Teaching tools

Teaching tools are, broadly, any thing which helps in the teaching work. This could include planning, strategy, written, visual and electronic items.

Overall assessment

A wide range of teaching methods, aids, equipment and literature has been used to further teaching and proclamation of the Faith. Many people have experience of using one or two of these, but few people genuinely employ all the possible tools.

Planning

Planning itself is a teaching tool. Increasingly, Bahá'ís are learning how to plan properly, either by themselves with the aid of prayer and advice, or through consultation with others. A proper plan should lay out goals, possible difficulties, timescales, "Performance Indicators" (methods of judging success), needs, and so on. It is also a good idea for the plan to be revisited from time to time, whether this is a community enterprise or a believer's personal plan. Perusal of the original plan may bring up lines of action which had been forgotten or postponed; or there may be additional people to be considered, and fresh ideas to add in. If this is a community effort, it may be a good idea to circulate any updated version of the plan to those involved, as a reminder. Essentially, then, planning should be seen as a process rather than as just a preliminary stage.

Literature

There are several sub-categories of literature which could be categorised as teaching tools:

Leaflets

There have been a great number of leaflets written for teaching and deepening purposes. These range from simple general introductory leaflets to more complex ones concentrating on one aspect of the Faith. A leaflet will probably have more impact if it is given to someone in a personal context, with some human interchange, and not thrust upon people in the street. Leaflets are also frequently used for members of the public to self-select, when appended to a display. A well-tried strategy is to have a number of leaflets on different subjects (not restricted to the particular interests of the Bahá'í teachers involved!). Members of the public, looking at the range of subjects on which the Faith clearly has something to offer, will most frequently then take a general introductory leaflet, the others, to some extent, having served as bait.

A longer article exists at Use of Leaflets

Introductory books

A number of books have been written with the express purpose of telling the reader about the Bahá'í Faith, including Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era, All Things Made New, and God Speaks Again. It is useful to have read these books, or at least to have dipped into them, so as to get the flavour of the book. Some books expect the reader to have a more fluent understanding of English than others, and use far more polysyllabic words, and utilise poetic imagery. Others use a simpler level of language. Some books assume that the reader is from a Christian background, (for example, Thief in the Night,) while others make no assumption as to a reader's present belief system.

Workbooks

Study guides and workbooks such as those produced by the Ruhi Institute in Colombia, are a form of teaching tool. In the case of the Ruhi workbooks, a group of people, termed "collaborators", together study the text of the workbook. After discussion and spiritual exploration of the text, the collaborators write "answers" into the books. Done properly, this results in a profound method of learning. If learning is taking place, then so is teaching.

Books on Specific Subjects

A wide range of books exist which address specific issues, such as books on the economic question; on Bahá'í approaches to philosophy; on scientific subjects; on social and economic development, and so on. An active teacher of the Faith may well be aware of a few of these books, and may even keep copies of the cheaper and more accessible ones, to give/lend to enquirers who have an interest in such topics. Of course, a large number of Bahá'í books on specific aspects of the faith, the biographies of well-known Bahá'ís, and so on, are largely of more interest to the declared Bahá'í. Nonetheless, knowledge of the general subject matter of the books that do exist is itself a teaching tool.

Exhibitions

As most people in the world can read (provided it is the correct language in front of them!), exhibition material constitutes another teaching tool. Keen Bahá'ís sometimes gather any posters or visual items they have, and mount them in a place where they will be seen, and that surely constitutes a display of sorts. A more sophisticated exhibition may take more planning, and may involve more people in putting it together. Ideally, free-standing exhibition boards should be acquired, and the materials mounted in a logical order. Appropriate headings, and arresting, informative photographs/diagrams are useful. Exhibitions may be "manned", that is, have Bahá'ís looking after them, and available to answer questions, or may be left unmanned, probably featuring free literature to take away. It is probably wise to include contact information somewhere on site.

It can be a mistake to try and cram too much detail, and too many long quotes, into one exhibition, for several reasons. Members of the public are more likely to respond to something simple and arresting, and are likely to suffer from mental indigestion at too much text. The Bahá'í know that every word of the Writings is precious and pregnant with meaning, and wants to include everything! The enquirer does not even yet know that any of this is worth reading, so they need spoonfuls of information. A really well-designed exhibition may then have more detail to read on one board, or maybe on the back, for the occasional seeker whose interest has been captured.

See also the article Use of exhibitions

Flip Charts and "Teaching books"

Over the years a number of flip charts or demonstration teaching books have been developed. Crucially, they depend upon a believer to talk the enquirer through the work. Several were produced when Ruhi Book 6 was widely distributed. This book contains a sample of a possible explanation of the Bahá'í Teachings, often referred to as "Anna's Presentation". Seeing the wisdom of the approach used in this presentation, Bahá'ís in several countries produced flip charts or booklets following that pattern of presenting the Faith. When the Universal House of Justice later suggested that presenting the Faith should not be allowed to become "too formulaic", many believers took that as a criticism of the flip chart method, and the tendency to use them abated somewhat. There also exists a large format booklet with a red or orange cover, which takes an enquirer through some of the most important aspects that they would need to learn. (Later editions of this booklet include further information towards the back of the book.)

Firesides

The "fireside" is, and has been for many years, one of the most useful teaching tools. There are, of course, no hard-and-fast rules over exactly what constitutes a fireside. Purposeful presentation of, and discussion on, the teachings can take place in many different settings. But the classic idea is that a Bahá'í, or Bahá'í family, invites one or more people to his/her/their home, with the express purpose of explaining the Faith. One Bahá'í, therefore, inviting one person to their home so that they can explain the Faith to them, is therefore a fireside. So is a weekly, programmed event attended by dozens of people on a regular basis. It is the purpose which makes it a fireside. Equally, if the Bahá'í does not have a home, and so the chat takes place in a park or at a coffee house, etc., it can be termed a fireside. The only fire necessary is that in the heart of the teacher!

See also the article Fireside

Supplementary materials

A number of other items are, or have been, used to support teaching and proclamation. These would include "principles cards", similar in size to a business card; photographs of Abdu'l-Bahá or of Holy Places; banners; posters; balloons; stickers; car stickers, and so on. Many of these are currently available from certain suppliers. Special Ideas in the United States of America usually carries a wide range of supplementary materials.

Music

Whether music could be considered as a tool for teaching will depend primarily on the piece of music itself, but its specific use may render it as a teaching tool. For example, any song whose words specifically explain any of the history or teachings of the Faith can be regarded as a potential teaching tool. However, any item of music added into a teaching video, or used as part of a teaching evening becomes de facto a teaching tool. In a public event of any sort, or in the confines of a private home, appropriate music can be used to convey ideas or to convey the Bahá'í spirit. In contexts such as these, music is being used as a teaching tool.

Videos

An increasing number of videos have been produced explaining the Bahá'í Faith. In 2017, the World Centre commissioned a video entitled Light to the World for use during the Bicentenary of the Birth of Bahá’u’lláh.

Slide shows and Power Point presentations

For a number of years, some Bahá'ís have produced slide shows, either general and introductory in nature, or specific in content. A general slide show, either with a narrator or with an accompanying soundtrack, sets out to present the Faith to beginners. A specific slide show might tell the story of someone's life, or explain about Houses of Worship, or present the history of the Faith. There is a tendency now for these types of presentation to use "PowerPoint" technology, and possibly projected from a "laptop" computer onto a wall or a screen.