Developing a Teaching Philosophy: A Guide for Theological Educators

What you teach often receives the focus in higher education. But the truth is how you teach is just as critical. How you teach strikes at the heart of the calling to teach.

If we want to see genuine education, that is, if we want to see transformation, we have to engage students better. And that is why every Christian teacher—whether in the academy, the church, or elsewhere—needs to think through the “hows” of teaching and develop a teaching philosophy that will guide them day in and day out.

What is a teaching philosophy?

A teaching philosophy is not just a syllabus, a lesson plan, or a clever method. It is a vision of what teaching is and what it is not. In short, it is a reflective statement about how you teach and why.

And for the Christian, this realization is critical: Teaching is not merely the transfer of content from the lips of the teacher to the ears of the student. It is the shaping of lives. Teaching is transformation. So your teaching philosophy is a creed of your teaching theory and praxis, not only of the mind but also of the heart.

Teaching is not merely the transfer of content from the lips of the teacher to the ears of the student. It is the shaping of lives.

Jesus put it plainly: “A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher” (Luke 6:40). Paul echoed him: “You have followed my teaching style, my way of living, my aim in life, my faithfulness, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, my persecutions, and my sufferings” (2 Tim 3:10–11). This is the heart of Christian education. Not mere retention of information. Not the replication of a teacher’s opinions and interpretations. But the molding of men and women into the likeness of their Lord, the one who died in their place and purchased them with his very own blood.

A teaching philosophy, then, is not bureaucratic filler. It is a declaration of how you intend to live and teach in such a way that your students—when they are trained—will resemble their teachers, and through them, their Lord.

Why does a teaching philosophy matter?

In today’s academy, content is cheap. The internet brims with lectures, outlines, and pdfs. Students can find information in seconds. With the rise of ChatGPT and AI, even Google feels like an abacus.

But what cannot be googled is character. What cannot be downloaded is wisdom. What cannot be ordered on Amazon are the skills that truly matter: how to think, how to weigh truth, how to critique the flood of ideas at our fingertips. Christian educators must therefore be more than data dispensers. They are soul builders. A teaching philosophy matters, therefore, because teaching is tied to discipleship and ministry formation.

Furthermore, a quality teaching philosophy can help with hiring. Search committees look for clarity, alignment with mission, and evidence of thoughtful pedagogy. In a crowded field of applicants, this kind of clarity sets you apart.

Search committees ask for teaching philosophies because they want to know how you form students, not just what you know. Almost anyone can write a doctrinal statement or list credentials. But not everyone can show how their convictions become pedagogy. A clear, concrete, Scripture-anchored philosophy demonstrates that you are a scholar who can teach, not merely one who can publish.

Why does educational research matter for a teaching philosophy?

A teaching philosophy that is rooted only in theology but ignores educational research is incomplete. We need both.

Too often, Christian education falls flat because we do not engage the scholarship of education. The typical Sunday morning model—sit down, listen, and leave—has dominated for centuries. But does it work? Study after study in adult education says no.

The data is clear. Adults are not indifferent to learning. They crave engagement. They learn best when they are active participants, not passive note-takers. Learners remember more when they discuss, when they apply, when they practice. They grow when teaching moves from the abstract to the concrete, from lecture to lived experience.

Here lies the great error of modern education: mistaking content transfer for teaching. A PowerPoint is not pedagogy. A lecture is not formation. And we know this from our own pews. Ten minutes into many sermons, eyes glaze and minds wander. Not because the Word of God is dull, but because the delivery does not engage.

This is not to belittle the taught Word. Teaching remains central. But as a dominant model of Christian education, it too often leaves learners passive. Research reminds us: Engagement fuels transformation—active learning, differentiated instruction, feedback in real time. When paired with Scripture and theology, these practices do not water down Christian education. They strengthen it.

Christian educators, then, cannot simply replicate the patterns they have inherited. We must ask harder questions:

• What does the research say about how people learn?
• What practices actually cultivate transformation?
• And how might my philosophy of teaching change if I looked beyond tradition and into the evidence about what works?

What matters in a teaching philosophy?

If theology gives us the purpose of education, and praxis gives us the habits, then educational theory explains why certain practices shape learners and how they can be improved. To ignore theory is to teach blindly. To integrate it is to teach wisely.

Thus, a teaching philosophy cannot live on Scripture and conviction alone. It must also rest on the best insights that research and theory can provide. It must be informed by the best biblical scholarship and by the best educational research. To neglect either is to shortchange our students.

A good philosophy, therefore, will include one’s core teaching methods and commitments, but also modeling skills, pursuing student formation goals, and exercising practical classroom practices.

The good news is this: Much of what Christian educators affirm in their teaching philosophies already aligns with long-established research in the field of education. What we confess from Luke 6:40 and 2 Timothy 3:10–11, scholars in adult learning, psychology, and pedagogy have observed in their own way. By identifying these connections, we can strengthen our teaching, refine our philosophy, and give a reasoned account of why we teach as we do.

What resources can inform a teaching philosophy?

To inform one’s teaching philosophy on the best educational research, below are a few landmark works every theological educator should know—not to replace Scripture, but to inform practice:

Work	Why It Matters	How It Can Shape Your Teaching Philosophy
Ken Coley, Transformational Teaching: Instructional Design for Christian Educators (B&H, 2023)	Written by a Christian educator for Christian educators. Bridges theology and research with practical instructional design.	Use this book to rethink how you design syllabi, assignments, and classroom practices with a view towards transformation rather than mere information.
Malcolm Knowles, The Adult Learner (Butterworth-Heinemann, 2011)	Foundational for adult learning theory (andragogy). Recognizes adults as self-directed, motivated by purpose, and shaped by life experience.	In seminary or church education, this means moving beyond rote memorization and asking: How does this content meet learners’ ministry needs and lived experiences?
Carol Ann Tomlinson, How to Differentiate Instruction in Academically Diverse Classrooms (ASCD, 2017)	A landmark work on differentiated instruction. Shows how to teach effectively across diverse ability levels, backgrounds, and learning preferences.	Seminary and church classrooms are mixed: pastors, lay leaders, new believers, seasoned scholars. Tomlinson’s framework helps you design teaching that respects those differences without diluting rigor.
Stephen Brookfield, Becoming a Critically Reflective Teacher (Jossey-Bass, 2017)	Emphasizes reflective practice: constantly questioning and testing your assumptions about teaching.	In your philosophy, you can commit to regularly evaluating whether your teaching methods actually form disciples or just fill notebooks.
Rosemary Caffarella, Planning Programs for Adult Learners (Jossey-Bass, 2021)	A practical handbook for designing learning programs with clear outcomes, sequencing, and assessments.	Use this to shape not only individual courses, but also church education programs or discipleship pathways, showing that your teaching philosophy scales beyond the classroom.
Eduard Lindeman, The Meaning of Adult Education (Inner Fire, 2025)	Classic insight: Adults learn best around real-life situations, not abstract subjects.	For seminary and church teaching, this means anchoring lessons in real ministry challenges—counseling, preaching, missions—so learning connects directly to practice.

What should I consider when writing a teaching philosophy?

As you draft your teaching philosophy, ask yourself:

• What do I believe is the purpose of theological education?
• How do I want my students to resemble me in life and doctrine?
• How do I balance the head and the heart, knowledge and skill?
• How do I train them not only to know truth but to apply it in ministry?
• What are the roles of teachers, students, and even environments?

Common mistakes to avoid

As you seek to answer these questions, be aware of some common mistakes to avoid:

1. Abstract platitudes. “I believe in student-centered learning” is not enough. Show exactly what that means for you.
2. Copying a doctrinal statement. This confuses creed with craft. A doctrinal statement tells what you believe. A teaching philosophy explains how you teach what you believe.
3. Ignoring formation. Theology without discipleship is barren.
4. Failing to revise. Your philosophy should not be static. With each class taught, with each student mentored, with each year of ministry, you should refine it.

On the latter, how often should one revise their formal teaching philosophy? I suggest every two to three years. Philosophy that never changes has lost touch with its teacher’s growth. A philosophy that does not grow with you is a fossil.

Specifics to address

Consider also addressing or taking into account these specific matters:

1. Controversies: Theological education will touch disputed ground—gender, sexuality, denominational lines, biblical criticism, etc. Your teaching philosophy must prepare you to meet these storms with conviction and charity. Truth is not to be compromised. But neither is love.

2. Diversity: The most effective educators design assignments that allow students to connect learning to their own ministry contexts, ensuring relevance without diluting rigor. They foster dialogue where varied perspectives sharpen one another, modeling how the gospel speaks across cultures and traditions. In this way, good teaching reflects the breadth of Christ’s body, cultivating leaders who can minister in a global church.

3. Mission alignment: A philosophy disconnected from institutional purpose will ring hollow. A philosophy harmonized with it will amplify both your voice and your institution’s mission, showing students and colleagues alike that you teach with clarity and purpose.

4. Artificial intelligence: Theological educators must pivot toward cultivating wisdom with AI: teaching discernment, ethical use, and theological reflection on technology. Professors who disciple students in how to use AI faithfully, without being shaped by it uncritically, will serve the church and society well.

5. Modalities: Faithful educators do not cling to their preferred style of teaching. Instead, they choose participation over preference. They recognize that serving the needs of their institutions and their students may mean adapting their approach to multiple modalities. What works in person may need to be redesigned online. What feels natural in a lecture may need to become interactive in a blended environment.

The willingness to adapt is not compromise—it is service. Professors who are flexible can leverage technology to extend the reach of theological education, meeting students where they are while still holding Scripture and formation at the center. Whether face-to-face or across digital platforms, the call remains the same: to shape lives, not just to transfer content.

4 themes that shape my own teaching philosophy

To close, allow me to share four major themes that undergird my own teaching philosophy—each tied to Scripture, each rooted in practice, and each supported by decades of scholarship in education:

1. Teaching as transformation, not content transfer

Principle: Teaching is not merely the transfer of content. It is the shaping of lives.

Theory: Jack Mezirow’s Transformative Learning shows that adult learners are changed when they confront new perspectives. Dewey and Kolb’s Experiential Learning argues that learning happens through reflection on lived practice, not passive memorization.

Bible: Jesus and Paul both frame teaching as transformation (Luke 6:40; 2 Tim 3:10–11).

2. Modeling as core to education

Principle: Teachers shape more by who they are than by what they say.

Theory: Bandura’s Social Learning Theory demonstrates that learners imitate models. Cognitive apprenticeship research (Collins, Brown, Newman) stresses modeling, coaching, and guided practice.

Bible: Jesus lived with his disciples, modeling obedience, correction, and restoration. Paul urged others to imitate him as he imitated Christ (1 Cor 11:1).

3. Moving beyond content to skills

Principle: Students must be able to demonstrate knowledge in tasks that mirror real life and ministry.

Theory: Anderson and Krathwohl’s A Taxonomy for Learning, Teaching, and Assessing emphasizes the movement from remembering to creating, and makes explicit how teachers can design learning objectives and assessments that push students toward higher-order thinking. Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe’s Understanding by Design focuses on backward design: Start with the desired outcomes (what skills students should demonstrate) and build learning activities backward from there.

Bible: Paul expected Timothy to learn not only his teaching but also his way of life and ministry practice (2 Tim 3:10–11). Just as Jesus’s disciples followed him closely for about a year before being sent out, true learning in theological education requires formation through lived skills, not just retained information.

4. Differentiated instruction & active learning

Principle: Students do not all learn in the same way. To ignore this is to fail them.

Theory: Carol Ann Tomlinson’s Differentiated Instruction emphasizes tailoring learning to needs, interests, and readiness. Richard Felder’s work on Active Learning shows that students retain more when they engage in tasks. Knowles’s Andragogy argues adults learn best when teaching is participatory and problem-centered.

Bible: Jesus adjusted his teaching according to his hearers’ needs and readiness. He gave Nicodemus theological depth (John 3), engaged the Samaritan woman through dialogue and personal application (John 4), and confronted the rich young ruler with a task that revealed his heart (Mark 10). Each encounter was context-sensitive, drawing the learner forward from where they stood. In the same way, Paul adapted himself “to all people” (1 Cor 9:22), contextualizing his approach while remaining faithful to the truth.

Conclusion

A teaching philosophy is not a bureaucratic formality. It is the lifeline of the classroom, the compass of the professor, and the covenant you make with your students. It says, “This is who I am. This is how I teach. This is what I want to do in the time we share.”

Let your philosophy be clear. Let it be biblical. Let it be anchored in research as well as revelation. Let it aim not merely at content but at character, not only at information but at transformation. Revise it as you grow, sharpen it as your context changes, and return to it as your guidepost.

For in the end, theological education is not about filling notebooks. It is about forming disciples. Not just content, but conduct. Not just doctrine, but devotion. Not just knowledge, but likeness to Christ.

Thomas Hudgins suggested resources on teaching philosophy

• Thomas Hudgins, “Electronic Tools” from Southeastern Seminary on YouTube
• Carl E. Sanders, “Biblical language instruction by the book: Rethinking the status quaestionis” in Teaching Theology & Religion
• Mike Heiser with Thomas Hudgins, “Naked Bible 128: Conference Interviews Part 1” from The Naked Bible Podcast
• Chris McMaster with Thomas Hudgins,“Creative Teaching with Logos 2025” from Logos

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