of the GFS was to determine the degree to which the fourth goal of this project was achieved.20 Questions one through seven gathered basic data and Bible reading habits of participants. I designed questions eight through twenty-two to focus on intertextuality in the Gospels. Questions twenty-three through thirty-four focused on
metanarrative/worldview. Within each section, I designed questions to assess the participant’s understanding and practice. The ideological questions assessed the participant’s beliefs about how the Gospels use the Old Testament and their
understanding of metanarrative. The questions that focused on practice assessed one’s Bible reading/study habits (see the footnote for a breakdown of the individual
questions).21 By structuring the survey in this way, a statistically significant difference between the pre and post-surveys would suggest that the final goal of this project was achieved.
Stage 1
Twenty small group facilitators attended the training on January 11, 2020 (9:00AM to 12:00PM) representing thirteen of Calvary Church’s small groups
(approximately 128 total participants if all small group members are included). The true sample population for this project was fifty-six participants. This number was determined by the number of corresponding pre and post-surveys received. Ten small groups were from the Roseville campus and three small groups were from the White Bear Township campus. There was a wide demographic range among those who participated. Four groups were senior adult groups, four groups were intergenerational groups, four groups were young married groups and one group was a mix of young singles and married couples.
As small group facilitators arrived at the training, they received a folder containing the pre and post-surveys for every member of their group. Also included in this folder were two additional folders that were marked pre-survey and post-survey.
Facilitators were to collect the pre-surveys and post-surveys and place them in the corresponding folders so that the pre and post-surveys would not be mixed. After
beginning the training with prayer, I administered the GFS to the small group facilitators in attendance. This approach differs from what I discussed in my goals. I decided to administer the survey to the facilitators at the training for three reasons. First, I could explain the directions and ensure facilitators correctly explain the process to their groups.
Second, I received a better completion rate than if I were to ask facilitators to take the survey prior to the training. Finally, this approach allowed for easier distribution of the surveys to all of the group members. I asked two facilitators to abstain from completing the survey (one facilitator serves on staff at Calvary Church and was involved in editing the small group curriculum, the other facilitator was a member of the expert panel).
Because of their involvement in the development of the survey, I did not want to impact the results due to their connection with the project’s development. After administering
the survey, I outlined the directions for how the facilitators were to administer the surveys to their small groups. The directions were as follows: every member was to complete a survey prior to going through the curriculum, participants were to create a numeric code so that all surveys would remain confidential and that pre and post-surveys could be matched, surveys could be completed with an open Bible, all survey questions needed to be answered in order for the survey to be used, pre-surveys were to be placed in the proper envelope and returned to me, and post-surveys were to be placed in the proper envelope and returned to me. The curriculum and post-survey were to be
completed by April 5, 2020.22 Finally, I communicated that I would be connecting with each facilitator during the month of April for the follow-up interview.
After explaining the directions, I taught the three sessions. The teaching time was divided between lecture, large group discussion, small group discussion, group activity, and videos produced by the “Bible Project.” The variety of formats engaged differing learning styles. All facilitators received lecture outline handouts, as well as a worksheet on Matthew 21:1-11.
At the conclusion of the facilitator training, I distributed a copy of the small group curriculum, Treasures Old and New: The Story of the Bible in the Gospel of Matthew, to every participant. Facilitators distributed the curriculum to their group
members at their next small group meeting. I sent an email to all participants immediately after the training on January 11, 2020. This email included a PDF version of the
curriculum and a reiteration of the directions for administering the survey. Two small groups needed an electronic version of the survey and so I also provided a digital version of the GFS to accommodate new members that were added to groups.
22 This date was moved from the original deadline of March 15, 2020 in order to accommodate groups that met less frequently.
Stage 2
During the second stage of the implementation phase, small group facilitators administered the survey in their small groups and implemented the curriculum. I did not lead a small group through this curriculum so as not to impact survey results. In order to stay in contact with groups during this period I corresponded regularly through email to maintain a virtual presence, answer any logistical questions, and remind about the April 5, 2020 deadline. I sent these check-in emails on January 28, 2020 and February 21, 2020. On March 7, 2020 I sent a final email to begin the process of scheduling interviews with each of the small group facilitators.
Due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, I made the decision in
consultation with my supervisor to shorten the length of my project. I permitted groups to complete the post-survey if participants had completed at least three sessions of the curriculum. I sent an email to all of the groups on March 14, 2020 to assess the number of sessions each group had completed. Eight of the small groups had finished all five
sessions,23 three groups finished four sessions, and two groups completed three sessions.
Due to restrictions brought about by the pandemic, many of the groups finished the remaining sessions through a digital meeting format. I sent a follow up email on March 17, 2020 to describe the process of bringing the project to completion. Because Calvary Church urged groups to refrain from in-person gathering, collecting hard copies of the surveys was not feasible. I created a digital version of the survey for groups to complete.
This would allow me to collect the anonymous surveys directly from participants rather than ask facilitators to arrange a time to collect the surveys. I closed the survey for receiving responses on April 11, 2020.
23 Three of these eight groups completed session five as individuals but did not discuss as a group.