Transforming Culture through Christ-centered Education

By Philip M. Renicks, Ed.D.

 

Editors Note: To receive the full benefit of this article see the previous article entitled "To Think of Africa is to Weep."

Children are the future of any people, country, or continent.  However, with many of Africa’s children either being killed or orphaned by AIDS, the future is bleak.  Who will be the future leaders of African communities and countries?  Wars have produced hundreds of thousands of child refugees with no access to education, child soldiers as young as eight are forced to kill and maim, AIDS orphans now number in the millions, and governments can no longer cope with the magnitude of the situation.  An estimated 1.9 million youth in Africa are infected with the HIV virus every year.  In 2010, UNICEF estimated 15.7 million children — 30 percent of the 53 million orphans from all causes in sub-Saharan Africa — will have lost at least one parent due to AIDS. The majority will live their lives on the streets of the major cities of Africa, struggling to survive, living hand to mouth and education will be only a fleeting dream.

Another devastating effect of the AIDS pandemic is the loss of teachers.  In the countries south of the Sahara millions of primary school children have been left without a teacher for their classrooms.  Teachers who remain are often sick and are expected to pick up the slack, often taking responsibility for 80 or more students or leaving them with no teacher at all.  In Tanzania alone, in 2006 it was estimated that 45,000 additional teachers were needed to make up for those who had died and left work because of HIV and AIDS.  There is a desperate need for education that will transform the moral character of students beginning at the elementary school level so that life-styles change and the future will not be so bleak.  

Is there hope?  Absolutely!  It is the general agreement of Christian Educators across Africa that the only answer is Christ-centered schools where children are taught from a biblical foundation.  There is a battle going on for the minds and hearts of the children of Africa.  Christ-centered education is the only answer for future generations.  They must be taught truth from God’s Word if they are to be changed and thus the culture changed.  It is TRUTH that transforms. 

 

One fundamental principle of Christ-centered education is set forth by the Apostle Paul in Romans 12:2.  We are to teach students “not to conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of their mind.”  When students experience the renewing of their mind, it means that the Spirit of God has worked through his divine power to “demolish the strongholds” of the world’s philosophy and the grip that Satan has over them.  “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”  II Cor.10:5. 

The devastation that has come to individuals and communities as a result of the AIDS pandemic across sub-Saharan Africa is one among many strongholds that can be demolished as the truth of God’s Word exposes the darkness of sin, and students are challenged to no longer conform to the pattern of this world but become obedient to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.  Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  John 8:32

In Christ-centered education consider that parents have the primary responsibility as the teachers of their children.  But, what about the children of Africa who have lost their parents?  I believe the early disciples would remind us that it becomes our responsibility to care for the widow and the orphan. God has opened a door of opportunity for us to be a father to the fatherless for the children of Africa, “for such a time as this.”  As Christian educators we have experienced the truth of God’s Word and know the freedom that it brings.  Teachers all across the continent of Africa need to be trained with an understanding of a Christ-centered philosophy of education.  They need to be trained how to develop the moral personality of young children. 

Where do we begin?  There is a window of hope for children in Africa between the ages of 3-14 who are not infected with HIV.  We need to begin with them.  When moral character is developed in the very young and the Holy Spirit has the power to transform those who are older and wiser in the ways of the world.  We are told “train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.”  Proverbs 22:6   If the culture of Africa is going to be changed it will begin with children who have been set free by the Truth.  This is the essence of an education that is Christian. 

How do we begin?  The task is too large for any one organization alone.  The task will only be accomplished by a partnership with the African church, Theological Training Colleges (where a training program for Christian teachers could begin), Christian medical clinics, mission organizations, and Christ-centered and Mission schools.  We must apply a holistic approach to the problem attacking it from every possible angle.

Educational programs for young children must focus on literacy, numeracy, health education, and character development based on biblical principles.  As the moral and ethical character of children is established on the fundamentals of God’s word, its lasting effect will be to change society.  Hope will be restored to families, to their communities, to the country, and the continent. 

 

Africa is in need of transformation and Christ-centered education has the power to transform through the Truth of God’s Word.  It is the children of Africa who are the defense against war, corruption, and the AIDS pandemic.  However they must receive Christ-centered instruction.  This is the greatest tool that the church has today for evangelism and discipleship.  Benefits to the Kingdom as well as to society are beyond measure.

I believe the Lord would say to us today as he did to Habakkuk, “Look among the nations and watch – and be utterly amazed.  For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe if you were told.”  Habakkuk 1:5.  It isn’t so much what we will do as it is what the Lord wants to do through us.  All He asks is that we be obedient to His Word and available for His service. 

 

 

 

 

 

From Containers to Classrooms

Some have described it as the "new wave" in the construction of classrooms for the developing world while others have declared, "that is just the coolest thing I have ever seen."  The students at the New Dawn Educational Center see it as nothing short of a miracle as they watched the process from start to finish.  The fact is that it's an innovative and environmentally friendly way to provide educational facilities in locations where students are denied an education and shut out of the local educational system for reasons beyond their control.  The students from the slum communities of Huruma and Githogoro have come to call the New Dawn school a lifeline out of the riptide of poverty.  It provides hope for the hopeless and is not only breaking the cycle of poverty physically, but also spiritually as the school provides students with a Christ-centered education. 

 

The latest container to classroom project of African Leadership has resulted in a new three story  high school classroom building that is called the "Resource Center."  The project was 2 years in the making.  Architectural plans were drawn up by a local Kenyan Architect and presented to Irene Tongoi, Director of New Dawn and Dr. Phil Renicks, Educational Consultant , African Leadership.  The plans called for building a three story classroom building out of 8 recycled high cube shipping containers that would provide the school with 5700 square feet or 2,480 square meters of learning space.  When we started the project we didn't know how difficult it would be to obtain decommissioned shipping containers.  Three were donated by a local freight forwarding company and the others were purchased on the local market over a period of several months.  

 

This container school building  is unique in that the containers are opened up and then separated by an eight foot span that was filled in with steel beams and flooring to make the classrooms 24 by 40 feet or 6 by 12 meters.  The first two levels are constructed using 4 containers for each level.  The third floor is constructed using 10 foot by 10 foot cuts from the eight containers used to construct the first two floors. 

On August 10, 2012, the last day of the second term for the year, nearly 400 gathered in a mood of jubilant celebration for the dedication and inauguration of the New Dawn Resource Center.  The celebration lasted nearly 4 hours and included original plays, poetry and presentations written and produced by students. The students also presented traditional dancing.  The celebration centered on God's faithfulness and the speeches and worship time centered on giving Glory to God for his goodness and the generosity of donors who made the construction of this new educational facility a reality.  I have been told that there is nothing like this in all of Kenya or in all of Africa. 

 

Once the exterior construction was complete the interior work began by putting in all the wiring and electrical outlets and then finishing the interior walls by paneling them with plywood.  To look at it you would never know that the walls are made out of solid steel.  Through the generous gifts of donors the building was complete with a library, computer lab, chemistry/physics lab, biology/agriculture lab, a 200 seat assembly hall and a teacher lounge and work room. 

 

One of the challenges of construction in a location like the Huruma slum community is the inconsistency of electricity.  It becomes difficult for a school to function properly when it is difficult to know if there be electricity one hour, four hours or not at all.  To solve that problem and to make the school as environmentally friendly as possible a donor from a solar company in the US is working with a solar company in Kenya to provide the school with a complete solar system that will make the school energy independent from the Kenyan electric grid.  

 

This is definitely the profile for a functionally "green" school building, built with recycled materials and using the abundance of the Kenyan sun to provide electricity. The school also has an agricultural project that provides vegetables for student lunches that are cooked using methane gas from cow dung supplemented by burning Castor Beans.  Perhaps the New Dawn school will become a model for other African communities and will become the "new norm" for school building construction in developing countries. 

 

There is an age-old truth that says, "education is the engine of development, and where there is lack of education, development is stunted. The biggest factor responsible for African underdevelopment is its failure to make bold investments in education, and until we address the issue, Africa will remain poor. " Joseph Kaifala, World Africa, December 2011.  

The New Dawn Educational Center is a "BOLD investment in education" and the future of it's graduates will demonstrate not only the power of an education but the hope of a Christ-centered education.