Artifact Cover Sheet

Artifact Title:

Description of the
artifact: (100 300 + words of
detailed description):

Why did you select this

particular artifact? (100 300
+ words of detailed reasoning):

Why did you align this

artifact with Diocesan
Standard: Christian
Morality VII. III C.
Described the nature of
sin and forgiveness and its
causes and effects
(Fill in the Texas EP standard the
artifact is aligned with and give 200
+ words of reasoning for alignment

Confession and Anointing of the Sick : Nuts

and Bolts
This artifact is a Power Point presentation
that corresponds to the Lecture given during
the class period. Each slide has several key
terms that the students need to be familiar
with. Such terms include: Seal of Confession,
General Absolution, Mortal vs. Venial Sin, etc.
The slides also contain blanks in which the
students are to write the definitions of the key
terms. The slides also acknowledge the
important aspects of the sacrament of
reconciliation. For example, A precept of the
Church is that we celebrate Confession at
least once a year, and if we only go once a
year, it should be in Lent. They show more
than just vocabulary.
This particular artifact is a good example of
how my mentor teacher uses power point
presentations to teach their students
important aspects of the Sacraments. There
are blanks in the power point given to
students. This ensures that the students pay
attention to the material being presented.
However, I do see some problems with this
idea. For example, some students may pay
attention only insofar as they are receiving
information that will complete their notes.
While students may pay attention using this
method it does not guarantee that they will
listen to the other material pertinent to the
lecture.
The Diocese of Dallas currently requires that
Theology programs in their schools teach High
School Juniors the sacraments. This artifact
fits perfectly into that diocesan requirement.
It provides the students with a basic
interpretation of the Sacraments of Confession
and Anointing of the Sick. These are the two
Sacraments of healing. This distinction also
shows a hierarchy of sacraments in the
Church. Each one has a specific purpose.

A precept of the Church is that we celebrate

Confession at least once a year, and if we only
go once a year, it should be in Lent. This
quote taken from the handout shows another
aspect of the information presented. The
students dont just learn the structure of the
sacraments but they also learn about the
reasons behind the sacraments and the
requirements that the Church places on their
reception.
This artifact also teaches the students about
different situations in which these sacraments
can be received and administered. For
example, the sacrament of confession can be
received privately (which is preferred). It can
also be received publicly in the form of a
general absolution. As the handout states,
this form of absolution (forgiving of sins) is
only appropriate in emergency situations
where the priest does not have the time to
administer the sacrament individually.

What are the essential

learning(s) or outcome(s)
of this artifact? (An essential
learning is a primary skill, or content
knowledge gained from an
assignment, assessment, project or
experience 100 200 + words)

How does this artifact

relate to or reflect your
growth toward developing
your strengths, talents,
and interests as a
teacher? (250 500 + words):

This artifact aligns with this standard because

it meets the requirements of the Diocese.
However, it also goes beyond the standard by
adding more information that helps students
understand the purpose of each Sacrament.
The content knowledge the students are
supposed to gain from this handout is the
general factors that are required for the
Sacraments of Confession and Anointing of the
sick. They learn the form, matter, and
minister of each sacrament. The form of
confession is the words the priest speaks. The
matter is the verbal confession of ones sins.
This Power Point handout is also meant to be a
study tool for the students. It contains the
essential information that the students need
to know for their exam.
This artifact is a good example of a type of
note taking that I may utilize in my career as
an educator. While it is not perfect, it does
have its uses. I would use this type of power
point handout as a review guide before an
exam. The students could use it to organize
their own notes. I realize that many students
dont know good note taking habits. Due to
this fact I would also give them the resources
they need in order to find the information

pertaining to this artifact.

Examining this artifact has also shown me how
I want to teach my students. Rather than
teaching strict content, I want to teach my
students how to think about the issues we
discuss in class. I want them to ask the
questions that they have regarding the
Churches teachings on certain issues.
Especially the issues that are polarizing in our
society. In order to reach this level of thought
the students must first have the groundwork.
I think that a good way to motivate my
students would be to look ahead to future
class topics and relate them back to the topic
of the day. For example, a sacrament like
Matrimony teaches that marriage is
indissoluble. If I have the flexibility in my
lesson planning I would want to include a
lesson specifically devoted to the Churches
teaching on the sanctity of marriage in our
modern world. I would then tell the students
to pay particular attention to these elements
in the Sacrament so that they are prepared
when we discuss the topic later in the
semester.
As a community of lifelong
learners, we are always
looking for ways to
improve our performance
or products, how could
you improve this
artifact? (150 300 + words):

The artifact is oriented toward the wrong type

of learning in my opinion. Instead of teaching
for mastery, this artifact encourages the
students to only learn the bare essentials of
the subject. Using this type of study material
also encourages the students to only pay
attention to the material that is given on the
handout. If the students know that they will
only be tested over this portion of the
material, this gives them no incentive to learn
the rest of the material. This handout also
appears to be one sided in content delivery.
With a class like Theology, the content should
be delivered but in a way that makes the
information relevant for the students. For the
purpose of having general knowledge about
the faith, knowing the form and matter of a
sacrament is important. However, when a lot
of students in a Catholic school are not
Catholic this information has little value. I
would attempt to improve this handout by
making it focus more on the social issues
surrounding the sacraments themselves. This

base content knowledge would then be the

groundwork on which the students can base
their discussions.