What Makes A Successful College Student?

On Wednesday, February 1, Dr. Tim Wardle presented a picture of student success, as experienced at Furman University, to our Upper School faculty.  Dr. Wardle is a professor in the Religion Department at Furman University.  He holds a B.A. from Wheaton College, an M.A. from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and a Ph.D. from Duke University.

Dr. Wardle began by setting the context of the presentation.  He referenced that he had conducted an informal survey of his fellow faculty regarding the traits of freshmen who were considered successful in college.  He initially presented the idea that student success varies according to the setting, but that he and his fellow faculty found three consistent traits present in those college students who handled the initial rigors of college as freshmen.  As a K5 - 12 Grade school, he suggested that these three traits were what most students needed to be successful in college and life. 

Dr. Wardle suggested that first trait is curiosity, which is about asking big questions that demand serious thought.  He suggested that curious students are motivated by big questions which force them to think deeply about self and one’s interaction with the world.  Schools who prepare students who are curious are schools that ask big questions of their students and themselves.  Ends are not seen as conclusions, but instead as beginnings.

The second trait is academic humility.  Educators have many roles, but one of the more important roles is helping students understand their place in relation to knowledge.  Humility is understanding that the more you know the more you realize how much you do not know. Successful students learn for learning’s sake and not just for a grade.  A focus only on the grade is a pragmatic end to a means and more in line with academic pride than humility.  The school, as a whole, models academic humility through a faculty and staff who are life-long learners, open and transparent and intellectually curious.    

Dr. Wardle’s final trait is that of forward thinking.  The idea of forward thinking is rooted in two areas; who students are and what they can do.  Who we are dictates how we move forward. Sometimes, the best thing an educator can do is to keep the standards high and push students to meet those standards.  Dr. Wardle was clear; where you set your standards will matter greatly to your school and to your students. Once you have done this, you must decide what students can do.  Schools need to determine the skills students need to develop in college and beyond.  Dr. Wardle presented three skills that he felt were vital to success in college and in life.

1.     Active critical reading: college students are expected to read with a critical eye, follow a line of thinking presented in text and ask questions related to the text. This is vastly different than reading for pleasure.

2.     Writing as a process: college students are expected to write continuously therefore writing is a process and not an event. Writing is continuous revision.  College students must be able to write good, clean papers that are grammatically clean and present clear concise thoughts in response to the text. 

3.     Attitude of openness: college students are expected to be open to new and diverse ideas.  Dr. Wardle suggested that if you know what you believe, you can examine other ideas without fear.  Students who enter college with a clear, deeply rooted worldview tend to be those who engage new ideas without being swayed by them.  

Dr. Wardle concluded his comments with a final thought.  Educators are those that disciple and teach students, but more importantly, educators are those that push students toward excellence in ways that do not allow them to settle for what is good.  Our goal at Shannon Forest Christian School is to prepare our students for college, life and eternity.  Dr. Wardle’s comments reinforced who we are and provided motivation for us to continue our pursuit of excellence in all that we do as a school.   

Our vision is to educate and equip students to pursue excellence and impact the world for Jesus Christ.  This is Shannon Forest Christian School.    

Social Media and Our Children

There is a growing concern on the part of many educators regarding the presence of social media on school campuses. The Official Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics (OJAAP) urges caution in regard to social media and adolescents.

I cannot, in words, convey how destructive the misuse of social media and wide range of apps “could” be for our students, especially those in Middle School, if not monitored and managed properly.  Most parental concerns are related to bullying and crude behavior toward and against other students on campus, but there are also deeper, more emotional concerns.

The OJAAP writes regarding these; “The main risk to preadolescents and adolescents online today are risks from each other, risks of improper use of technology, lack of privacy, sharing too much information, or posting false information about themselves or others.”  These types of behavior put a student’s individual privacy at risk, which delves into their emotional and spiritual well-being.

Social media apps like Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat provide students a covert means to bully other students in a variety of ways.  They also provide open access to the Internet with little accountability. Snapchat is one of the worst offenders, as it offers students the opportunity to post messages that delete automatically and provides suggestive content that cannot be eliminated.

While I agree that social media is not, in itself, either inherently evil or supremely good, I would suggest that all of social media provides students with temptations that, in many cases, are too much for them to handle on their own.  This is especially true for Middle School students.  Students change more during the three years of Middle School than at any other time in the educational lives.  Social media left unchecked can be detrimental to students, especially during these Middle School years.

I recently read an article which referenced Facebook and how “likes” on Facebook actually trigger the same endorphins in the brain that build addictive tendencies. I neither support or deny this claim as I have not done any research beyond the article, but I reference it as one example of how powerful and still unknown the impact of social media is on our students.

Social media can be a wonderful tool for students to use to communicate with one another, but it can also be destructive and debilitating.  I encourage you to engage your students regarding social media. Have conversations with them; examine their phone from time-to-time.  Many students desperately need this accountability because the apps themselves provide none.  The issue of social media is not going away.  Become educated on the pros and cons of social media for the sake of your students.

  

WHAT IS THE MEANING BEHIND THE SHANNON FOREST CHRISTIAN SCHOOL CREST?

Since the birth of Shannon Forest Christian School in 1968, the symbol of our school has been the crest.  Ornate in its design, each element of the crest has a specific meaning that presents, in image, our Vision and Mission.  As you study our crest, you are able to see clearly who we are as a school.

LET’S TAKE EACH SYMBOL OF THE CREST, BREAK DOWN ITS MEANING AND EXAMINE HOW IT RELATES TO US TODAY.

The Bible is the Truth and the worldview in which we live, educate and equip our students.

The Torch stands for our calling.  We embrace this calling to be a light on the hill and seek to engage our world in a loving, but truthful way for Jesus Christ.   When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” -John 8:12

The Wings are a symbol of the protection provided by a faith rooted in Jesus Christ.  In faith and prayer, we rest in the knowledge that we are in union with God and that He will guide us and direct us.

The Crusader reminds us that while we know His peace and protection, we also understand that we are called to action and we, therefore seek to be a school of warriors for Jesus Christ.

The Cross is a sacred symbol of defeat, claimed by Jesus Christ, as His symbol of victory over death.  We, as Christians, display this symbol as citizens of His kingdom.

EACH COLOR ALSO REPRESENTS A FOUNDING PRINCIPLE OF OUR MINISTRY.

White stands for the purity of the Lamb of God in three persons; the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and our future in Christ our Savior.

Green is an indication of the growth of our new life in Christ.  We strive to educate in the truth of a Biblical worldview with the hope that each student will come to know Christ and grow in Him.

Black represents our sins and our reality without Christ.  We understand that we live in a fallen world, but we seek to consistently walk in faith rooted in Jesus Christ.

Gold reminds us of the streets of gold in our future with God in His eternal kingdom of Heaven.

This is who we are and we are Shannon Forest Christian School.

Why Should I Give to Shannon Forest’s Annual Fund?

This is a question that comes to mind when this time of the year rolls around. Why give to the Annual Fund? Answers tend to be varied, but the answers are not the issue. The question is.  It is a good and valid question that you should ask each year. Why, then, should you give to the Annual Fund?

First, an Annual Fund is an important part of every school. It supplements budgets, provides support to faculty and staff and keeps tuition hikes in check. The Annual Fund, in essence, provides a scholarship to every student, especially when schools, like ours, work hard to keep tuition affordable.

As a school, we try to keep up with all that is new in education. Educational change, especially educational technology, has accelerated at such a rate that even cost of living increases struggle to keep up at times. Annual funds help bridge the gap between what is need and what is affordable.

Which returns us to our question, why should you give to our Annual Fund? 

Here are three reasons I am giving to the Annual Fund:

First, as a Christian, I have been taught to tithe and give above the tithe.  I tithe to my church, as is Biblical, but I also give above the tithe to ministries that I feel are distinctly Christian and cultural change agents.  I am giving to Shannon Forest Christian School because I believe in its Mission and in its ability to change the world one student at a time for Christ.

Second, my children attend Shannon Forest Christian School, and I invest in that which partners with me in my Christian faith to educate and equip my children to pursue excellence and impact the world for Jesus Christ.  An investment in Shannon Forest is an investment in my children's future.

And, finally, I am a huge advocate of ministries that engage culture for Christ.  I personally believe that the Christian school is one of the best ways to engage culture in a manner that will change culture.  As Deuteronomy references, education is not only for learning content and equations; it serves as a vehicle to transfer the soul of one generation to another.

As you consider the annual fund this year, please do not hesitate to come see us and ask us hard questions about our future in order to get all the information you need.  I know I am giving to the Annual Fund this year.  I pray that you will consider doing the same for the sake of all of our students.  Blessings!