Winter 2015/ FullerLive!
Menlo Park, Pasadena and Seattle
YF500
Clark
YF500: FOUNDATION OF YOUTH MINISTRY (4 Units: 160 Hours). Chapman Clark.
DESCRIPTION: This course provides the foundational concepts and best practices to prepare the student for ministry to the young in both a church and non-church setting in any context. The course will provide a basic understanding of adolescent development, contemporary culture, and historical and contextual models of youth ministry thinking and practice. The course is designed to help the student to think and respond theologically to the needs and expectations of the young and their families in a church or organization, and provides practical tools enabling the student to design a theologically sound youth ministry program suitable in any context.
LEARNING OUTCOMES: Students will (1) understand cultural trends that influence and affect adolescents and their families; (2) develop a comprehensive theology and philosophy of youth ministry that produces a ministry of adoption into a local church body; (3) understand the different ministry needs of early, middle, and late adolescents; and (4) create multi-generational relational programs and curriculum that enable discipleship and Christian nurture within a theologically driven framework of congregational ownership and strategic adoption of the young.
COURSE FORMAT: This class meets once per week for three-hour sessions for a total of 30 hours of classroom instruction for lecture and discussion plus 10 hours of directed learning activities for a total of 40 instructional hours, including participation in an online discussion group of other class students concerning the presentation. Each student will also complete a contextualized final project.
REQUIRED READING: 1,300 pp. required, plus an additional chapter [30 pp.] from a forthcoming book will be required at no cost to the student.
Cannister, Mark. Teenagers Matter: Making Youth Ministry a Priority in the Church. Baker Academic, 2013. ISBN: 978-0801048524, Pub. Price $21.99 [288 pp.].
Clark, Chap. Hurt 2.0: Inside the World of Today’s Teenagers. 2nd ed. Baker Academic, 2011. ISBN: 978-0801039416, Pub. Price $18.00 [288 pp.].
Clark, Chap, Kenda Dean, and Dave Rahn. Starting Right: A Practical Theology of Youth Ministry. Zondervan/Youth Specialties, 2001. ISBN: 978-0310234067, Pub. Price $35.00 [400 pp.].
Clark, Chap, and Kara Powell. Deep Ministry in a Shallow World. Youth Specialties/Zondervan, 2006. ISBN: 978-0310267072, Pub. Price $19.00 [108 pp. required].
Christerson, Brad, Korie L. Edwards, and Richard Flory. Growing Up in America: The Power of Race in the Lives of Teens. Stanford University Press, 2010. ISBN: 978-0804760522, Pub. Price $22.95 [216 pp.].
RECOMMENDED READING: See the course syllabus.
ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:
1,330 pages of required reading. [67 hours].
Eight short (120 words), regular written reflections on course readings and lectures in light of Learning Outcomes in Moodle forums, read the posts from your group, and respond to others (50 words) (20%) [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1, #2 & #3] [8 hours].
Five 2-3 page reflections on the readings (20%) [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1, #2 & #3] [15 hours].
An exam on the lectures and reading (25%) [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1, #2 & #3] [8 hours].
A 15-20 page final project that reflects a programmatic interpretation of the course content in a given context (35%) [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1, #2, #3 & #4] [40 hours].
PREREQUISITES: None.
RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Meets the 144 MDiv core requirement in General Ministry & Spirituality (MIN 1), 144 MDiv core requirement in Christian Formation & Discipleship (MIN 4), or Ministry Foundations requirement (MIN F) for other master’s degrees. Required course for Youth, Family, and Culture emphasis.
FINAL EXAMINATION: None.