How does your understanding of mankind’s fallen nature impact your work in the classroom?

It helps me to remember that they’re not perfect. I can’t expect any one of them to have perfect behavior.

I think it allows me to give the students grace when they need it. Since the Bible teaches that all have sinned, yet God still give us grace, I need to be willing to extend that grace myself.

It is necessary to know mankind’s fallen nature to explain to students what our nature is and what we need to do to stay close to God and how to get through life.

It sets my expectations for student behavior and also helps me maintain a concept of students potential: they are not what their sin natures incline them to be.

I try to be as patient with students as God is with me. I feel I fall woefully short much of the time. I also prayerfully consider my own selfish motives in the ways I teach. I realize I’m too often a stumbling, yet forgiven Pharisee.

My students are generally good Christian kids, but I have to keep in mind that they are as fallen as I am. I trust them, but try not to give completely free rein to do as they choose.

No one is perfect, since we are all human with sinful nature. Not only students who can make mistakes, us teachers can make mistakes too. What’s important is how we are repenting for all of the bad choices we made and pursuing to keep God’s commandments at all times.

It helps my patience, as everyone struggles with sin. We need to encourage the students to pursue God.

Because I believe that man’s tendency is to lean toward the wrong decision, I am constantly on guard looking for a way to encourage right choices.

Because all of us are from a fallen world, we have a free will to make choices. There will be consequences for bad behavior, but we learn from all of them.

Knowing that mankind is fallen gives a teacher fresh perspective on what they are trying to accomplish. We naturally are selfish and promote our own interests. When students (or even teachers) do this, we should not be surprised. However, this is an opportunity for us to show a better way. Sometimes that will involve discipline or rebuke, but it must always be done in love and with the desire to restore that person.

I say that I am in touch with my desperation and utter need of Jesus. Because of this grace that I require, I’m able to extend that to students.

Is has impact my classroom in the way that I have to discipline my students for their behavior. I tried to nurture students and remind them that following the fruit of the Spirit will make us better students and educators.

It helps me to be more understanding.

Mankind’s fallen nature impacts my work in the classroom by allowing me to understand that myself and my students will fall into sin. Just like Jesus, we must be patient and grasp the fruit of the Spirit. Sharing the gospel and modeling Jesus’s likeness will help my students to confess their sins to God and come back to Christ through his forgiveness.

I recognize that both students and teachers are fallen. This gives me an opportunity to present the gospel on a regular basis.

My understanding of mankind’s fallen nature impacts my work in the classroom by reminding me that everything a student does is not taught. We all sin and we all show attributes of being in this fallen world. Man has the propensity to sin. Correction is needed.

It reminds me that my students will sin and make mistakes and that I will too. Just as God is patient and kind with me when I mess up, I should demonstrate the same attitudes and behaviors towards my students when they mess up too. God also lovingly chastens me when I need to get back on track, and so sometimes loving, biblical classroom discipline is needed to help correct and erring student.

Understanding that mankind lives in a fallen nature and knowing that we learn through our mistakes which helps us to get stronger. God allows us to navigate through life and learn from our mistakes and experiences by giving us choices. We learn to hear His voice as we navigate through our good and bad choices.

First of all, this puts in perspective that my students are going to make mistakes, (as will I). It’s a reminder to be tender with them, and to guide them in the right direction…. pointing them to a given set of rules. It provides an opportunity to discuss free will and who we want to be in Christ…

The impact of my understanding of mankind’s fallen nature impacts my work in the classroom in a couple of ways. As a teacher I am humbled and recognize that I am fallen just like my students. This leads me to seek forgiveness when applicable and to admit my wrongs. When it comes to my students it helps frame my discipline policy and develop my end goal of discipline, which is restoring the student back to the classroom and with their classmates.

Well, the students and I are all in the same position. We are all fallen and in need of God’s grace. When I student is misbehaving, I question what is the reason for that behavior. What are they missing? What do they need? How can I bring the gap in the relationship?

It reminds us to have grace and compassion with our students. No one is perfect and there will be mistakes but if we are merciful with our responses the students can learn from those mistakes without ruining their lives.

Because of the Biblical truth of sin, each classroom must have rules and guidelines that speak of redemption.

I know that each of my students have been born with a sin nature. I expect them to sin and make mistakes. My job is to redirect and discipline them in love with the goal of restoration.

My biblical understanding of mankind–both in being created in God’s image and in the fall resulting in a sin nature–helps me to look at each child as valuable and capable of sinful actions. Knowing this gives me a passion to share with my students who they are and whose they are. It really motivates me to share the gospel with them. Of course I want them to behave in ways that promote godly living. But I also recognize that many of them are not yet believers. I cannot expect the Spirit’s Fruit in their lives when they are not fill with the Spirit. So I guess one major area that this impacts my classroom is to share who Christ is and what he has done for them in hopes that they will come into relationship with God.

Understanding man’s fallen nature, myself being included, helps me offer grace to students. It helps me understand why students sin, and how I can lovingly correct and help them turn back to God. We look at the story of the Fall of man together and learn from it that we need to obey God because he can never overlook our sin. I have a high expectation of obedience in my class, but I also have a high expectation of forgiveness. When we sin against each other, asking for forgiveness needs to accompany the apology so we can come back into right relationship with each other. It is the Lord’s kindness that leads us to repentance. I desire to help students see that and be led to repentance and experience restoration so they will learn we can come to God over and over and over and be forgiven.

My students are not robots, and I would never want them to be that way. I celebrate their differences and the way that they challenge me. Also, we need to each push each other to be more Christ-like. Therefore, let God be the judge. Let me help pick up students after they sin and get them headed in the right direction.

I have to understand that we are all sinners and that we all fall short of the glory of God. The wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus. I am also reminded of, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” I need the fruits of the Spirit to help me guide the students in my room to a relationship with God.

Understanding mankind’s fallen nature allows me to have perspective of why the students sin and gives me the opportunity to point to Christ in every situation.

My understanding of mankind’s fallen nature will help me teach my students the importance of obedience and following God’s plans. It will help me to teach them of what caused man’s fall and how to prevent it when it may happen to them.

My understanding the we are all fallen and need salvation impacts my classroom. I know that we are all sinners and expect there to be issues. I know I am not perfect and don’t expect my students to be either. I attempt to teach my students better ways to handle negative reactions to things.

I understand that the students I teach are made in the image of God, but also suffer the consequences of man’s fall and are therefore sinful. I must not expect my students to have perfect actions and reactions all the time because they are imperfect beings. However, instead of just making rules and punishing them when they break the rules, I focus on trying to get them to recognize the sin in their life and repent of it. We discuss how repentance is both asking for forgiveness and not engaging in that sin anymore. It’s making a conscious effort to remove that sin from our life. I also recognize that I myself am part of man’s fallen nature and I don’t always have the appropriate actions and reactions. When I do make a mistake or respond to a situation in a way that I could have done better I will admit that to the class, ask their forgiveness, and then ask them if I can redo the action. This teaches them how to do this with each other and with me as well.

I don’t expect students to automatically or intuitively do the right thing. I understand that students need to be taught and given some chance to implement into their psyche. I always want to give students the benefit of the doubt. I may let some things go too long with the best intention of giving them some space to figure it out. I know I need to be more clear on my classroom rules. I try to be gracious. I know that usually bad behavior that is the habit will resurface. I don’t mind giving a second or third chance, because I know character will show itself. In that process some student may be a great success story.

My work in the classroom involves a set of classroom rules and consequences for not following those rules. Our school has a student life team to call if a student is disrupting the learning environment and needs to be removed for a few minutes or for the day. They are there to counsel with the children and communicate with the families. We have restorative discipline procedures and circle time in our classrooms to deal with sinful choices, the impact those actions or words have on others and ourselves, and how to recognize the wrong that was done, how to make an apology, how to grant forgiveness , and how to bring those that choose to sin back into the fold of the group. The fallen nature of man has made work in the classroom much harder than if we did not live in a fallen world.