The Negro's church,.

The Program of the Church

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that the teacher meet them, the church does not generally
hold its workers engaged in organized teaching activities to
any prescribed standard. Usually likeableness, "being a good
Christian," and availability, are the factors. The very limited
training of the great majority of those available for the work
makes the problem of selecting workers most difficult. There
appears to be a consensus of opinion that no applicant for
work, regardless of training, should be denied the opportunity.
The responsibility for selecting the teachers rests with the
pastor in 17.4 per cent. of the churches studied; in 13.8 per
cent. of them with the Sunday church school superintendent;
in 17.6 per cent. with both pastor and superintendent; and
in 51.2 per cent. the teachers are selected by the teachers, the
school, or the church's official board. The responsibility placed
upon the teachers of the school suggests that the methods of
selection are inadequate.
Supervision of Teaching-The responsibility for supervising the instruction and work of the Sunday church school is
also shifted about considerably. Supervision, as the term
seems to be defined by use in the churches, includes checking
on the presence or absence of workers, and supplying substitutes for absentees and visiting classes; but does not include
other more technical work of the supervisor, such as demonstration-teaching and the training of teachers.
The 608 churches demonstrate that no accepted methods
are in use. In a fourth of them the pastor is the supervisor;
in nearly a third, the supervision is the superintendent's
responsibility; in a fifth of them, it is that of both pastor and
superintendent; in 1 per cent., the supervision is by directors
of religious education or public-school teachers; and in 25.8
per cent. of the churches, there are no supervisory officials.
Workers' Conferences-The custom of holding workers'
conferences or teachers' meetings is continued by a number
of these Sunday church schools. The meetings are used for
instructing teachers in the lessons of the Sunday session; for