Workshops at Conference 22

Clint Elliot

is a lawyer and director of the Christian Educators Association International, a Christian Union for teachers in USA and beyond. He has been instrumental in developing the “Daniel Movement”, a course for Christian teachers in secular schools, equipping them effectively to bring God’s love and truth to their schools, complying with the laws but challenging the secular taboo towards faith questions.

Vicki Hird

works in an IB international school in Notting Hill, central London UK, where she teaches some amazing 7-8 year olds from all over the world!  She is passionate about loving her kids and colleagues well and is on a journey of discovering creative ways to partner with the Holy Spirit in every aspect of what she does, within a very secular school environment.  Vicki is especially passionate about both student and teacher mental health and wellbeing, and she also loves helping her students to take action in the community. She speaks 5 languages and enjoys finding opportunities to encourage her students to use their home languages in school.

Cristina Ferreira 

lives in the outskirts of Lisbon, Portugal, and has been serving the Lord for 33 years. She graduated in Science of Religions and has taken two other minor courses: one in Theology and Christian Education and another in Pedagogy. For about 18 years, she has worked in state schools as a teacher of Evangelical Religious Education and she has organized many Christian camps for children and teenagers in Africa (Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau and Mozambique). She has been teacher and the responsible for the chapel activities in Sintra International Christian Academy, a private school near Lisbon. She is also a writer for some devotionals and Christian magazines.

Graham Coyle

has been a teacher for over 30 years, including time as a Headteacher and leader of a group of Christian schools in the UK. He is the Chairman of EurECA, as well as currently leading his church.

Jody Hesler

Jody began her missionary journey in Ukraine where she lived for 11 years, mostly ministering to at-risk teens. She and her team established a drop-in center for street kids as well as a private foster care and adoption ministry. After turning the work in Ukraine over to national leadership, Jody began work in Central Asia as a community development specialist. After working there for ten years, she returned to the US for further study.
In 2014, she began full-time ministry in member care, counseling global workers (adults, teens and children) and pastors.
Her areas of professional interest include children dealing with transition, anxiety and depression. Jody especially enjoys working with global workers who are working in Central Asia and the Middle East, and draws from her 20+ years as a global worker in those areas.

Who is God, Who am I

We are God’s ambassadors in the world today; that includes in our schools and classrooms. As ambassadors it is important that we understand who we represent and who we are in God’s eyes. We have an enemy, Satan, who wants to distort our view of these two areas. In this workshop participants will first identify the lies that Satan wants us to believe about who God is and who we are. The first half of the workshop focuses on lies. What does Satan say to you at the end of a difficult day or during a challenging season in your life? As you recognize that so many lies we believe are the same, you realize that Satan is not that creative and that we can learn from sharing our challenges. The second half of the workshop deals with discovering the truth. We go through a process of going into God’s word to replace those lies with truth. We end our time together with a special time of sharing a truth that God revealed to us that will help approach our work with hope and confidence.

Using Worldview Questions in the Classroom

Christian teachers desire to see their students understand the content of the curriculum through a Biblical worldview.  This can be challenging in any circumstance, but is especially so for Christian teachers serving in secular schools where it is not possible for them to be so open about their Christian faith. The use of worldview questions as a regular component of lessons has the potential to prompt students to evaluate their own worldview, and perhaps consider a Biblical alternative, without the need for the teacher to be “preaching” in the classroom.  This workshop will explore the nature of worldview questions and how they can be used by Christian teachers to initiate sensitive and genuine Gospel conversations with students.

Joyfully Living Boldly For Christ at School

This workshop will involve an interactive discussion of Christian transformational leadership at school and identify practical biblical discipleship principles to empower Christian educators to overcome the increasing challenge of censorship and self-censorship at school.  The workshop will motivate participants to joyfully fulfill their calling as witnesses and ambassadors for Christ in all aspects of life, including work.
The workshop will include:
1. recent research findings regarding self-censorship among Christian teachers.
2. biblical examples of disciples overcoming the temptation to stay silent in culture.
3. the importance of mentoring relationships for overcoming self-censorship at school.
4. question and answer discussion time.

Hear the Father’s Voice

Would you like to discover some of the different ways that God can speak to us?

Would you like to learn about how we can test and trust what we are sensing from God?

And would you like to find out how to apply what we are hearing to our work situations and the challenges of life?

This session will include some teaching about the biblical basis of hearing God’s voice, as well as some testimonies of hearing God in a school environment. You will have the opportunity for some quiet reflection time to practise hearing God for yourself and others. There will also be the opportunity to organise a personal prophetic appointment at a separate time during the conference.   Come and be refreshed and encouraged, and take some time to allow God to minister to you!!

Confined For the Lord – What We Can Learn From the Pandemic

1^st What is the Lord saying to Christian teachers as we come through the pandemic?

1. The world hasn’t stopped; life must go on! The Lord hasn’t stopped; His project to our lives must go on!
2. We remain as teachers and kids remain as pupils; He remains as the Master and we remain as His disciples.
3. The whole world is crying out: “When will this pandemic come to an end?” The whole Heaven is shouting: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.” (Acts 1:7)

2^nd What have we learned as valuable through this time?

1. Pandemics are an old phenomenon. The first one started in the Garden of Eden (Gn.3:6). But… we’re still here!
2. Quarantines are an old phenomenon. The first one took place in Noah’s ark (Genesis 6-9). But… the world still remains!
3. Lockdowns are an old phenomenon. The first disciples experienced them in their own lives. But… their testimony endures forever!

3^rd How can we bring the loving influence of God’s Kingdom to our education settings in this season?

1. Despite their “quarantine”, some “confined for the Lord”, like Joseph, Jeremiah or Paul, made the most of their “lockdown” to bring the loving and hopeful influence of God’s Kingdom into their season and to all future generations.

Creative Leadership in Education

The very first activity we see God involved in is a creative one, ‘In the beginning God created’. All teachers lead in some way, in class, in a department, across a school or several schools, so it makes sense we aim to do this creatively. What can this look like, and how do we engage with our creative Lord so He shines through us in our leadership responsibilities? In this workshop we’ll explore this together, and discover how we grow as leaders in God’s Kingdom. Come prepared to learn and grow.

What is an Ambassador?

During this workshop educators are introduced to the idea that they are Christ’s ambassadors. Many of us have heard this term, but do we really understand what that means? Participants will begin by taking time to reflect on why they became an educator and share. Then, the group will focus on 2 Corinthians 5:11-21. Educators engage in a small group Bible study  to discover what God says about being an ambassador. This list can be overwhelming since these are not things we can do in our own strength. The good news is that God is with us. We need that reminder in this world today.
In the scripture it says that “God makes his appeal” through us. Many educators don’t stop and think about ways that God is already using them. During the 2nd part of our workshop, educators have time to reflect and share with each other, both large and small ways that they are being used in their schools. Educators are affirmed and inspired by new ways to walk with God and engage in his kingdom ministry in their schools.