Let's overturn these tables

Christian churches have a number of functions, and one of them is communication.

We have a message to proclaim. There are things followers of Jesus need to know. We need at different times to be encouraged, challenged and comforted.

These things are important, so they should be communicated well. How can we learn to do that?

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Communication

Good communication isn’t simply speaking. A lot more is involved.

The information must be presented clearly. The recipient must not just hear it but listen to it and take it in. It must be remembered and applied.

There are professions that depend on communication. We can learn from them how to communicate in ways that people will remember and are changed.

Sermons do NOT communicate well

Numerous studies show that a simple monologue (which is what a sermon is) doesn’t communicate well. Most people remember little after the first ten minutes. And very few listeners change because of hearing a sermon.

This isn’t the fault of the speaker. It’s just how our brains work.

To be remembered, information has to be received by the brain. Much of what we hear and see is filtered out because our brains would otherwise be overloaded. Then it has to be considered worth remembering and incorporated into our long term memory and connected to the information already in there so it can be recalled again.

Information is more likely to be remembered and acted upon if:

1. it is something the learner is interested in and sees its connection to their interests;
2. it utilises more than one of the senses;
3. not too much information is received at once;
4. the learner is actively involved in learning, not just passively observing;
5. the learner has opportunity to put the information into practice as soon as possible.

There are ways to follow some of these principles and make sermons better.

But also, we can learn from other people who depend on communication for their work.

Learning from school teachers

Teachers might once have stood in front of their classes and taught in something close to a monologue. Although even then, they followed #5 in requiring students to immediately put what they had learnt into practice, whether it be reading, writing or arithmetic.

But for decades at least, school teachers have used more active learning techniques. For example:

• build good relationships with students – know them and use personal examples so they know the teacher;
• make teaching relevant to the lives of the learners, so they know why they will benefit from learning;
• use interactive techniques like sharing in pairs, feedback and questions, and encouraging self learning;
• give opportunities to reflect during teaching sessions by stopping to ask questions to consider, discuss, make notes, etc;
• encourage students to share together in learning and applying what they have learnt;
• motivate and encourage students to be eager to learn.

Techniques like active learning, student-centered learning, collaborative learning, experiential learning, and problem-based learning, can be seen as the best way to achieve transformational learning, which is aimed at achieving personal growth, not just learning.

Not everything educators have learned will be applicable, but much will be. For example:

• include short discussion in teaching times – this has been shown to increase engagement and learning outcomes;
• motivate congregations to have higher expectations of learning times than passively listening;
• consider how Jesus often used parables that avoid telling people the answers and instead require them to engage with the story and form their own conclusions;
• motivate and show the congregation how to do their own study rather than just tell them what to think.

Learn more at Sermons: not a good way to teach and make disciples.

Museum and Expo curators

I have a friend who is a curator at a large museum. Part of her job is to mount exhibitions that will attract, entertain and inform school students, parents and the general public.

To do this, she told me recently, requires her to consider (among other things) how people move through the exhibit, what will engage them and what they will take away from their experience.

Her comment grabbed my attention and set me researching how curators do their work. Again, some of it won’t be applicable to church learning, but some is.

Think of an exhibit (or a sermon) as a learning journey

Every step along the way should be interesting and motivating. Use multimedia to appeal to ear and eye.

Make learning as participatory as possible

Use guided discovery to present people with a relevant problem from which they could reflect and have genuine inquiry, rather than simply present information. Encourage them to actively construct their own knowledge through experiences and interactions, rather than passively receiving information.

Foster emotional connection

Learning isn’t just cognitive. We will learn better if we feel an emotional connection with the subject – emotions significantly influence memory and the perceived value of a learning experience. Telling true life stories can be more effective than academic teaching.

Is entertainment wrong?

It is easy to think being entertaining detracts from serious learning. And it can. But if the story, joke or illustration actualy illustrates the point, it will achieve more than bare information.

Professional communicators

Talk show hosts, TV current affairs presenters, workplace trainers, some politicians, perhaps even barristers, entertainers and comedians, can be considered to be professional communicators. All may have something to teach Christian pastors and speakers.

Although most of these professions use monologue rather than dialogue when communicating publicly, most try to engage the audience as much as possible.

• Politicians have had to learn to change approaches as we move from the “television age” to the “social media age”. This requires much more engagement with their constituents.
• Some TV hosts begin their shows with a monologue. To be effective, these need to use lots of visuals, alternate between humour, information and commentary, make eye contact, encourage audience response (even if it is only applause or laughter), tell anecdotes and stories, and build a sympathetic emotional response.
• Workplace trainers typically have a lot more interaction with the people they are training. They will try to engage and motivate right from the start. They will seek feedback and ask questions, and listen attentively to responses, seeking to understand how well the respondent has grasped what has been taught. Typically, attendees will be asked as part of the course to practice the skills they have been learning.

In all of these cases, the same principles of active learning, engagement with the recipients of communication and use of varied media and story telling, are used.

First Nations traditions

Australian First Nations people (and I believe those from many other countries as well), are typically less likely to use monologue communication. Different members of the tribal group may have custodianship of different aspects of knowledge and lore, and so different people would speak as different issues arose.

But when making decisions, “yarning circles” or “talking circles” would often be used, ensuring that all opinions and viewpoints can be heard and considered.

There are many situations in the secular world (including mediation, consultation, education, criminal justice and social welfare) where yarning circles have been found to be more helpful than other forms of learning, discusion and decision-making.

Yarning circles could be used in churches – in study groups and even in church services.

Overcoming the obstacles

Some people would welcome the use of different and more effective methods of communication, but it might make others feel uncomfortable.

Pastors may feel ill-equipped by their training to do anything other than preach in services, and would need to train themselves to be comfortable with other methods. They may also feel threatened by giving up their pulpits and positions of power. These issues need to be faced and addressed.

On the other hand, some congregational members may feel comfortable with preaching which allows them to remain uninvolved and unchallenged. Other methods may threaten this comfort. So different ways need to be introduced gradually and with explanation.

But hopefully there’ll be other members and some pastors who enthusiastically welcome a new approach.

There may also be those who say that we shouldn’t use secular methods, but just rely on the Word of God and the Holy Spirit. But Jesus definitely used parable, dialogue, aphorisms, hyperbole and judicious questions to teach and challenge his hearers. So why shouldn’t we?

Paul likewise “dialogued” with his Jewish and Athenian hearers. So why shouldn’t we?

Should we offer anything less than our best to God?

To be or not to be?

That is indeed the question!

I have heard many ministers defend the use of monologue sermons. Some admit they are less effective, but still don’t think they should change. Others seem uninterested in doing something different and better.

But it would be a pity if ministers continued to use a communication approach that has been shown to be less effective just because it is easier – especially when better methoids are available.

Photo by Wendy Wei.

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