Comments on: junior high pastors summit notes, part 2

By: Teens or Students? « Reaching New Heights

Teens or Students? « Reaching New Heights — Thu, 15 May 2008 15:06:30 +0000

[...] May 15, 2008 by Cory Marko recently shared some notes from a summit for junior high youth pastors led by sociologist Christian Smith. I found the following quote interesting. • If you could change one thing about youth ministry, what would it be? CS: If I could change one thing about youth ministers is I would have YM stop calling teens “students”, because that relates teens to what they know about school. In Youth Group they should be seen as whole people who have a life outside of academic success. To call them students narrows them down to their scholastic identity. Church should be an institution that sees them as all that they are. There are a lot of kids that have dropped out of school and therefore lost there identity in Church as well! Our Public language should be Teens or Youth. If someone’s job is to legitimately work with youth in school then they are student ministers, outside of that, why would they be titled that? I don’t care what they want to be called, they shouldn’t be called students, it is collaborating with the motto of don’t fail, and they don’t need that from the church. [...]

By: curtis

curtis — Thu, 08 May 2008 12:11:09 +0000

What do you call them?

I usually say “you guys.” It seems to work!

By: marko

marko — Wed, 07 May 2008 17:31:10 +0000

Ask them! I would suggest teenager. “Teen” is good for young teens, but not high schoolers. “Youth” is fine when talking about them in 3rd person, but awkward when addressing them as a group. Older teenagers (17 – 20) seem to prefer young adult.

By: James

James — Wed, 07 May 2008 17:26:20 +0000

but we seem to have a whole bunch of “what not to call them” and no solutions…

By: marko

marko — Wed, 07 May 2008 14:35:39 +0000

mark, i really don’t like calling them “young men and women” or “young people” – godly or not. it’s really condescending. i dare you to find a teenager who likes to be called a “young person”.

By: Mark

Mark — Wed, 07 May 2008 14:15:19 +0000

Don’t call them kids or children either. How about calling them godly young men and women. It speaks of who they are and who they are becoming. It reminds your audience who you are helping them become.

By: curtis

curtis — Wed, 07 May 2008 10:45:55 +0000

Stop calling teens “students,”

Finally, I hear it from someone else. I was beginning to think I was way out there. I am a teacher and serve in a church. I’ve always been concerned about calling ministry to youth a “student” ministry because it focuses on what they do and not who they are.

Thanks for posting the notes!