The Principle Approach®
The Principle Approach® is a model of teaching and learning which places the Word of God at the foundation of every subject taught in the classroom, students are than taught to reason from truth or principles and apply those truth’s to the subject being studied or the world around them. The result is a student who has the Word of God written upon their heart and mind; a student who applies God’s Word to all of life rather than living in a world divided by the sacred and the secular.
Discover the difference
While modern education attempts to teach students “what to think”, the Principle Approach® to education teaches the student “how to think” and sets God's Word as the foundation of that thinking.
The primary concern for parents as they consider a school for their children, beyond the basic needs of safety, should be "what will be the outcome?" What ideas, skills, disciplines, and habits have been implanted within our students which prepare them for higher education, the workforce, and ultimately the purposes for which God has designed them?
At the heart of the Principle Approach ® is an acknowledgement of the absolute sovereignty of God and of the dignity and worth of each individual, made in the image and likeness of God. As part of creation, we owe a duty to our creator. Out of this understanding of God, the individual and our duty, two pillars support our model of education.
-
God is a loving creator who acts providentially throughout history to bring about His purposes and will.
-
We as are creatures made in the image of God, although fallen, have the ability to reason from foundational principles revealed in His Word and in the “laws of nature.”
The Principle Approach ® uses a time-tested tool to help us reason from principle to find answers to the questions of life; the method we use is called the 4 R’s:
​
-
Research: search primary sources, and the best secondary sources, to find relevant information concerning the topic researched. The preeminent primary source is God’s Word.
-
Reason: Once we have researched a topic, sought our scripture concerning the topic, defined key vocabulary concerning the subject, read both the best primary and secondary sources concerning the subject, we begin to form principles or key ideas based upon the information researched.
-
Relate: After we have reasoned from our research, and formed an understanding of the subject, defining principle and/or key ideas, we apply that principle or truth to the issues of the day.
-
Record: Once we have reasoned to principles or key ideas, which we believe to be objective truth, we then record them, write them down, in order to more fully develop the subject discussed or considered. The step of recording helps us to more fully develop our thoughts and understanding and moves us towards a “mastery” of the subject rather than just a familiarity with the subject.
As Christian educators, our primary concern is that children gain an understanding of who God is, who we are, and what duty we owe to God and our fellow humans. Education is discipleship! The graph below is a result of research done by the Nehemiah Institute which shows that the vast majority of Christian young people, regardless of whether they attend a public or traditional Christian school, have a secular worldview.
The PEERS test, administered by the Nehemiah Institute, assesses the worldview of Christian students attending Christian schools, public schools, Principle Approach® schools and home schools. The test is a "biblical worldview SAT," testing students’ beliefs in the areas of politics, education, economics, religion and social issues. The test reveals that a large majority of Christian students, whether in a private, public, or home school fail to have a biblical worldview.
Students in Principle Approach® schools are taught the truths of God's Word, how to reason according to that truth and how to apply those truths to all areas of God's creation, including government, history, economics, science, language, and the arts.
The results are students who know God's Word, are able to reason from those biblical principles and to apply them to the issues of our day. Principle Approach® schools disciple students preparing them to be "salt" and "light;" to be "nation changers."
​
Distinctives of the Principle Approach®
-
Its philosophical origins are in the Reformation and the Bible.
-
It teaches students the importance of reasoning, but that we must reason from truth. Man’s reason alone cannot discern what is true, good and right.
-
It reveals the character and nature of man and God, and man’s duty to God.
-
It reveals Biblical principles of self, church and civil government.
-
It helps us understand the sovereignty and providential nature of God.
-
It is a model of teaching and learning which is relevant anywhere or at any time.
America’s Historic Model of Education
The Principle Approach® is modeled after the form of education practiced in America for about 200 years roughly from 1620 to about 1830. Much of the philosophy and methodology, prior to being practiced in America, can be traced back to the Reformation and influences from the Hebrew Republic. This model of education in America created a populace of Biblical thinkers who produced the greatest liberty and prosperity known to man, and a government which has been envied by the world.
Biblical Principles of History and Government
As the originators of the Principle Approach® studied the Christian founding of our nation they began to recognize Biblical principles which were instrumental in the legal and philosophical foundations of America in both the spirit and form of our government.
God’s Principle of Individuality
The Principle of individuality assigns value, dignity and worth to every individual as we are made in the image of God. We are also distinct, unique. We were created for a purpose, God has a unique plan and purpose each of us and perfectly equips us for that purpose.
Individuals can than gain a sense of worth or value not from their external attributes, but rather from being made in the image of God and being designed for a specific purpose.
The Christian Principle of Self-Government
The Christian Principle of Self-Government is based upon the Biblical idea that the first principle of government is self-government; the ability to bring our will and desires under the government of the Holy Spirit. If we can not govern ourselves in a manner consistent with Biblical principles than we are not prepared to govern others.
​
The amount of external liberty an individual or society enjoys will be predicated upon the degree to which they are ruled internally by the Spirit of God.
America’s Heritage of Christian Character
The perfect example of Christian Character is Jesus Christ, He was the “express image” of God Himself. (Heb. 1:3) We can become partakers of that image through the power of the Holy Spirit working within us to change us into His likeness. Thereby empowering us to “walk as child of God” even in the midst of a corrupt and godless generation.
​
That power of God working within us is “causative,” or transformative. It engraves the mark of Christ upon us, and provides us with the ability to be self-governed, both for ourselves as practiced individually and for society as practiced corporately.
​
Our founders understood that for self-government to endure, it would require the people to be governed by the Word of God, by the Holy Spirit.
“Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty.” (2 Corinthians 3:17)
The Christian Form of Government
The answer to the question as to whether we have a Christian form of government, does not depend upon whether our founders were Christians but whether the form of government is based upon Biblical principles of government. Although most history has minimized or deleted much of our Christian history, our largely were Christians or members of a society immersed in a Biblical ethic, a society which largely, but not perfectly, attempted to determine what was right and wrong based upon the Word of God.
​
As in most things, those founders and the pastors of the day, looked to the Word and identified principles which they believed to be Biblical principles upon which to build a Christian form of government. Some of the general principles they identified are the Principle of Representation, Separation of Powers, and a Dual form of Government, all of which served as the foundation for our form of government.
How the Seed of Local Self-Government is Planted
The seed of local self-government is the sowing of seeds or principles internally within the heart of the individual which become the “cause” of the external actions, or governance, of the individual. This principle of “cause to effect” plays out in the lives of individuals, communities and nations. Unfortunately, over the past fifty years or more the public school system has been planting seeds which are contrary to the Word of God, thus contrary to Christian liberty. To reap the benefits of Christian liberty we must first plant those seeds internally, from the Word, which mature and grow into Christian liberty.
The Christian Principle of American Political Union
Most of human history demonstrates political union typically coming about through force, one tribe conquering another, one nation or dictator conquering another and eventually being replaced by another dictator.
​
The American idea of political union was through voluntary union. An internal unity producing external union. The American colonies represented a “unity with diversity.” This is a principle we see throughout scripture; first with the nature of the Trinity, with God equipping His church with a diversity of gifts but with the same Spirit, throughout His creation we see this unity with diversity be demonstrated.