JACKSON, Tenn. — July 30, 2016 — Anna Clifford encouraged graduates to see themselves as teachers at 51社区鈥檚 summer commencement service on July 30. Union graduated 112 students at the event at West Jackson Baptist Church.
Clifford, a former education professor at Union, gave the commencement address. She recently retired from Union after teaching education classes for 25 years. She said every person in every career is a teacher.
鈥淓ach of you have had and will have daily opportunity to share with others within your own personal life and your own professional life,鈥� Clifford said.
She said Jesus provides perfect examples of how to teach in the New Testament. He used object lessons, stories, lectures and many other strategies to help people understand what he was teaching. She encouraged the graduates to look for teachable moments and be ready to teach when the learner is ready to learn.
鈥淭hink about the content that you know, the knowledge that you have learned, the concepts and the skills that you are aware of and you are familiar with and have mastered,鈥� Clifford said. 鈥淭here will be some of those things that you鈥檒l have to teach someone, and you must be ready.鈥�
Clifford said teaching strategies that have been implemented in education did not originate there, but they were laid out by God in the Bible as ways to reach people.
鈥淰isual aids, telling stories, using contrast, using repetition, using questions, the list goes on,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e just touched on a few, but they worked for the master teacher, and they鈥檒l work for you.鈥�