Teaching Introductory Upper-Level Religion and Theology Classes

The undergraduate study of religion is predominantly undertaken by non-majors who are meeting a general education requirement. This means that, while curricular discussions make important distinctions between the work of lower- and upper-division courses, many religion and theology faculty are teach...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Teaching theology and religion
Authors: Clingerman, Forrest (Author) ; O'Brien, Kevin J. 1977- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Wiley-Blackwell [2015]
In: Teaching theology and religion
IxTheo Classification:AH Religious education
FB Theological education
Further subjects:B Context
B religion major
B Survey
B intellectual growth
B introductory courses
B pedagogical content
B advanced courses
Online Access: Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
Description
Summary:The undergraduate study of religion is predominantly undertaken by non-majors who are meeting a general education requirement. This means that, while curricular discussions make important distinctions between the work of lower- and upper-division courses, many religion and theology faculty are teaching hybrid courses that we call "introductory upper-level courses." These play an introductory role in general education while also serving the study of religion in a more advanced way. Attention to how these courses fit into multiple curricular goals will be important for the scholarship of teaching and learning in religious studies and theology. This essay draws on scholarship about introductory teaching and a survey of faculty about introductory upper-level courses to argue that the content of such courses should be understood as serving the study of religion at an advanced level, the context should be understood as introducing general education goals, and the goals for intellectual growth must strike a challenging balance between the two.
ISSN:1467-9647
Contains:Enthalten in: Teaching theology and religion
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1111/teth.12302