboard for anyone interested in this subject. The authors, while still maintaining an academic tone throughout, draw on other perspectives and research without alienating potential readers from outside the academy.
4) I was surprised (and relieved) to encounter a plethora of other resources and voices that have made thoughtful contributions to this topic (I’m thinking of David I. Smith, especially). In Chapter 2 the authors include a footnote that basically functions as a reading list for anyone interested in this topic. I’m including a few of them here for my own reference:
-“Teaching and Christian practices” by David I. Smith and James K. A. Smith
-“Becoming Beholders” by Karen E. Eifler and Thomas M. Landy
-“On Christian Teaching” by David I. Smith
-“Teaching as Believing” by Chris Anderson
-“Does, or Should, Teaching Reflect the Religious Perspective of the Teacher?” (essay) by Jean B. Elshtain
-“What Might It Mean to Teach from a Chrsitian Perspective” (essay) by Richard T. Hughes
-“The Craft of Christian Teaching” by John Van Dyk
I imagine the limited reach of this book is due to it being considered an "academic" work rather than a "popular" one. Not many people I know will jump at the chance to read something with a "Methodology" section in the Appendix. However, speaking as a non-academic and public high school teacher, I still found this Glanzer and Alleman's book to be incredibly helpful and stimulating.
Although for the past nine years I've often thought about and discussed the relationship between Christian faith and teaching (especially teaching in a public school setting), I haven't actively sought out arguments about what this relationship should/could look like. There are two main reasons for this: (1) My own experience gave me plenty to think about and mull over; (2) I was afraid any of the resources I found would be too simplistic or idealistic.
One of the strengths of "The Outrageous Idea of Christian Teaching" is that Glanzer and Alleman refuse to give easy and one-size-fits-all answers. In fact, they fully embrace the complexity and messiness of what it means for Christian teachers to teach, whether they are in Christian schools or public institutions. I also appreciated how they understood the particular issue in this book (the way Christian teachers integrate their faith) is part of a broader conversation about the degree a teacher's convictions should impact their work, whether they are feminists, Christians, Buddhists, Marxists, etc. Teaching doesn't allow for easy divisions between the "private" and "public" self.
Although when I began researching this topic I was looking for more abstract/philosophical approaches to this topic, I was pleasantly surprised by the authors' choice to survey responses from Christian teachers from a variety of higher-level institutions. These responses put flesh on so many ideas about teaching that tend to remain entirely conceptual. The second part of the book, which focuses primarily on issues of specific teaching contexts, is a significant shift in tone and style, but I also thought it was well-articulated and thoughtful.
A few more less-organized thoughts:
1) The authors stress two primary ways teachers attempt to integrate their faith into teaching: spiritual addition or Christian transformation. This was a helpful distinction that is used throughout the text as a way of considering how one’s faith might animate his/her teaching, especially in secular contexts.
2) In Chapter 6, the authors set forth a “set of purposes [they] think should define the pluralistic academy” (147). These objectives (especially the ideas of “truth, goodness, and beauty”) are things I’d like to reflect on more.
(a) Transmit culturally agreed-upon views about truth, goodness, and beauty in various fields of knowledge.
(b) Initiate students into a set of common academic and professional practices associated with academic identities (e.g., what it means to be a good historian) that help students create, discover, and/or care for truth, goodness, and beauty.
(c) Educate students about the similarities and differences between various identities and traditions and the implications for views of truth, goodness, and beauty, as well as academic and professional practices.
(d) Teachers seeking identify conversion or conversion to controversial moral beliefs may threaten or corrupt the previously mentioned ends of the university. Yet, the teachers’ own identities, beyond that of being a teacher, can be used to strengthen, amplify, or add to the three previously listed purposes. To strike the proper balance, teachers need to learn how to show fairness to the various traditions represented in the classroom.
(e) Teachers must model this commitment to pluralistic education in their teaching. To do so, they will need to exercise certain virtues, such as intellectual awareness and humility, and engage in certain practices, such as confession about the identity or identities that may influence their approach to teaching a particular class.
3) This is a great springboard for anyone interested in this subject. The authors, while still maintaining an academic tone throughout, draw on other perspectives and research without alienating potential readers from outside the academy.
4) I was surprised (and relieved) to encounter a plethora of other resources and voices that have made thoughtful contributions to this topic (I’m thinking of David I. Smith, especially). In Chapter 2 the authors include a footnote that basically functions as a reading list for anyone interested in this topic. I’m including a few of them here for my own reference:
-“Teaching and Christian practices” by David I. Smith and James K. A. Smith
-“Becoming Beholders” by Karen E. Eifler and Thomas M. Landy
-“On Christian Teaching” by David I. Smith
-“Teaching as Believing” by Chris Anderson
-“Does, or Should, Teaching Reflect the Religious Perspective of the Teacher?” (essay) by Jean B. Elshtain
-“What Might It Mean to Teach from a Chrsitian Perspective” (essay) by Richard T. Hughes
-“The Craft of Christian Teaching” by John Van Dyk
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