# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1953_S1063
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

334 PARISH EDUCATION

3. Sunday School Teacher Training
The following table reveals the growth of Sunda

the Missouri Synod over a ten-year period: ¥ schools n
Years Schools Pupils Teachers
1951 ___ — 4516 456,724 51,188
1941 3,685 270,276 29'629
Gains 831 186,448 21,559

Whether the gains are
healthy growth, the 1951 figures are im

ibility of our
Church to both pupils and teachers.

We owe it to the pupils to provide them with study materials
that are doctrinally sound and to provide them with teachers who
are proficient in teaching the holy Word of God. To provide the
materials is a relatively safe matter, for typewritten manuscripts

We owe it to our teachers to

provide them with wha
they need in order to

tever helps

of them, is a very difficult task.

When the Teacher Training Committee began publishing
courses in 1938, it adopted the slogan “Every Teacher a Trained
Teacher.” Anticipating the time when the program would be well
established, the committee voiced the i

teachers unless they had completed

the six courses of the First
Series and had earned the

“First Certificate.” To expect our
each requiring eight to ten hours of

In this report the committee will attempt to give the con-
vention an accurate picture of the Status of teacher training in
our Synod. We shall glance first at the bright side and see whether
we have made a fair measure of progress
the years in which the program has been

in operation, more than
50,000 credits have been awarded to m

ore than 25,000 persons,

PARISH EDUCATION 836

i i card) stands
ngregations. A credit (course in
Oe a ‘of home and class study, so that our training
25 been an incentive to teachers to devote ear’
Se eady and preparation. The indoctrination Ore ~
aeaene *° idence should contribute, and no doubt has cone
this is ° it ife of our Church. The circulation 0: s
tt 0, 000 ‘mark long ago, the annual sale of books aver
ing a 900 Such a circulation is gratifying.

Teachers

earn upwards of 1,300 credits each year. we should
xpect nd triple that number of credits, in ac 0,008
double ar would seem to be a minimum figure. ow er
credits eect ‘lation of textbooks indicates that thousands © per :
the levee “aking the courses without wore ne he aroun 7
me ey Traini eans of tabulatin .
Teacher ae hing Ca ene into account, we may say that our
states’ cae een successful in large measure and has lost none
ie in it For progress made we praise and thank coe
of A oie ator of Sunday school teacher training has its dar
Bu rae a rule, teachers take from one to four eos
side wer Fi of going on to earn the “First Certificate. Au is
thea cecal minority of our teachers will, at any given .
awe ore training the committee has envisioned. . on
have the ught to complete two courses a year so as to e ™
reac cate in three years. But if all of our 50,00 nonEr -
their rl teachers completed only one course a year, - Tage
ila i f textbooks would be at least 50,000. Since 2 ipree
ot te chers are taking the courses but are not working f
number of tea ossible for the committee to report the precise
ara i Si nda school teacher training. A conservative are s
night be that close to fifty per cent have taken oF are ae, ne
i i irly accurate,
nek the Accent tat ae ection, What provision is being made
fon the systematic preparation of the Afty Per hot ons eo i.
i i ining program?! 0
ben anes and our ynodieel leaders to find the answer to this
whe ining of Sunday school teachers is a matter of serious
ror all a us. More children, young people, and adu is are
being re sched by the Sunday school than by any other educa’ on ,
eet Church. We dare not entrust the spiritual care of
me ouls to untrained or poorly trained teachers. If we or
we shall 7 ori kk of having these souls corrupted with alse
Tackine. Door te chi hen doctrine is correctly presented,
doctrine. Poor teaching, even when ; real and for-
is one reason why many children quit the ; ne ay we
sake the church. So we have here two weighty

es