Introduction
Sunday School is teaching and learning activities that take place in the church. Just like in saccular learning where every subject has a major textbook, so it is in Sunday school. The major textbook in Sunday school is the Bible, and the sub-textbook is the Sunday school manual.
The learning activities in Sunday school deal with man and his relationship with God his Maker, his relationship with his fellow man, and how to handle the issues of life.
Hence, Teenagers and their Sunday School has to do with bringing the teaching and learning activities of the Sunday school to the level and understanding of teenagers. To do this properly, we need to know the necessity of the teens’ solution department, the importance and manners of teaching teenagers, and the role of parents, church, and teen workers, in teaching the teenagers thoroughly.
Teaching teenagers and reaching them for Christ is part of the fulfillment of the commands of Jesus Christ to His Church before ascending back to Heaven. The “Go and make disciples of all nations (teenagers are part of these nations),” the “Baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit,” and the “Teaching them to observe (obey or abide by/in) all that I have commanded you…” are fully obeyed when we create the world of teenagers where we can mold, build and reach them for Christ, which will make them value to our society (Text: Matthew 28:19-20; 2 Timothy 2:15).
Teenagers are the vital structure of society. Good-mannered, intelligent, moral, and hard-working teenagers mean good-mannered, intelligent, moral, and hard-working as well as a successful society. And we have great roles to play to bring out these and more qualities out of our teenagers
Outline
- Who is a Teenager?
The word teenager is onomatopoeia. It is coined from the sound at the end of the common name of people of the age bracket of Thir”Teen” to Nine”Teen.” Since the ending same-sound in the ending spelling or pronunciation of common sound named people of this age bracket is “Teen,” therefore, “Teen” is used to name them, hence, “Teenagers,” or “Teen-age.”
Therefore, teenagers are people between the age bracket of thirteen (13) to nineteen (19) years. Onomatopoeia is a figure of speech whereby a word is coined out of a sound associated with the word. For example, “Tick! Tick!! Says the clock…” Normally “Tick” shouldn’t have been a word with meaning, but since it is a sound common or associated with the sound of the movement of the seconds-hand of the clock, it becomes a word with meaning attached to it. This applies in forming the name given to people between thirteen (13) to nineteen (19) years of age.
Teenagers are neither children nor adults. They are rather in between children and adulthood. They have graduated from childhood and are in the process of Adulthood. Another more official name for teenagers is “Adolescence.” They have similar features and experiences. One vital thing about this stage is that it is a puberty stage, where they face rapid body development, changes, feelings, and reactions (read more in my book, Understanding Teenagers, a Handbook for Parents/Teachers, coming out soon).
- The Necessity of the Teens Solution Department:
Before 2001, Assemblies of God Church Nigeria operated under two divisions, that is, the children’s church and the adult church. And the age categories were, children from 0 to 12 years under the category of children church and people from 13 (sometimes 12 based on their body development) to 90 and above under the category of the adult church.
This, however, posed a big challenge to the church in handling and retaining people of the age bracket of 13 to 19 years of age who have different features from children and adults. This is because they grew stubborn in the children’s church if left there and got lost in the adult church if taken there. They belong to neither children nor adult churches because they are neither children nor adults. They are, rather, in between children and adulthood. Hence, needed a world of their own in the church where they can be taught in their (own) language, understanding, and Bible and life-related lessons common to their persons, makeups, and age.
Reverend Eke O. Onwuka got the idea that a department should be created for these people. When he shared this vision with the then General Superintendent, Rev. Dr. Charles Ogbonnaya Osueke, and other then-leaders of Assemblies of God Church Nigeria, they saw it as a solution to the challenges facing Teenagers. That is why it is called the Teens’ “Solution” department. That is, this is the solution we have been looking for. And indeed, the department has been a solution to Teenagers. In 2001, the Assemblies of God Church Nigeria Teens Solution Department was officially established. This department is about 23 years old today, in Assemblies of God Church.
- The Importance and Manners of Teaching Teenagers:
Teenagers should and must be taught if they must do the right thing, become responsible in life, love, fear God, and make it to heaven at last. It is important to teach teenagers because the teenage period is a time of searching for the meaning of everything about life.
A child accepts that he exists because he was taught that he exists. An adult knows that he exists, but a teenager wants to know why he exists. Likewise, a child accepts answers given to him by adults, and an adult experiences answers by himself, but a teenager wants to know the reason for the answers. A teenager will not just accept instructions or information without careful and satisfactory explanations, based on the Bible, science, social, and other areas of learning.
Teenagers as human beings are enthusiastic to learn. They want to know the how, what, why, and when of everything around them. And if we fail to teach them the right things in the right way, they will learn by themselves. And the easiest way teenagers learn on their own if we fail to teach them is to learn in a wrong or negative way. They learn fast from social media, from friends, and the environment around them, especially negative things. Teenagers need to be taught constantly about the things of God, the right approach to life, the mode of dressing, and other morals.
One of the greatest challenges of teenagers now is information on social media. Social media is teaching our children, especially teenagers that they can become whatever gender they want. A boy can become a girl if he wishes, a girl can become a boy if she wishes to, and they can choose to become boys and girls at the same time (bisexual). The wrong doctrine the world is offering our teenagers makes it important for us to teach them the right thing constantly. And we must teach them in a manner they will understand by using scientific, academic, social, and moral, but Bible-related methods.
- The Role of Parents, Church, and Teen Workers in Teaching Teenagers:
Like I said earlier, if we fail to teach our teenagers, they will teach themselves, learning mainly negatively from social media, friends, and their environment. Teenagers who learn by themselves make lots of mistakes, sometimes grievous mistakes that will haunt them for a long time before they learn. This is why we must all come together to teach our teenagers the right thing in the right way.
The teaching of teenagers starts from home. It is the duty of the parents to teach their children, especially teenagers the way of God. It is also their role to send their teenagers to church, to participate in Teen Programs, Teen Bible studies, and other meetings where they will constantly learn about God and life in their (own) language and understanding.
When teenagers are taught the right thing at home by parents and teachers add to it in school, in addition to their major role which is impacting academic knowledge in them, our students as teenagers will be at their best in all ramifications of life, the social vices notwithstanding.
It is the role of the Church to sponsor programs that will build the spiritual, moral, and intellectual lives of our teenagers, knowing that the teenage period is a fragile age when they can be broken if not handled with care. Also, the church must know that no resources invested in these children for their spiritual and otherwise growth is too much, or a waste.
Schools should on various occasions host programs that can build the moral lives of our teenagers, in addition to their academic lives which will equip them to combat the social vices against young people, especially teenagers in secondary or high schools, tertiary institutions, and society at large. These are some of the great roles that schools can play to teach and help our teenagers to become better for themselves, their families, and society at large.
And it is the role of teachers to make themselves accessible, reachable, as well as friendly to the teenagers especially. Every secondary or high school teacher should know that he/she teaches mainly teenagers and as such, needs to develop and/or equip him/herself in all ramifications of disseminating teaching and learning activities to students under his/her subject.
Without proper self-development, a teacher will not be qualified to teach teenagers in an academic setting. Therefore, one of the roles of teachers is to develop themselves and be properly equipped both intellectually and morally, especially in his/her field of study.
Again, secondary or high school teachers handling teenagers must cultivate the spirit of patience, tolerance, love, and forgiveness to be totally ready to put up with and teach the teenagers both academically and morally. This is because teenagers are prone to insulting habits, they are easily offended and easily forget what they were taught, especially academically and morally.
In summary, the Role of Teen Teachers/Workers is:
- To make themselves available for the use of God to teach, build, and disciple the teenagers properly for God and our Society.
- To develop themselves spiritually, intellectually, and morally to be fit to teach teenagers and become examples to them, worth to be emulated.
- To cultivate the Spirit of patience, tolerance, love, and forgiveness to be properly ready to teach teenagers because most teenagers can be insulting and hard nuts to be cracked. But with patience, tolerance, and proper teaching/training with our knowledge, words, and actions though in line with the will and word of God, and enveloped with God’s grace, we build and bring the very best out of them for the betterment of the entire society.
Method of Teaching Teenagers
i. Oral Method: Most teenagers are prone to forget things, especially good instruction and advice given to them. Therefore, it becomes necessary to constantly remind them in words, everything they need to know, do and do not. Though teenagers forget things easily, they are, however, stuck to almost forever any negative, especially immoral (erotic, romantic) stories, actions, or images they have come across or in contact with. With constant words of admonition, warning, direction, and encouragement, we convince and persuade them to give up ill behaviors and imbibe the right attitudes.
Teenagers need to be taught the dangers of exposing their minds and eyes to images and other visual elements that are misleading (such as pornography etc). exposing their ears to misleading and immoral music, and stories and exposing their bodies and health to different kinds of sexual practices outside natural marriage, drugs, and other criminal and immoral actions, capable of destruction. We need to teach them the truth about life and God especially.
Anyone who has been a teenager will agree with me that it is an enthusiastic age. The time you feel you know a lot if not everything, ready and eager to know more, anything, everything, and always ready to experiment. Most people either laugh at their ignorance or actions as they remember their teenagehood stage, others regret and cry over it and wish they knew better or had someone who really told them the truth no matter how hard or hurting it would have been, while others had had both feelings (laugh at and regret/cry) when they remember their actions as teenagers. It is dismaying that we have millions of people who can teach or tell teenagers the right things to do out of experience, yet they keep mute and neglect them, and allow teenagers today to make the same terrible mistakes they made. I believe that when someone has gone through a difficult journey, telling or teaching others about his experience will make the journey easier for others after him. Teaching teenagers even what you feel they should know already will go a long way to save them from immediate and future dangers. You may be surprised that they do not know those things you think they should know or do not know them in the positive way they should be known.
ii. Action Method: The action method here is more of who you really are to teenagers as an adult or a parent who teaches teenagers. Action they say, speaks louder than voice.
What kind of example or influence are you on teenagers? The 21st-century children, especially teenagers, are moved more by what they see us do, our actions, how we handle things, etc. than what they hear us say. In addition to words, one of the vital ways of teaching teenagers is with our actions.
A teacher or parent who does not want his teenager to smoke cigarettes, do drugs, or drink alcohol should not live in or do these things. If you want your teenagers not to live their lives in sexual acts they should not hear or see you cheat on your wife as their father or on your husband as their mother. Do you want your teenagers to dress responsibly and be responsible members of the church and society at large? Don’t just tell them how to, also show them how to, by being those yourself. If you don’t want your teenagers to be bullies, they must not see or hear you bullying their mother, father, or the poor neighbors around you. Just don’t do anything bad you would not want your teenagers to do. Let them see and know that you love their daddy or mummy as a husband or wife but they must not see or hear you have sexual intercourse with your husband or wife, that one is not meant for them to see or hear because the image will sick to and control their minds and actions for a long time even forever.
There is a difference between the fact that your teenagers respect (actually tolerate) you because you are their daddy or mummy and that they respect you because of your character, actions, or who you are. The first factor will have little or no positive effect on them, while the second factor will have a great positive effect on them, and that is how to teach teenagers.
Yes, there are those who would be taught something good yet they are head bent on doing what is wrong or bad, nevertheless, we must do our part and leave the rest to God and their conscience.
iii. Example/Illustration/Story Telling Method: Your teenagers want to know how you lived your life and handled critical issues (such as love, feelings, school life, relationship with parents, friends, and an opposite gender friend,) when you were a teenager.
This is an interesting and captivating method of teaching teenagers. Sometimes the stories told may not be your story or the story about yourself. It can be that of a longtime friend, parents, or even fictional stories to pass a vital message. I remember when I was a teenager this was the major method my lovely mother used to teach me. At times, she used other methods including the beating method, the reason I am responsible today is because of the teaching I received from my mother back then as a teenage boy.
If you had lived a bad life, a wrong immoral, and regrettable lifestyle as a teenager, don’t be ashamed to tell your teenagers your stories. However, the emphasis should not be on the (seemed) pleasures you derive from them, no. Rather, the emphasis should be on your regret about such a lifestyle. Use your regret to expose your teenagers to the danger of living such a lifestyle. Emphasize your regret of the actions and how you became a changed person. Let them know you wouldn’t want them or anyone else, not even the teenagers of your enemies, to make the same mistakes or have the same experience.
If you had a wonderful life as a teenager and were able to live responsibly, tell them your story and emphasize the secret behind the responsibility of your good teenage lifestyle. Encourage them to do likewise.
iv. Discipline Method: There are other methods, perhaps many more methods of teaching teenagers, however, the discipline method is the last method when every other method has failed.
The discipline method involves every process (emotional or physical pain or unrest) to correct a teenager and make him feel bad and remorseful of his bad actions or behaviors so that he would turn back from such negative actions to positive ones.
These processes can be:
i. Putting under police custody for a while.
ii. The denial of some privileges until a lesson is learned.
iii. Beating or flogging with a cane, etc. without injuring, and other forms of corporal punishment that will not inflict injury or organ damage on the teenager.
After any of these disciplines, bringing the teenager close and explaining to him his bad actions, the consequences, the necessity of the punishment he faced, and the lessons behind it, is inevitable. Reassure him of Your Love as his parent, guidance, and/or teacher.
Worthy to note, every discipline should be carried out with love and the mindset to correct and not to wicked, damage, or destroy.
I heard a statement that I loved so much about what a father said to her teenage misbehaving daughter after disciplining her, “I will do everything within my power to protect you, even from yourself because I love you.” This teenager thought about this statement and later changed her ways. Yes, there is a need to protect teenagers even from themselves.
i. Study Method: A teenager teacher must study to be able to answer, at least attempt the correct answers to a million and one questions teenagers will throw at him. You must be current, updated, and relevant with teenagers-related information or happenings and life in general if you must be an impacting teenagers’ teacher either as a parent, guidance, or teacher.
When teaching teenagers you must be convincing, and persuasive, and not commanding, authoritative, and imposing. When you convince teenagers to buy an idea, open their reasoning eyes or minds to see things the way they should be and they willingly accept to see the idea your way or the way it should be and decide to comply, whether you are present or not, they will abide by it, and most times continually. But when you force teenagers to do something, even what is right, and command them to do it, they will/may obey, perhaps because they fear, respect, or value you. But they will not continue doing it, especially in your absence.
To be convincing enough to teenagers, you must teach, explain, and answer their questions scientifically, socially, morally, Biblically, and otherwise. Your teaching should not be theoretical alone, there must be practical applications on how the teaching relates to their real-life experiences and challenges as teenagers (read more in my book, Understanding Teenagers, a Handbook for Parents/Teachers, coming out soon).
Conclusion
Teenage age is a unique age. It is a period of strength, energy, and action. People of this age carry out to the letter with commitment and great energy and zeal whatever thing they have accepted to do. If a teenager has accepted to do wrong, he does it to the core and with commitment, and if a teenager has accepted to do good, he also does it to the core with commitment.
However, it is a fragile stage in life, strength, energy, zeal, or enthusiasm notwithstanding. Teenagers are naive people, easily deceived into doing something wrong even though they believe to be wise in themselves.
Most of them take actions before thinking or considering the outcome or consequences of the actions, in other words, they “Leap before they look.” Without proper guidance, the teenage period is the time one can destroy his future or life even before it begins. Most of them are too confident to a fault. They believe they cannot be trapped, fall into any danger, or be hurt by anyone. Many of them are or want to be as free as the air. They like anything fun in nature, whether it is good or bad, if it sounds or appears fun, they are more than interested in doing or becoming part of it.
The teenage period is the last natural flexible stage of a child. If a teenager is not bent and shaped in the right direction or attitude as a child, the teenage stage is the last natural flexible stage to do so. If a teenager is not also shaped to the right direction or attitude at the teenage stage it becomes very difficult to shape him again to the right direction or attitude.
Some of the reasons why we need to teach and help teenagers are because of the crisis that confronts people at this stage, these include:
i. Emotional Challenges (depression, heartbreak, confusion to decide who to trust and rely on, etc).
ii. Social/Social Media Challenges.
iii. The Challenges Imposed by Science and Technology and their uses.
iv. The Rapid Growth and Increase of Immorality and the Decadent Nature of the Society They Live in Which Have Imposed Great Challenges on them.
To teach teenagers properly, help preserve their future, and win them for Christ, we must first understand them, their makeup or personalities. We must help the poor, lost, and dying people of this age bracket (13-19).
All Rights Reserved
Nwoko Solomon Ikechukwu (Pastor).
Reference
Pastor Nwoko Solomon Ikechukwu: Understanding Teenagers, a Handbook for Parents/Teachers (2014), Lecture Note.
Rev. Eke O. Onwuka: Teens Solution: Closing our Back Doors (2004), General Council Teens Solution Ministries Assemblies of God, Nigeria.
nreadwrite 