Fuel: Teaching with Technology

by Joy Emery

In a culture permeated with visual media, it makes sense to use multi-media presentations to capture students' attention. Preparation before the session and purposeful interaction with students during the session leads to successful learning. A DVD-driven curriculum can add FUEL to your teaching plan.

What a Technology-Driven Curriculum Should Do

A DVD-driven curriculum uses a visual medium to engage the student in learning. A video can be used to enhance learning in many different ways. Here are a few things a visual medium can do:

• use a current event to raise a question.
• use visual images to set the stage for students to discuss how current events relate to the Bible lesson.
• teach the Scripture in a creative way.
• help students recall the visual images later as reminders of the Bible study.
• pose questions that cause students to think.

A DVD should not be used if there is no purpose in using the visual. Entertainment should not be the main objective in using a DVD-driven curriculum. While some clips may provide entertainment or laughter, the ultimate purpose should be to strengthen the Bible study session.

Why Technology-Driven Curriculum Works with Students

Students are bombarded with visual images. Multi-sensory engagement is part of students' culture. Students are more comfortable when engaged with high-tech, multi-sensory experiences. Students relate to and place high value on visually stimulating experiences.

Student attention spans are shortening due to the fast-paced changing nature of the multi-media world in which they live. DVD-driven curriculum helps compensate for shortening attention spans. High-quality video-driven curriculum speaks the language of the student and engages students in processing feelings, thoughts, and information.

Why Technology-Driven Curriculum Needs a Human Leader

A DVD-driven curriculum is like the appetizer. DVD-driven curriculum can set the stage for the issues that must be addressed in a Bible study. The video can raise questions, show the importance of addressing certain issues, or provide the prompt that leads the learner to want to know more. But...the video-driven curriculum still needs a human leader.

Your role in guiding Bible study with a DVD-driven study is more than a remote control button pusher. Your role is to let the technology be your aid in helping students relate the Bible study to their personal lives. Any person can click "play" on the remote. A quality Bible study leader watches the DVD prior to the session, prepares to use the curriculum to lead the students in discussion regarding how the session relates to them, and leads the students to life change based on the how the Bible study impacts each of them personally.

Where You Can Get a DVD-Driven Student Curriculum

LifeWay now offers Fuel to get all students-non-Christians and Christians alike-into the vital stories of the Bible using all of the digital tools God has given us today in the 21st century. It's all about merging video, music, and a host of technology to make Bible study a rockin', edgy, life-changing experience for teenagers.

Once students have experienced the video, they are ready for life-changing discussions straight from God's Word. For leaders like you, it means less preparation time and more meaningful experiences in teaching the Bible. Fuel gives you 12 complete sessions on two DVDs and three CD-ROMs. All you need-video, commentary, teaching plans, reproducible student handouts-comes in this package. Mix and match what you need to create the Bible study experience you want for your teenagers. Everything is "Shoutable," so if you want to run everything through your DVD-ROM drive on your laptop, you can do it with the MediaShout scripts that are included.

Visit the Fuel Web Site ...

Fuel: Igniting New Life with God's Story 1.1 is now ready for you to use in your student ministry. It's the first of eight volumes that will take your student group through 96 of the essential stories of the Bible.

Joy Emery is a former student minister and now serves as the Student Ministry Internet Producer for LifeWay.com.