John Beck Cartwright, Jr., Ed.D. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2014 This doctoral thesis intended to provide a clear vision of best practices in the area of online theological ministry training at the graduate level by consulting experts in the field. The research question that needed to be answered was, "What are the best practices for ministry preparation in online theological education?" Despite tremendous growth in online learning even among theological institutions, casual observations suggest that the decision to offer online programs may not always have been rooted in deep pedagogical or theological reflection. In other words, in the quest to utilize online education as a viable option for degree preparation, has serious thought been given to the uniqueness of the online learning environment and the potential impact of those differences to how ministry training is accomplished? Or has the choice been driven primarily by pragmatic considerations? A review of the literature revealed that research was needed that would establish consensus among the experts on best practices for online theological ministry training. This research would build on established practices of both online and theological education. This thesis was a mixed-methods exploratory sequential design that utilized the Delphi method in order to establish consensus among the experts on best practices for online theological ministry training. Seventeen experts were recruited that are involved in either the administrative oversight or teaching with seminary or graduate online theological ministry training degree programs. In an anonymous study, each expert answered eight open-ended questions about online theological ministry training. These answers were analyzed for emergent themes and served as the foundation for a Likert-type survey where forty-three statements were then analyzed as to their level of importance related to successfully meeting the four learning outcomes for the Master of Divinity for the Association of Theological Schools. These results were examined for consensus and another survey was given using only those items that achieved consensus. The findings were evaluated from both a consensus and non-consensus perspective. Results of the mixed method Delphi study provided thirty statements of best practices for online theological ministry preparation for which there was consensus. Statements achieving consensus were obtained in all four areas of learning outcomes for the Master of Divinity for the Association of Theological Schools: Religious heritage, cultural context, personal and spiritual formation, and capacity for ministerial and public leadership. Finally, the implications of these findings were discussed along with suggestions for further research.

This research study was concerned with higher education, leadership development, and understanding and examining the training models that are employed to prepare men and women for Christian ministry. The study combines qualitative and quantitative research elements to examine the growing number of leadership development training models in Christian higher education and consider their relationship to the employment, leadership effectiveness, satisfaction, and tenure of the graduates who were developed as a result of them. The study attempts to broaden the research base related to leadership development and to initiate a conversation in the research community regarding possible relationships between leadership development training models used in seminaries and select outcome criteria. The research population for this study was five-year seminary graduates of ministerial leadership degree programs of institutions accredited by ABHE, ATS, and TRACS. The researcher established a taxonomic classification of leadership development training models from precedent literature, document analysis of 57 institutions in the research population, and interviews with select academic administrators. Study participants completed an online survey that combined the Leadership Practices Inventory (Kouzes and Posner) and the Hoppock Job Satisfaction Blank, and other questions related to employment and tenure. From the self-reported data, possible relationships between the training model categories and variables were examined ANOVA, Post-Hoc Tukey Tests, and MANOVA. This research study sought to identify and examine leadership development models in post-baccalaureate theological education. The primary aim on the study was to determine if there were any relationships between the leadership development model by which one was equipped for ministerial leadership and select outcome assessment criteria: ministry employment, leadership effectiveness in ministry, ministry job satisfaction, and ministry tenure. The study identified seven leadership development models among the research sample: Applied, Apprentice, Classic, Distance, Extension, Hybrid, and Partnership. Statistical analysis revealed some relationship between leadership development models and hiring for ministry, and some relationship between leadership development models and ministry tenure. The statistical analysis showed no significant relationships between leadership development models and the variables of leadership effectiveness and ministry job satisfaction. / This dissertation is made available for world-wide download through the permission of the author. This dissertation may be purchased from <a href="http://disexpress.umi.com/dxweb">http://disexpress.umi.com/dxweb</a> or downloaded through ProQuest's Dissertation and Theses database if your institution subscribes to that service.

The thesis of this dissertation is that by utilizing a biblical-theological framework, best practices of online graduate-level ministerial training can be presented in such a way that the role of the faculty, the objectives of the classroom, and the purpose of the institution are focused more effectively on the formation of students as ministers of the gospel. It is argued the role of the faculty member should be a model for students to follow, which necessitates institutions prioritize theological competencies ahead of technological and pedagogical competencies when hiring faculty, and institutions prioritize the faculty member's ongoing spiritual formation in the development and evaluation of theological, pedagogical, and technological competencies. In addition, it is argued the objectives of the classroom should be formation-centered, which necessitates the faculty member should utilize social presence within online courses that prioritizes the formation of students over the learning of students, and the faculty member should create community with and among students, beyond social presence, that prioritizes the formation of students over the learning of students. Finally, it is argued the purpose of the institution should focus on the ministerial effectiveness of the student, which necessitates online graduate-level ministerial training should extend beyond the online classroom by utilizing the student's local church context for the spiritual formation and ministerial preparation of the student, and online graduate-level ministerial training should elevate the formation of the student as a minister of the gospel within the local church over the retention of the student or the knowledge gained by the student. Chapter 1 introduces the resource, Best Practices of Online Education: A Guide for Christian Higher Education, as one of the only resources seeking to present a comprehensive approach to the integration of theology, pedagogy, and technology. Chapter 2 considers how theological anthropology affects pedagogy and concludes with a presentation of David Powlison's Comprehensive Internal model as a biblical-theological framework. Chapters 3 through 5 focus on Powlison's epistemological priorities--articulating biblical truth; critiquing, debunking, and reinterpreting alternative models; and, learning from defective models as it applies to online graduate-level ministerial training.

This study utilizes a systematic review method to assess literature about the Protestant Christian tradition to enhance theological education in the African context. It explores the development and transformation of African theological education in the period 1910 to 2012. A ‘follow the money trail method of investigation’ was utilized to expose the theological issues that African theologians fundraised for African theological education through the Theological Education Fund/Ecumenical Theological Education of World Council of Churches. These were perceived as crucial in developing an African theological education that promotes the principles of a just and equitable African Christian community. The primary data was extracted by utilizing an approach that demanded searching various media sources which included electronic databases. The search strategy for electronic databases was developed from the key words and phrases of the research question. The search yielded about 10, 821 results and having carefully perused through them, 169 primary sources were included in this study. This was significant as it helped make sense of a large body of literature and was a means of isolating and synthesising the main theories and pragmatics of African theological education. The insights gained from this study are significant as a contribution to the current search for a vision of African theological education that promotes the principles of a just and equitable African Christian community in the twenty-first century. The study makes two unique contributions in the search and vision for African theological education. The contribution lies in constructing an example of an African pedagogy of community of life which is based on education for life-giving. This pedagogy is based on the Bemba understanding of insaka which is a process of life-giving-learning methodology. This theme is as relevant for global Christianity as it is to the Bemba people in their quest for life-giving theological education. Another critical contribution lies in the understanding that through Africanization, African theological education has been in a process of acquiring its own unique character or theological identity. African theological education has shifted from a merely dogmatic orientation to praxis orientation. This is based on a theological pedagogy that recognises that doing theological education involves critical engagement in a missional process of liberation—of seeking fullness of life in its interpenetrative dimensions as spiritual-material starting with the least of the community, but embracing the whole of God’s creation. To achieve this, theological education has to cut across denominational allegiances, privileging of academic disciplines, and embracing the insaka pedagogy of life through ecumenical and trans-disciplinary approaches. The viability of African theological education resides in its critical engagement with the concrete societal challenges of the African peoples. As a result, this study argues that creating a just and equitable African Christian community to a large extent depends on embracing the life-giving pedagogy as an imperative in African theological education. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2013.

Chapter 1 articulates that theological institutions have continued to increase online learning offerings, but the current literature has not taken into account what evangelical faculty think about this growth. The research conducted was an explanatory sequential study to determine current evangelical faculty perceptions, future evangelical faculty perceptions, and a comparison to the existing literature about faculty perception of online learning. Chapter 2 reviews the literature pertaining to the topic. The following subcategories are addressed: brief overview of evangelical values in theological education and online learning, studies regarding faculty perceptions of online learning in higher education, and studies regarding evangelical faculty perceptions of online learning. Chapter 3 indicates the methodology that used in the research to determine evangelical faculty perceptions of online learning. The first phase of research was a survey of 459 full members of ETS to acquire their perceptions of the current state as well as the future of online learning in theological education. The second phase of research included two volunteer focus groups designed to acquire further explanation of the survey findings from evangelical faculty. In chapter 4, the findings of the survey and focus group display a conflict in perceptions as evangelical faculty believe access to theological education to be important, but online learning to be inferior in achieving certain aspects crucial to theological education, such as discipleship, mentoring, community, and leadership characteristics. From these findings, chapter 5 presents conclusions and practical considerations to improve online learning and faculty perceptions of online learning.

The work of Western missionaries has helped the Christian faith take deep root in Africa over the past two centuries, and today the African continent is home to the most rapidly growing segment of the global church. This rapid growth has generated a need for greater numbers of biblically-equipped pastors to lead the African church. This qualitative, multi-case study explores the influence of select pastor-equipping methodologies employed by Western mission agencies engaged in the effort to develop pastors in Kenya. The programs of three mission agencies are observed as individual cases in this study, and a profile of the typical pastor equipped in each case is developed. The literature review in chapter 2 includes a model profile for shepherd leadership consisting of three categories – content, character, and competence – identified through exegetical study of the shepherd-leader motif in Scripture. This model profile provided the categories used for researching and developing the profiles associated with each case study. Each case study included interviews with program directors and students, site observations, document analysis, and informal discussions. Analysis of each case individually, as well as cross-case analysis, identifies emerging themes, constructs, and patterns which describe the effect of the selected pastor-equipping methodologies in developing Kenyan pastors. This research found that Kenyan pastors consistently identified courses in biblical interpretation or hermeneutics as the most influential aspect of their pastoral development. This finding was consistent across all three case studies. Additional implications and applications of the research findings are discussed in chapter 5.

Throughout the history of theological education there have been many articles written about field education and the need for effective supervision, but few works describe research on the role functions of the supervisory conference. Studies have suggested that examining the supervisory process is complex and not easily researched. For accreditation, the Association of Theological Schools requires field education and supervision as an integral part of the Master of Divinity degree. The purpose of this study was to further the understanding of supervision from the perspectives of supervisors and students engaged in the process of theological field education. An exploratory field research methodology was used. Previous research in theological field education supervision proved inadequate for hypotheses testing. The specific purpose of the study was to search for answers to two questions. First, how do supervisors and students describe the role functions of the supervisory conference? And second, what are the relationships between the role functions of the supervisory conference and conceptual level, constructive openness, orientation to supervision, personality type, age, gender, educational level, and experience? Interviews of supervisors and students were the source of data for the study. The interviews included asking demographic information, asking the role functions of the supervisory conference, and administering four instruments: the Paragraph Completion Test, the Preactive Behavior Instrument, the Supervisory Beliefs Inventory, and the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. The role functions were content analyzed and correlated with age, gender, experience, educational level, conceptual level, constructive openness, orientation to supervision, and personality types. Analyses were performed on the aggregated groups of supervisors and students, and on nine individual supervisor/student pairs. The results of the study indicated general agreement between the field education supervisors and their students in understanding the role functions of the supervisory conference. The mean scores on conceptual level for supervisors and students were not significantly different. Supervisors rated themselves higher in constructive openness than their students. Students estimated their supervisors to be more directive than the supervisors believed themselves to be. The personality types of supervisors and students were similar on the perceiving and judging preferences. When the data were examined by supervisor/student pairs, a more precise description of the supervisory interaction became apparent. For example, the effects of different conceptual levels and personality types became evident in the supervisory relationship. This finding suggests that future research in supervision should use individual pairs instead of aggregated groups. Two important role function themes mentioned least often by students were "relating of religious traditions and values to the human and social needs which have been identified in the ministry placement" and the "linking of theology with the practice of ministry." These two themes represent key strategies for those preparing for future ministry, and should play an integral part in field education. This study has raised several questions for future research: Is the supervisor the key element in the learning of the student? Or is the context of field education the key to learning? What does the student learn from the supervisory conference and the field placement? And finally, is the articulation of the supervisor's own theology and experience an essential component in the supervisory process, and therefore, a component in supervisor training programs? / Education, Faculty of / Educational Studies (EDST), Department of / Graduate

This thesis will critically examine the project on globalization as articulated by the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada (ATS) in an effort to uncover the presuppositions and motivations that underlie the project, and to situate them historically and with reference to current North American trends in education and politics. It will argue that the project, as it has been described and defined, comes out of the ethos of Protestant liberalism, particularly as this is embodied in missiology and the 19th century Social Gospel Movement, and that this liberal foundation has been influenced since the 1960's in North America by the Civil Rights Movement, the Women's Movement and the more recent concern related to minorities and North American pluralism. Although lip service is paid to evangelism, ecumenism and interreligious dialogue, the globalization agenda is expressed in terms of social ethics, predominantly justice or liberation theology.

No description available.

Christian Spirituality, Church History and Missiology / M. Th. (Missiology)