NEC Pastors Attend Teacher Training Course

Beulah Plunkett with Peter Jeynes

The North England Conference (NEC) Ministerial team recently attended a three day Teacher Training course delivered by Beulah Plunkett Sabbath School Director and Assistant Director PEACE. Beulah, a qualified lecturer from the University of Birmingham, brings to the North England Conference her expertise in Training teachers in Further and Higher Education. She has customised the Certificate in Teacher Education course to meet the needs of the ministerial team and has delivered part one of the course so far.

"Learning is the change in attitude, knowledge or skills derived from teaching", so said one student in a flash of inspiration during one of the teacher training sessions. The Pastor’s teacher training classes were held in three Areas of the Conference, to accommodate the ministers from all six Areas, over a three week period. The course was well attended and well received. The teaching was highly instructive, very interactive, widely varied and modelled many teaching styles for the pastors to adapt in their teaching. Jeff Couzins, one of the attendees, said of the training, "I’ve lacked what the course has provided. I have had the knowledge but now I’ve been equipped to do what I wanted to do all along – get the information across".

A key objective gleaned from the course and one which created much discussion is that the student is 'king'. When it comes to planning lessons; it is crucial that the needs of the students are considered first so that what is planned is not just what the presenter wants to say but accommodates their learning need.

The officers of the North England Conference have been engaged in a concerted effort to equip Pastors for their differing roles by helping to develop knowledge, change attitudes and increase skills. Pastor Egerton Francis, the Ministerial Association Director, said, "We are equipping Pastors to enable them to give positive service and leadership to local Elders and members of the Church."

The Conference, as with all progressive institutions, has to develop its resources. The resource at the heart of the Conference’s activity is the people – and the Conference recognises the need to equip its Ministerial worker force so that they can equip each and every member with skills, new attitudes and a real knowledge of God, empowering them to effectively convey God’s message to their communities.

Training Pastors is just one of those ways of helping the membership of the Conference to grow spiritually, and thus fulfil the vision for all in the North England Conference to become 'Citizens of God’s Kingdom, loving God and all people'.