If you are considering high school ministry, or other forms of Sunday school, you will must first learn to understand the different teaching styles. There are two types of styles to choose from generally, being small group or master teacher format. It is important that you learn the difference between these two options, so that you choose the one that is right for you.
Master Teacher Format
You may feel that something called “master teacher” is quite intimidating. After all, becoming a master takes a whole lot of pressure, work, and focus. In reality, however, being a master teacher means that you will work with the whole student ministry, being a large format. This could be high school ministry, for instance, whereby you could potentially work with every child within that high school. During your cases, however, you will be the sole teacher and spend the first quarter of your lesson introducing the subject, after which the children will be divided into groups, usually by gender and age, and they will then work independently on the subject, facilitated by yourself.
Small Group Format
With small group format schooling, you are likely to work specifically in a Sunday school. All your students will be in smaller groups, and you get to decide how to divide them. You will not just teach them, but encourage discussion and debate. This is the format seen in almost every church across the country.
Which One Is Better?
You will be happy to know that there are no rights and wrongs when it comes to teaching styles. It all depends on where you teach, and what your church expects the children to learn. It also depends on what you are most comfortable with yourself. If you have been used to delivering education using a small group style, and you are suddenly expected to become a master teacher, you may struggle with that to a degree. Similarly, if the church you work for has always offered master teacher styles, you shouldn’t suddenly decide to switch to small group teaching. Unfortunately, you are unlikely to have the flexibility to go from one style to the other while remaining within the same church, in other words. However, you do have the opportunity to switch your style if you were to teach at different high school ministries or different Sunday schools.
At the end of the day, deciding between the two formats is something you need to do based on your personal preferences, and based on the preferences of your church, or the school itself. Remember that you are doing the work of the Lord, and you will not be doing anything wrong by choosing one style or another. The difference is in method of delivery, not in the opportunity to give children the ability to get closer to God, or to increase their understanding of His teachings. That is what truly matters, after all, and not the method in which you are able to achieve this.