# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1956_S309
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

PARISH EDUCATION

E. Confirmation Instruction

The Board for Parish Education has had on its program of
work the development of a Manual on Confirmation Instruction
that will give assistance in this fundamental area of Christian
education. That confirmation instruction is one of the basic con-
cerns of Synod is clear from the fact that one of the objects of
Synod is “the furtherance of Christian parochial schools and of
a thorough instruction for confirmation.”

The Harms survey of many years ago, as well as recent studies,
have indicated the wide variety of practices that exist in confirma-
tion instruction. It is important that confirmation instruction be
a significant educational experience in every congregation. To help
achieve this, it is desirable to consider the correlation of work in
the various elementary agencies so that each agency helps carry
part of the load in preparing children for confirmation.

The Board for Parish Education is considering a confirmation-
research program that will have the following aims:

a. To ascertain the present practices of confirmation instruc-
tion in our education program;

b. To experiment with possible improvement in program and
materials;

c. To supply an adequate course of materials for confirmation
instruction.

During the past triennium the Board for Parish Education
participated in a Seminar on Confirmation and Confirmation
Instruction sponsored by the Lutheran Intersynodical Committee
on Parish Education. In addition to staff members who participated
in this seminar, the Board for Parish Education also made use of
representatives from our seminaries in St. Louis and Springfield.
The seminar focused on the following several topics:

1. The Aims of Confirmation Instruction.

2. The Content of the Confirmation Course.

3. Pedagogical Principles and Methods of Confirmation In-
struction. ;

4. The Use of Activities in the Confirmation Learning Ex-
perience.

5. Integrating Confirmation Instruction and Confirmation into
the Total Christian Education Program in the Parish.

6. Evaluating Our Work in Confirmation Instruction.

7. Enlisting and Developing Parental Support and Co-operation
During the Confirmation Instruction.

Copies of this report were made available to our seminaries

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