Getting Started
Disciple Online facilitators will need to be certified or experienced DISCIPLE Bible Study facilitators in order to lead the course online. Disciple Online has been developed with a goal to stay true to the foundations and structure of DISCIPLE, so training as a facilitator of Disciple is a must.
In the online training How to Become a Disciple Online Facilitator participants will learn how to facilitate DISCIPLE Bible Study in this online environment. This workshop will be offered in a self-paced format through BeADisciple.com.
Requirements: High speed internet access, a Disciple Bible Study student manual, a DBS facilitator’s guide (Teachers Helps), a microphone and earphones or headset, and an adventurous spirit and desire to lead others to study the Bible in a new way!
Structure of the Course
Disciple Online will be structured in a standardized weekly format covering the 34 weeks for DISCIPLE (Becoming Disciples Through Bible Study). Each week, group members will complete the study on their own, as they currently do in DISCIPLE. They will also participate online in exercises, discussion forums, and a one-hour live meeting – time and day each week to be determined by the group and/or facilitator.
Disciple Online materials will be furnished for the facilitator, but facilitators will need their own facilitator and participant manuals. Facilitator will learn how to set up the materials within the online environment tailored to their group needs. This can all be done in advance of the start date.
Once the DISCIPLE group has begun to meet, facilitators will be responsible for supervising content availability, for monitoring and encouraging participation from lagging members in order to foster community development, and for facilitating the one-hour weekly sessions. The facilitator will remain a participant in DISCIPLE as well as a “learner among learners.”
Disciple Online facilitators will be volunteers not paid. Their $30 administrative fee will be waived, of course.
The facilitator may decide his/her group dynamics, with the goal of each group to have 12 participants. Here are some examples:
- all 12 participants from the same church
- two or more churches offering Disciple Online together with participants from each church
- facilitator offers Disciple Online to anyone who wants to participate from anywhere – so group is made up of 12 (initial) strangers
- a group is formed to study scripture in the context of their current life situation (battling cancer, parenting young children, heavy workload, etc.)
Technical support and guidance will be provided by staff of the Institute for Discipleship, BeADisciple.com for facilitators and participants. If this information raises more questions, please email Lisa at beadisciple@sckans.edu, and I will be pleased to address them.