Why do Christian Studies?

A question I sometimes get asked is, “Why do we have to do Christian Studies?” The obvious answer may be, “Well, we have to do it because we are a Christian School.”

While this is true in some form, and we are honouring the vision of those who pioneered our school and our church-going families, it is not a very satisfying response. We recognise that many of our families come from a non-church background, so why continue it? Perhaps that one hour a week could be better used as a study session? A drink at the café? A sleep in?  

To respond to this, I often think about the end of a student’s journey at NBCS. They will be moving on to a gap year, or university, or perhaps straight into the workforce. In these spaces, as adults, there will be conversations about politics, philosophy, ethics, religion and God.

When these conversations occur, it is not the greatest feeling when we cannot participate because we do not know enough. Not understanding and not being able to contribute means we can be left out. Or, and perhaps this is worse, we do contribute to the conversation in an ignorant and uneducated way, which often does more harm than good. 

This does not have to be the case. What if there was a way that we could contribute something valuable to most conversations? What if there was a way where we could have an educated opinion and share our ideas? What if there was a way where we could know our beliefs with confidence, but share them in a way that is kindly persuasive? 

Welcome to Christian Studies at NBCS. Through a bespoke curriculum that moves from concrete to abstract, our hope is that students are educated, confident, and kind contributors to society.

We do not necessarily teach our students what to think, but we teach them how to think.

The NBCS learning framework

Below is a summary of our learning framework that has been recently updated. You may even see it in NBCS classrooms. A rationale for why we chose these four words as a lens to approach Christian Studies is included in the poster, and they are necessary as we draw on the rich resources of the Christian faith to find meaning. 

To find out more about Christian Studies at NBCS, parents of Primary students can ask their child’s classroom teacher, while parents of secondary students can access topics and content through their child’s online Canvas page. 

Learning times and format

• K-6 Christian Studies is taught by their child’s classroom teacher for 20 mins per week. 
• Year 7-10 Christian Studies is taught by the chaplains and specialist Christian Studies teachers for 60 mins a week. 
• Year 11 Christian Studies is taught in a whole grade seminar format on worldviews for 60 mins a fortnight. 
• Year 12 Christian Studies is taught in a whole grade seminar format on unanswered faith questions for 20 mins a fortnight. 

Damien Whitington
Senior Chaplain