Catechetical Training

Training for our Religious Education Teachers for children and adults

Training for our Catechists is offered by the Office of Faith Formation and can now be accomplished online as well as in person. These trainings are helpful whether one is teaching children, teens or adults. They are:

The Heart of the Catechist, a two and a half hour interactive session which leads catechists to deepen their understanding of their call to this ministry

Echoes of Faith 3.0, a national online program which will assist catechists in their theological spiritual and practical formation

Echoes of Faith Plus, the same curriculum as above, offered in-person.

            These courses are offered for free. They have been very well received in various parishes.

 

More detail on this training:

What is Echoes of Faith? Echoes of Faith is a nationally published catechist training program developed by the National Conference for Catechetical Leadership and RCL Benziger Publishers.  Our diocese has an account set up in with RCL Benziger so as to provide catechists free access to all the learning modules within the Echoes of Faith program.

How are the online courses structured? Echoes of Faith is a self-directed, self-paced online program that consists of a variety of topic based modules.  Each module has four segments which include reflective questions, short teaching videos and professionally written articles.  Each module takes approximately 3-5 hours to complete at your own pace.  The participant does not need to complete a full module in one sitting.

How many modules do I need to complete? Echoes of Faith has a total of 15 modules, however, the Diocese of Syracuse has selected 7 of these modules for Foundational Certification. The remaining modules may be applied toward Continuing Certification.

How much time do I have to complete the 7 modules? Your activation code is good for one year as soon as you log on for the first time.  If you need more time, we will try to accommodate you.

What are the expectations for completion of each module? Each participant is asked to do their best at answering the questions in complete sentences, complete thoughts and supportive details or examples as determined by the questions posed in the modules.  Your mentor will oversee your work and provide feedback periodically.  You will be provided a checklist with your registration information packet that will guide you through each module and the specific requirements you will need to complete for each module.  You will also be asked to notify your mentor before proceeding to your next module.

How do I receive Foundational Catechist Certification? You and your mentor will be engaged in dialogue throughout  your journey  in completing  the modules. We also ask that as you go along on your journey through “Echoes of Faith”, we  hope that you will engage periodically with your catechetical leader to let them know what you are learning and how you might be applying what you are learning to your ministry. You also will need to make sure that you have completed the in-person workshop titled, “Heart of the Catechist“.  You can find workshop sessions listed on this page and on the home page of this website.

How do I get started? Return to the top of the page and click the green registration button.  Complete the short online registration form.  Once you submit the form, you will receive an email confirmation of your registration as well as other further information regarding when you will receive your information packet and activation codes.

http://faithformationevents.weebly.com/foundational-certification.html