OfflineAs a full time online faculty member in the College of Theology, I get many questions about how can instructors make the spiritual values and Christian traditions of GCU more a part of their lives and more a part of their classrooms. As part of this process I am going to provide tools that will help the online instructors to have valuable information that they can use in their classroom setting. The goal is to help the instructor to be equipped to better answer questions or give the student's tools to find answers to their questions. I would also like to provide our instructors with resources that will help them feel better equipped to do these types of things on their own.
The first resource I am providing is an online tool that provides several translations and paraphrases of the Bible. The instructor and the student will be able to look up most any version of the Bible such as the King James Version, the New International Version, or the New American Standard Version. I love giving students the option of going to a paraphrased version called The Message that is written at a very easy to read level and often makes more sense to the students.
On this site the instructors can not only look up Bible verses but they can search various topics in the Bible. There is also an audio version of the Bible that is very nice because you can hear the words of God being spoken. There are devotionals at this site that you can read through on a daily basis to help you in your journey with God. There are also Bible reading plans to help you with what to read in the Bible on a specific day. You will also see Bible commentaries at this site that help you to understand what some of the things that the Bible is trying to say in certain passages of scripture. I also like the fact that if you have a smart phone you can download a mobile app with all of this information and you can use it on your phone at any time. I hope you enjoy this site and I hope that you find this information valuable. Here is the link to the site. Take care and feel free to call me or email me with any questions that you have.
Reference
Bible Gateway. (n.d.). Retrieved June 6, 2013, from http://www.biblegateway.com/newsletters/
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8 Comments
Thank you Matt. I have used biblegateway.com many times in my courses and for personal use. The commentaries are a great resource for students. Students tend to struggle with some of the topics in PHI 105 and use the Bible as a resource, often out of context. The commentaries can help students see and understand the original intention and situation surrounding those important verses. Thanks Matt!
Tom
Hello Matt:
Thank you for providing this valuable resource to your fellow GCU online instructors. Given the diversity of our students, their varied faith traditions, and the in between differences of the Bible within the Christian tradition, providing a resource to help assuage possible misunderstandings is crucial to promoting GCU's Christian heritage as well as creating an inclusive classroom setting.
Thanks,
Eric
Matt, thanks for mentioning Biblegateway.com. Are there specific instances/assignments when you use this resource in your Critical Thinking course? Or is it mostly a resource that you mention to the students for them to use?
Scott
Thank you Matt for sharing this tool. In the social psychology courses I teach we examine the social influence and research in faith, religion and spirituality, and too, religion is a large part of many of my students lives and walks. It is also a valuable resource for my personal use. Thanks again. . . Roselyn
Hi Thomas, I am glad that you are using this tool already and I use it for PHI 105 as well. I like to refer students to be able to look up passages on topics such as ultimate truth that some times come out in that class. Thanks for responding and have a blessed day. Matt
Hi Eric, Thank you for responding to my resource. I find this tool to be very valuable as something that will help all students and it has helped some instructors that I have referred to it as well. I hope it will help you if students ever have any questions. Matt.
Hi Scott, Thank you for this question. I use this site as a reference for students in most of my classes. I often ask them to use the paraphrase version called the Message so that they can understand it better. Some only have the King James Version and it is hard for them to grasp when reading things for the first time. Thanks for the question. Matt.
Hi Roselyn, Thank you for responding to my posting. and for sharing your thoughts with us. This will definitely be a great tool for students in social pyschology. I truly hope you will find it as a valuable resource. Take care and God Bless. Matt.