The making of TLS
Timeline
May 1986
September 1986
September 1987
September 1988
September 1990
May 1992
September 1992
September 1995
September 1996
March 1997
Summer 1998
March 1999
June 2001
September 2001
[June 2004
Pilot group meets
TLS launched at St Colm’s, Edinburgh
Regionalised foundation course centres (eventually 5)
First “follow-on” course (eventually 7)
Under ecumenical banner – SAACE then SCOC
Approved for Reader training
Two Piskie dioceses adopt for NSMs
TLS only route for Reader training
Prison groups begin
Adopted by URC and established in England
10-years anniversary at Greyfriars Kirk
Associate College of Napier University
First experiments with computer-assisted learning
New head of SCOC
TLS ends in Scotland - copyright sold by SCOC to URC
TLS continues as a URC programme
SCOC closes]
“In the minds of those of us launching the course
.....TLS was about the future of the Church. We believed
that tomorrow’s church would be far more a lay church,
breaking away from its over-dependence on the ordained
ministry. It would be a church which couldn’t afford to
waste the gifts of its members, but had to develop them
for ministry amongst Christians and within the world. It
would be a church where theology had to be set free
from the specialists to become the work of the people.”
From address to 10th anniversary service
Three things that shaped the design of
TLS
Theological Education by
Extension
An idea brought by the
General Secretary of the CofS
Board of Education
Context-based Education
An approach promoted by WCC
and developed by the Baptist
theological college in Manchester
Research into Adult Learning
Needs
Nine months of research by
CofS Research Officer
Theological Education by Extension
Key influence: Ross Kinsler
• The educational resource goes to the people,
not the people to the educational resource
• Designed to be flexible – home study,
negotiated timetable, options for attendance
• Uses stepped approach – basic materials
designed to be simple, but capable of
enrichment
Context-based education
Key influence: Tamil Nadu/WCC PTE
• Everyone has an “agreed area of service” to
which the course relates
• Not applied theology but dialogical theology –
context and tradition in conversation
• Thematic, not discipline-based (though the
Bible given special place)
• Learning by doing
Research into adult learning needs
• Focus groups (about 20 strong) in forty parishes of six main
types
• Key question – what have you found it difficult to cope with
as a Christian?
• Key findings:
– Personal and relational issues came out top (death, dying and
bereavement; parenting; marriage and divorce)
– The biggest faith issue was the problem of suffering and God’s
failure to prevent disaster
– “Doctrine” was seen as irrelevant – people wanted everyday
issues explored
– The Bible was hugely respected but seldom read
– Evangelism and education were regarded as very important but
no one was keen to do them themselves
– Group activity only broadly welcome when it had a task to fulfil
How given expression in TLS
• Not a scaled down ministry course, but one
focused on lay concerns.
• Not a set of answers but a range of options.
• Support groups created parallel learning in a taskcentred way, so extended TLS into the local
congregation.
• District group time designed to give one third of
the 2.5 hours to issues from people’s local
contexts.
• Bible explored in its own right but related to the
broad theme (e.g Job with module on suffering).
What was I most proud of?
•
•
•
•
Students from the housing schemes
Empowering of women
Engagement with prisons
Work with local support groups (which
became the main recruiting ground!)
• Bursting out from Scotland – first Dublin, then
Geneva, then England
• The excitement of tutors
What worried me most?
• The impact of University validation – on
curriculum, reputation and the norm
• The impact of becoming the only route for
Reader training
[though note that these two changes evened
the gender balance]
• Sustainability – in 1986 we had 31 students, in
1996 there were 308, in 1986 we organised 4
residential weekends a year, in 1996 it was 44
How would I envy you?
• Educational technology offers you facilities we
didn’t have:
– The use of a VLA for delivering materials and
creating forums
– The use of on-line journals and libraries for those
who want to go further
– Skype as a tutorial medium for isolated students
• You have the potential for integration with the
resource centres for learning