Succeeding in Theology

As with any other core class, students are held to a high academic standard in Theology. For my part, I try to make my class as accessible as possible by communicating clearly, staying organized, and making resources available. Doing well in Theology will require effort; students should apply that effort to the actual work, not trying to figure out what they should be doing. Below are some suggestions and strategies to help your son or daughter do well in Theology. Some are generic study skills, while others are specific to how my course is structured. Every student is different, and there is no one-size solution, but this can be a good starting point.

I expect students to...

Give their best effort every day
Take organized notes in class
Maintain a binder with all class notes and handouts
Participate in all class activities
Keep track of assignments and due dates
Turn in work on time
Check their school email daily
Ask questions, either in class or outside of class
Reach out to me if they are concerned about their grades
Tell me when they know they will be missing class, and find out what they missed when they were out

I do not expect students to...

Read my mind. It is my job to communicate clearly. The best thing a student can do is ask questions when I'm not doing that well enough.
Agree with everything the Church teaches. As a Catholic school, we are proud to proclaim our Catholic faith with fidelity to the Magisterium. We do not expect students to agree with everything, especially if they are coming from a non-Catholic background. All I ask is that students be respectful and remember that their grade is based on understanding what the Church teaches, not agreeing with it.
Have prior knowledge of Theology. Some students received excellent catechesis growing up, and are very knowledgeable about their faith. Praise God! Others are less familiar with Catholic theology, and may have never taken a class like this before. I do not assume that students possess any kind of background knowledge beyond what we do in a particular year. Students who come in with a well-formed understanding of the faith will find that understanding deepened and enriched, but those who are new to theology won't be at a disadvantage.
Cheat or plagiarize. Perhaps this goes without saying, but I take the Honor Code very seriously. At the center of our school is Christ, who is the Truth, so any violation of the Honor Code goes against our deepest principles. There are no "first warnings" given for plagiarism and cheating. Depending on how forthcoming a student is about dishonesty, they can expect to fail the assignment and likely will receive further disciplinary consequences.

As students at a college-preparatory high school, a Saint Joseph's student is expected to take ownership of his or her education. Parents are essential in guiding them but, by high school, it is the student who has the primary responsibility for keeping track of grades and seeking help. My goal is to give parents the information they need as the "primary educators" of their children, while enabling students to be accountable for their education. As I often tell students, "I won't care more about your grade than you do." But I won't care less, either. Help is available!

The Studying Process

Developing study skills is an essential part of academic success. Everyone studies differently, but many students have found this process to be a good "diagnostic" tool to help them identify topics that may require extra time.

Go through the study guide without your notes and try to answer each question. At the beginning of each unit, I post a study guide with questions and prompts for each topic. When I design a test, I always begin with the study guide. There will never be something on a test that isn't on the study guide! Even if the questions may be worded differently on a test, or the format might be reversed, students will never encounter information on a test that wasn't on the study guide.
Mark the questions that you are not able to answer without your notes. You'll return to these questions later.
Go through the study guide again with your binder in front of you, and try to answer the questions you marked in step 2.
If there are still questions you can't answer, even with your notes in front of you, mark those questions in a different color.
Go through the questions that you marked in step 4, this time using both your binder and Google Classroom. I post all of our class resources on Google Classroom, so you should be able to fill in any gaps in your notes.
Ask me for help with any questions you still can't answer or don't understand.

This process will especially help students identify topics that they need to spend more time studying, while remaining flexible enough to accomodate virtually any studying method.

Of course, no good approach to studying begins the night before the test. Students should begin intentionally preparing for an assessment at least several days before the test. If nothing else, this will give them time to find answers to the questions they are struggling with.

Study As You Go

Studying for a test should be a review of information that the student already knows. It is very difficult to learn new material while studying for a test! This means that it is important for students to make sure they understand each topic while we are covering it. Don't wait until the night before the test!

The study guide for each unit is broken into topics that roughly correspond with daily lessons. One easy way for students to check for understanding is to follow along with the study guide each day and make sure that they can answer each question. I often give out a printed copy of the study guide at the start of a unit to make it easier to check off the questions.

I also post the digital version of the study guide to Google Classroom. Many students choose to make a copy of this Google Doc so that they can add space to write. Then, they print out this "expanded" study guide and put it in their binder. They are able to write down the answers to the study guide as we go!

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