Engaging Authenticity to Explore the Purpose and Nature of Education: Insights of Three Independent Christian School Principals - A journal of educational research and practice 2021 Vol. 31 (1) 7-21

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Bulrr

This qualitative study explored authenticity within Ontario independent Christian education through semi-structured interviews with three experienced Christian school principals. The analysis produced five conceptual understandings related to authenticity: authorship, relatedness, autonomy, reflection, and excellence. These dimensions are presented as pathways for structured, thoughtful discussions about the purpose and nature of education under pressures that can narrow attention to curriculum delivery and assessment. The study argues authenticity can help leaders restore vision amid institutional strain.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages15

Reading Time38 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Introduction

Literature Review

Authenticity and the Self

Authenticity in Education

Engaging Authenticity to Explore the Purpose and Nature of Education: Insights of Three Independent Christian School Principals A journal of educational research and practice 2021 Vol. 31 (1) 7-21 [https://journals.library.brocku.ca/brocked](https://journals.library.brocku.ca/brocked) Jack Huizenga * and Coral Mitchell** Brock University Abstract This qualitative study explored the notion of authenticity within the field of independent Christian education in Ontario. Three experienced Christian school principals accepted an invitation to participate in semi-structured interviews in order to draw out insights into the purpose and nature of Christian education. Data analysis yielded five conceptual understandings relative to authenticity: authorship, relatedness, autonomy, reflection, and excellence. These conceptual understandings reveal the potential of authenticity to facilitate thoughtful discussions about the purpose and nature of education. Keywords: authenticity, authentic Christian education, authenticity in education * [jack.huizenga@brocku.ca](jack.huizenga@brocku.ca) ** [cmitchell@brocku.ca](cmitchell@brocku.ca) Education is an enterprise beset with challenges. Pressures exist to teach the curriculum, assess fairly, promote students, maintain high marks, and prepare students to make a positive contribution to society. Through the hurried and harried pace of the school day, students can feel like automatons, teachers can feel ignored by principals, and principals can feel trapped in the bureaucracy of the education system. Under these conditions, educators and educational leaders can be hard-pressed to ask questions about the purpose and nature of education. Independent Christian schools face the concomitant challenge of offering an education that is distinctively Christian. With a history extending back more than 50 years in Ontario, the growth of Christian schools was due in large part to the immigration of Dutch Calvinists following World War II (Van Brummelen, 1993) . The resulting Christian communities were of the conviction that an alternative mode of education, Christian education , was needed to equip their children for an alternative way of life: the Christian life (Wolterstorff, 2002) . Unfortunately, over the past 25 years the number of Christian schools in Ontario has plateaued and student enrolment has declined (Guldemond, 2014) . While first-generation immigrants viewed the support of these schools as a priority, Guldemond (2014) demonstrates that “a loss of commitment to the old vision/tradition” is one of the “most frequent reasons for the stagnation” (p. 104) of Christian schools today. For Christian school principals faced with the challenge of restoring that vision, the notion of authenticity could help identify and highlight deep understandings of the purpose and nature of education for their respective learning communities. This paper presents findings of a study that explored the concept of authenticity within the field of independent Christian education in Ontario. The study was grounded on the proposition that a dialogue around authenticity could provide fresh insights into the purpose and nature of Christian education. The overarching research question was,“What is authentic Christian education?” Rooted in philosophy (Morris, 1966), authenticity has been used to examine issues within the social sciences (Taylor, 1991) and within education (Starratt, 2012) . Authenticity seldom has been investigated within the context of independent Christian schools. For this investigation, three experienced Christian school principals accepted an invitation to explore the concept of authenticity within the context of Christian education. Five conceptual understandings relative to authenticity emerged from this study: authorship, relatedness, autonomy, reflection, and excellence. Together these elements demonstrate authenticity’s potential to elicit deep reflections about the purpose and nat

FAQs

What is the main focus of the study?

The study investigates authenticity in the context of independent Christian education in Ontario, aiming to draw insights into the purpose and nature of Christian education.

How was the research conducted?

Three experienced Christian school principals participated in semi-structured interviews, followed by qualitative data analysis to derive conceptual understandings.

What five conceptual understandings emerged from the data?

The study identified authorship, relatedness, autonomy, reflection, and excellence as key conceptual understandings relative to authenticity.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Bulrr