Evaluating High School Church Curricula via the Danielson Framework for Teaching: A Quantitative Approach

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study was to evaluate current evangelical small group or Sunday school curricula for high school students using the Danielson Framework for Teaching (FFT). The literature review revealed large-scale problems with Christianity in the U.S., problems in Christian education, and finally deficiencies in church curricula. The literature review also revealed a faith-based constructivist curriculum that effectively supports active learning that leads to Christlike transformation. The FFT was introduced and proven to be a valid and reliable tool for measuring student learning and the evaluation of curricula. By utilizing Domains 1 and 3 of the FFT to evaluate curricula, strengths and weaknesses were discovered, analyzed, and reported in order to strengthen curricula and therefore Christian education in churches. Tools for curriculum evaluation and supplementation were established and a curriculum design method, faith-based IDM, was proven effective for instruction based on FFT criterion.