Deanna+Bartalini+Essay

Using technology in ministry is a concept I wholeheartedly believe in and enjoy. Many years ago, when I was a youth minister, I recall convincing my pastor that all the ministry staff needed internet access, not just the secretary and bookkeeper. When school was out for the day, my AOL instant messaging was in constant use. We have certainly come a long way since that time and we are nowhere near done with learning how to use technology to reach out to those we already minister and those we’d like to minister.
 * **"Write a 500 word essay summarizing your DDBC experience and how you plan to apply what you learned to your ministry. Demonstrate how you have applied your understanding of ISTE's National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers (NETS/T) and applied them to a faith learning environment. Include reference to relevant research about technology and learning, especially as applied to faith settings, if appropriate." ** ||

I was happy to see a course devoted to engaging people in ministry on using the technology tools available to us and to learning about new and different web tools to use in my current ministry as director of faith formation. While faith formation is my primary responsibility, I also take care of our parish website, social media, and email and print newsletter.

My project, an on-line Baptism preparation program, is an answer to our unique parish needs. We are a small parish (825 families, for our diocese) and mostly senior citizens. We have between twelve and fifteen baptism a year. Many of these are the sons and daughters of current parishioners but they themselves are from out of town. Logistically, finding a time to do an in person preparation is difficult if not impossible. Our pastor did not want the parents to go to a class where they lived since often parishes are not open to this idea.

While taking the DDBC course this summer it seemed like an on-line program might be an answer for the parish. I had looked for other on-line programs for sacrament preparation but what I found were not geared to specifically to parents, lengthy, and not cost effective. My pastor liked the idea of doing our own program with a few caveats: not too long, no test to take or forms to fill out, easy to use and interesting.

The final product includes YouTube videos, a slide share presentation and links to information. Parents can use the site on their own time and godparents are also encouraged to go to the site. In addition to the on-line component, I will speak with the parents over the telephone or in person and review key points and answer any questions for them.

At this time, two families have used the site. Since their children are school age, they watched the videos together and talked about what will happen when they are baptized. The parents said they enjoyed the materials and were reminded of things they used to know.

Working on the program helped me use what I learned in the course and working with a coach was so important in terms of feedback and looking at different perspectives. It is my hope that the program both fills the need to prepare parents and is enjoyable for them as well.

St. Edward Baptism Preparation Program