ABOUT
Why Deeper Learning
What does it mean to approach learning as participation in “God’s Story?” Learning in God’s Story is not primarily about content but about experience. Our participation is not only about what we think but also about our deepest hopes for ourselves and the world in light of God’s Story.
So then, does our Christian faith go beyond phrases like the “integration of faith and learning” or “teaching from a Christian worldview” to teaching in a way where our faith informs our pedagogy?
As we reflect on our practices, we may see gaps between our faith and our methods. If we are honest, we may have nagging feelings that we are not moving toward that ultimate mission through fully aligning our faith/beliefs and how we educate:
-
Does the way I organize my class (curriculum, instruction, assessment, and culture) honor my students as image bearers of our Creator?
-
Are my students really engaged in the work I assign, or are we both going through the motions of what we imagine school is “supposed to be?”
-
Have I made compromises in my practices? Am I focusing too much on individual student success and keeping parents/admin happy, doing it “the way it has always been done?” Is there a way I can better model the creativity and innovation of Jesus?
-
What can I do to explicitly and implicitly focus my classroom on loving God and our neighbors?
WHO WE ARE
Christian Deeper Learning (CDL) was conceived and designed to bring together Christian educators who desire to engage students deeply in learning, help them discover who they are as image-bearers of God, and help them find their place in God’s story.
The mission of CDL is to promote teaching practices that invite and equip students to be people of God’s Story, engaged in real work that forms self and shapes the world.
We do that by encouraging innovative practices and various design models that provide opportunities for teachers and school leaders to have deep conversations about what it means to teach “Christianly” and better meet their missions. See this blog series, The Many Roads to Christian Deeper Learning to learn more about the six ways Christian Deeper Learning is implemented.
The Christian Deeper Learning conference gathers educators from around the world. It offers an excellent opportunity to explore what Deeper Learning means in a Christian context. provides opportunities to learn from national-level professionals, network with others, and mutually encourage each other in their professional work.
OUR FOUNDATION
A Celebration of the Learner
What it means to be created in God’s image.
A Mindfulness towards Learning Design
How curriculum, instruction and assessment inspire inward and outward engagement.
A Responsiveness to Culture
How to embody our mission in every aspect of school life and how to live it out in God’s world.
Meet the Team
Dan Beerens
Co-chair
Dan Beerens is an educational consultant, author, international speaker, and educational leader. Before starting Dan Beerens Consulting in May 2010, he served as Vice President of Learning Services and Director of Instructional Improvement at Christian Schools International. Before that, he was the Director of Curriculum and Instruction for Holland Christian Schools. Dan has also worked as a teacher and principal in urban and suburban public and Christian schools in Wisconsin and Illinois. He serves as a Senior Fellow at CACE (Center for the Advancement of Christian Education), represents Curriculum Trak sales and professional development, and serves as co-chair of the annual Christian Deeper Learning conference. He blogs regularly for CACE and is the author of Evaluating Teachers for Professional Growth: Creating a Culture of Motivation and Learning (Corwin Press) and co-editor of the recent book MindShift: Catalyzing Change in Christian Education (ACSI).
Steven Levy
Co-chair
After 28 years teaching in classrooms K-12, and 16 years as a school designer for EL Education (formerly Expeditionary Learning), Steven Levy is now an independent educational consultant and a Senior Fellow at the Center for the Advancement of Christian Education. He guides teachers in designing service-based curricula, engaging instructional practices, student-owned assessments, and spiritual formation. He was recognized as the Massachusetts State Teacher of the Year and honored by the Disney American Teacher Awards as the national Outstanding General Elementary Teacher.
Steven was the recipient of the Autodesk National Award for his impact on project-based learning and received the John F. Kennedy Prize for the teaching of history. Steven and his fourth-grade students were designated “Conservation Heroes” by the National Park Service for their study of the effects of a local bike path on the environment and the community. Steven has written various articles for educational journals, and his book, Starting From Scratch, details some of the projects and students he has worked with in his elementary classrooms.
Krista Wallace
Co-chair
Krista Adams Wallace is an international Christian educator and consultant. Krista spent 19 years in the Dominican Republic working in missions and educational development. In 2002, Krista launched the Doulos Discovery School, an expeditionary learning PK-12 international Christian school in the mountains of the Dominican Republic. Doulos was the first international Christian school to implement expeditionary learning practices. In 2009, Krista led Doulos to become the first internationally accredited ACSI school in the Dominican Republic.
In 2016, Krista launched InspirED, an educational consulting nonprofit, with Steven Levy and Dan Beerens. This collaboration led them to create the Christian Deeper Learning conference.
Krista lives with her husband, Chad, in Denver, CO, and is the Director of Learning Innovation for Elevate USA. They have two grown daughters and serve on their local Young Life committee. Krista and Chad have an organic coffee farm in the Dominican Republic and enjoy finding new places to sell their coffee worldwide.