Ministerial formation of theological students through distance education

Ministerial formation is a multifaceted activity involving critical thinking, the acquisition of knowledge, skills development, religious identity formation and the development of ministerial and spiritual maturity expected of church ministers. Education is not merely the accumulation of a prescribed set of academic credits but includes the holistic formation of all aspects of the individual. However, theological educators are concerned about the capacity to foster such values and skills in the distance and electronic environment. Some see distance education as 'distancing' the students in more significant ways than simply geographic distance. These issues are of fundamental importance for they reflect the deeper convictions of theologians that distance education may not be a suitable medium for ministerial formation. This article creates a conceptual map of the theological and pedagogical challenges for ministerial formation and highlights how the possibility of formation is being carried out in the distance-learning environment.

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Main Author: Naidoo,Marilyn
Format: Digital revista
Language:English
Published: University of Pretoria 2012
Online Access:http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0259-94222012000200010
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spelling oai:scielo:S0259-942220120002000102012-10-24Ministerial formation of theological students through distance educationNaidoo,MarilynMinisterial formation is a multifaceted activity involving critical thinking, the acquisition of knowledge, skills development, religious identity formation and the development of ministerial and spiritual maturity expected of church ministers. Education is not merely the accumulation of a prescribed set of academic credits but includes the holistic formation of all aspects of the individual. However, theological educators are concerned about the capacity to foster such values and skills in the distance and electronic environment. Some see distance education as 'distancing' the students in more significant ways than simply geographic distance. These issues are of fundamental importance for they reflect the deeper convictions of theologians that distance education may not be a suitable medium for ministerial formation. This article creates a conceptual map of the theological and pedagogical challenges for ministerial formation and highlights how the possibility of formation is being carried out in the distance-learning environment. University of Pretoria HTS Theological Studies v.68 n.2 20122012-01-01journal articletext/htmlhttp://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0259-94222012000200010en
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language English
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author Naidoo,Marilyn
spellingShingle Naidoo,Marilyn
Ministerial formation of theological students through distance education
author_facet Naidoo,Marilyn
author_sort Naidoo,Marilyn
title Ministerial formation of theological students through distance education
title_short Ministerial formation of theological students through distance education
title_full Ministerial formation of theological students through distance education
title_fullStr Ministerial formation of theological students through distance education
title_full_unstemmed Ministerial formation of theological students through distance education
title_sort ministerial formation of theological students through distance education
description Ministerial formation is a multifaceted activity involving critical thinking, the acquisition of knowledge, skills development, religious identity formation and the development of ministerial and spiritual maturity expected of church ministers. Education is not merely the accumulation of a prescribed set of academic credits but includes the holistic formation of all aspects of the individual. However, theological educators are concerned about the capacity to foster such values and skills in the distance and electronic environment. Some see distance education as 'distancing' the students in more significant ways than simply geographic distance. These issues are of fundamental importance for they reflect the deeper convictions of theologians that distance education may not be a suitable medium for ministerial formation. This article creates a conceptual map of the theological and pedagogical challenges for ministerial formation and highlights how the possibility of formation is being carried out in the distance-learning environment.
publisher University of Pretoria
publishDate 2012
url http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0259-94222012000200010
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