The latest national test scores for reading proficiency are out and the news is bad. Only about a third of teens leaving our educational system are considered proficient readers. This means that while the other two thirds may be able to read simple texts, they don’t have the skills to really understand what they are reading in any meaningful way.
This is especially problematic for ministries. The Bible is a difficult book to read because it is translated from another language and at times has difficult abstract language and imagery. It requires special reading comprehension skills that are ignored in schools that are struggling for their students to achieve basic reading proficiency.
In addition, Bible translations are scored at a reading level high above that of the average American. This makes the Bible a “frustration text”. Any text two or more grade levels above the reading proficiency of the reader frustrates them so badly, they learn to hate reading it. Not what we want people to feel about reading the Bible.
So what can ministries do? There are several adjustments you can make to help struggling readers embrace independent Bible study (which should be a top goal of any ministry). The societal problem also opens new ministry opportunities to serve others and share your faith in the process. Here are some ideas to get you started.
- Move towards the NIrV version of the Bible. Is it my personal favorite? No, the ASV is probably more accurate, but written on a third grade reading level, the NIrV is the only version currently available that can be read by readers who have basic literacy skills. (Note: This is not the NIV which is written at a much higher reading level.)
- When reading from the Bible in class situations, stop periodically and explain difficult words, expressions or cultural terms. Be very careful when doing so not to act condescending, but just give this information as casual asides. They may even give new information to people who read well. It’s amazing how many common terms used in Christianity most Christians couldn’t define in their own words.
- Don’t ask people to read anything aloud unless they volunteer. I have known several people who stopped attending Bible classes because they were embarrassed when asked to read a passage for the class.
- Minimize Bible class activities that require reading and/or writing. Remember that if you give something with written instructions, your students may not even understand what they are supposed to do. Worksheets aren’t great for engaging students any way, so substitute with meaningful, engaging, hands-on learning activities.
- Be aware that the questions you ask may require some students to re-read the text to answer them. That’s okay, just make sure you only call on people who volunteer to answer.
- Faith based tutoring is a great way to serve others and share your faith – if it is done well. We have a free guide on our website (https://teachonereachone.org) to help you plan a quality faith based tutoring program. We also have beginning and advanced literacy activity ideas with meaningful ties to specific Bible stories and a scope and sequence to quickly find activities for specific skill sets. For adults, you may want to consider using a curriculum that normally is used to teach people English as a second language using the Bible. I personally like the materials provided by WEI. They cover a lot of the basics of reading and use scripture for a lot of their practice materials. https://www.worldenglishinstitute.org/
- Don’t forget that math proficiency scores are even lower. This makes it difficult for people to budget and figure out how much money they can donate to God. Consider faith based tutoring for math (we have lots of activity ideas for math as well) or offering godly financial planning classes that teach basics like budgeting and avoiding or getting out of debt.
Societal problems can be overwhelming – especially when they have a direct impact on our ministries. They can also be a great opportunity to help us refocus on the basics – like encouraging independent Bible study – and provide new opportunities for serving others and sharing our faith to people we might not normally encounter. Make sure your ministry is in forefront of dealing with this growing issue.
