By Rodney L. Pry

It’s only spring, almost half a year away from the start of the new Sunday school year in September, but already you are seeing signs that you’ll need several new teachers this fall. What do you do? If you’re like many people, you’ll probably wait until you have to do something about it in August. But, if you are a wise Sunday school leader, you’ll start thinking and working on the problem NOW!

In fact, whether you think you are going to need new teachers next year or not, it’s a good idea to be looking ahead, to find and train prospective teachers and helpers to serve in the Sunday school.

Here are some suggestions on how you might proceed:

1. Assess Your Situation and Make Plans. Before you start running around asking everyone you see if they would be willing to serve as a Sunday school teacher next fall, stop and take a good look at where you are. First, make a list of all classes in your Sunday school along with the current teachers and helpers for each. Next think about what your needs will be next year. Are you already aware of any vacancies that will exist next year? Are there other circumstances that will require additional teachers. For example, do you see that you are going to be having a very large class of kindergarten-age kids next year? That might mean having two kindergarten classes instead of one. Creating an additional class will also create the need for additional teachers. Anticipating your needs now can help avoid last minute surprises and hasty decisions.

It’s also a good idea to talk to all of your teachers now, to find out if they wish to continue. To this, some people might say, "Oh no, I’m not going to ask my teachers if they want to continue teaching. That’ll just give them an opportunity to say they want out!" Well, maybe. But isn’t it important to find out if a teacher is unhappy or feels that they need help rather than just letting their unhappiness grow until they quit and will never consider teaching again? By helping to address the concerns and problems that your teachers have now, you can help solve the problems and help them regain their enthusiasm for their task.

Another question that many present and prospective teachers will ask about relates to their term of service. If your Sunday school does not have a policy about the term of service for teachers, it’s a good idea to address the issue now, before you begin trying to recruit new teachers. Feeling that they are trapped in a teaching job for life is one of the main reasons that teachers "want out." It is important for us to realize that Sunday school teachers need to take time off to rest and to recharge their spiritual batteries. Having a policy that teachers serve only 6 months or a year, and for no more that two or three years at a time, will make it much easier to keep current teachers enthusiastic and to recruit new teachers.

2. Begin A Recruiting Campaign. Once you have assessed your situation and projected your needs, it’s time to start looking for prospective teachers. One way to start is to use your church bulletin or newsletter to let it be known that you are "looking for a few good men and women to help teach God’s Word through the Sunday school." Let your members know that they will not be saddled with a job for life. Let them know of training and other help available, too.

Another good idea is to have some of your Sunday school teachers give a short talk before one of your worship services, to tell about the joys of teaching and to let the need for more teachers be known. Personalized letters to specific people that you see as possible teachers can also be a good idea. But remember, if you want to get the teachers that you need, you will have to contact each prospective teacher personally to ask them to help. Announcements and letters will get very few people to volunteer; you must ask!

The question that many will ask at this point is, "How do I know who those potential teachers are?" There are a number of ways that you can use to come up with a list of potential teachers. Your pastor can probably give you some good ideas. Current teachers can tell you about their friends and other people that they know who are possibilities. Many churches conduct annual "time and talent surveys" or "stewardship of time surveys" that can give you many ideas. One other note about prospects: Don’t overlook the older high school and college students. Many of these older youth would do great as teachers or teacher’s helpers and it keeps them involved at a time when many kids their age drop out of Sunday school.

3. Provide Teacher Training Opportunities and Continuing Support. Once you have a list of persons who have said "yes," what do you do next? The one thing you don’t want to do is just hand the new teacher a lesson book and say, "go to it." For any Sunday school teacher to be effective, they must have the confidence that they are prepared to teach. New teachers should be required to go through a planned program of teacher training. Teacher training opportunities should also be offered to your current teachers on a regular basis. Teacher training workshops, combined with regular teachers’ meetings, will help make sure that all teachers stay up to date with new teaching methods and ideas that can make your Sunday school more effective in its work of Christian education. And remember, knowing that you will be offering a workshop on basic teacher training will help overcome some of the fears and resistance of prospective teachers, too. One other important note: Don’t forget to support each of your teachers with continued prayer. Establish a program of prayer partners for each of your teachers and urge all of your members to pray for your Sunday school teachers on a regular basis.

4. Allow New Teachers To Ease Their Way Into Teaching. By starting to look for new teachers early, you have time for effective planning, time to run a well-coordinated recruitment campaign and time to offer teacher training to your new teachers. Something else it will allow you to do is to let the new teachers ease their way into the teaching ministry of your church. By allowing your new teachers to sit in with current classes and teachers or by allowing them to teach a Sunday or two during the summer months, you let the new teacher try out their skills before putting them in a permanent position. This helps the new teacher develop or improve their skills. It also allows them to see where they may need some help. Another way you can get your new teachers involved is through your V.B.S. program. Vacation Bible School can be an excellent training ground and learning opportunity for new teachers and workers.

Sunday school in an important part of the church and its Christian education ministry. The quality of our Sunday school teachers and their abilities to instruct and inspire their class members will, to a large degree, determine our Sunday school’s success. If we are to see our Sunday school grow, both spiritually and in numbers, we must be sure that we always have an ample supply of well-trained teachers and workers who are committed to Christ, His Word and to sharing His Word and His love with others through the Sunday school. Now is the time to begin making those plans for next year!

(This article appeared in the "Spring, 1992" issue of "The Herald.")