Switching to YouCat

[Jguerra]

I’m about to finish another prep class using the St. Joseph Edition of the Baltimore Catechism No. 2.

The Class
Adult couples looking to convalidate their marriages. All students need all or some of their sacraments of initiation (Baptism, Penance, Eucharist, Confirmation).

The Format
2 or 3 lessons weekly going question by question, referring to the CCC and the Bible as needed. I’ve found matching paragraphs in the CCC to almost all of the questions in the BC#2. The class runs about 2 hours for 3 months.

Would it be a good idea to move to the YouCat? What I liked about the BC#2 are the quizzes at the end of each chapter. What I like about the YouCat is its approach to topics not covered in the BC#2. There are no quizzes.

Hope to hear from other catechists,

Joe

 

[SuscipeMeDomine]

I’m not especially familiar with Youcat so this may be an off-the-wall question. Isn’t it aimed at teens and young adults? If so, would it be the best choice for people working to convalidate their marriages? I assume they’re a little older.

I use the US Catholic Catechism for Adults with RCIA and adult confirmation groups. It’s easy to read and serves as a good reference for them in the future. If it helps, you can view the table of contents at www.usccbpublishing.org/client/client_pdfs/Table_of_Contents.pdf

 

[jmcrae]

I’ve been using the YOUCAT quite successfully in my RCIA since last September. Not every adult has a college education - it’s great for working people for the same reason that it’s great for students - because it’s easy to read and the paragraphs are short and to the point, without any beating around the bush or long technical jargon.

And the little cartoons are awesome at any age.

 

[Jguerra]

I use the US Catholic Catechism for Adults with RCIA and adult confirmation groups. It’s easy to read and serves as a good reference for them in the future. If it helps, you can view the table of contents at www.usccbpublishing.org/client/client_pdfs/Table_of_Contents.pdf

Question: Does it have quizzes? The best part of the BC#2 is that each lesson is self-contained, plug-and-play. With YouCat, I have to come up with some knowledge check at the end of each chapter.

Joe

 

[Jguerra]

I’ve been using the YOUCAT quite successfully in my RCIA since last September. Not every adult has a college education - it’s great for working people for the same reason that it’s great for students - because it’s easy to read and the paragraphs are short and to the point, without any beating around the bush or long technical jargon.

And the little cartoons are awesome at any age.

Ok. What did you do at the end of the lesson to assess how well the students understood the material?

BTW, I read the intro by Pope Benedict XVI. If it were me introducing the YouCat to the class I would have them read the first and the last 3 paragraphs. When I read them, my heart started pounding with hope and love.

Joe

 

[1ke]

I’m about to finish another prep class using the St. Joseph Edition of the Baltimore Catechism No. 2.

The Class
Adult couples looking to convalidate their marriages. All students need all or some of their sacraments of initiation (Baptism, Penance, Eucharist, Confirmation).

The Format
2 or 3 lessons weekly going question by question, referring to the CCC and the Bible as needed. I’ve found matching paragraphs in the CCC to almost all of the questions in the BC#2. The class runs about 2 hours for 3 months.

Would it be a good idea to move to the YouCat? What I liked about the BC#2 are the quizzes at the end of each chapter. What I like about the YouCat is its approach to topics not covered in the BC#2. There are no quizzes.

Hope to hear from other catechists,

Joe

I think it would be better to utilize RCIA material and build a class that does not include reading out of the BC for two or three HOURS going question by question. Good lord, these people must be terribly polite because I can think of no worse way to engage people and teach the faith.

 

[YoungTradCath]

I think it would be better to utilize RCIA material and build a class that does not include reading out of the BC for two or three HOURS going question by question. Good lord, these people must be terribly polite because I can think of no worse way to engage people and teach the faith.

What is RCIA material? I ask because I have witnessed several parishes’ RCIA classes and they are all vastly different, both in style and, more importantly, in quality. Some have been top-notch Catholicism, and others have been wishy-washy nonsense. I think from a teaching perspective, the BC is much better than the CCC as it is so much simpler to use. I do not know the format of the YouCat, but if it is closer to the BC than the CCC in that regard, then I would most certainly prefer it.

That is one thing that is sorely needed in catechesis, a simple, easy-to-understand resource like the BC, or perhaps the BC itself. The CCC is magnificently clunky and unwieldy for a beginner’s course like RCIA, in my opinion. It’s like giving a first grader a Calculus book and expecting him to learn.

In my own parish they give out these awful handout things to people from Liguori Press. No one ever brings them to the meetings because the meetings are always a random talk from someone, and also because the handouts are truly useless and teach practically nothing about the faith, and the RCIA coordinators even say so. It is truly dreadful, except for the nights when one of the priests is presenting, which is always wonderful. I suppose you could call our RCIA program sort of “live and let live.” It is orthodox and doctrinally correct and faithful to the Magisterium, but it is totally unstructured.

 

[Jguerra]

Good lord, these people must be terribly polite because I can think of no worse way to engage people and teach the faith.

Tonight was my last class. The students surprised me with a thank you card, each one adding a personal note of gratitude. It wasn’t all rote, note and yellow marker. There were discussions, questions of ‘what if’ and ‘what about’ answered with the Bible, the CCC, analogies and anecdotes. There was a field trip to the confessionals, we played Final Jeopardy (complete with theme music) and said our prayers at the end of each class. To keep them alert and motivated I brought along fruit and bottled water.

Before I go to bed, I’m going to reread that card, I’ll turn to mush and give thanks to God for the chance to hand on the Catholic faith, to fan into flame that Divine spark these students were neglecting long before they married civilly. I made it clear that our little class was just the beginning of a life-long journey. Now they would have to cooperate with the Holy Spirit to start satisfying that hunger nothing else in this world could fill.

I got off-track, I know, but if my class was all that bad I would have been pink-slipped a long time ago.

Joe

 

[wasserfall]

1ke may not know that the New St. Joseph Baltimore Catechism contains helpful textual content, pictures & cartoons, discussion questions & quizzes, in addition to just the numbered questions.

I’m teaching my kids instead of adults, but the discussion questions in the New St. Joseph BCs are very good at making them think about what they are learning. Personally I find the New St. Joseph Baltimore Catechism to be an excellent tool.

The one thing missing, for adult learners is, as you said, adequate coverage of contemporary adult topics. There you would have to supplement.

 

[maryjk]

I think it would be better to utilize RCIA material and build a class that does not include reading out of the BC for two or three HOURS going question by question. Good lord, these people must be terribly polite because I can think of no worse way to engage people and teach the faith.

Sorry, everyone, I am with 1ke. I can’t imagine sitting for 2 hours listening to someone reading the questions and answers to the Baltimore Catechism.

I also wouldn’t use YouCat. Why? Because people that need to Convalidate their marriage need marriage prep, not RCIA prep. If they need RCIA prep, they should be in that class.

Shouldn’t your students be attending the RCIA AND pre-Cana?

 

[Jguerra]

Sorry, everyone, I am with 1ke. I can’t imagine sitting for 2 hours listening to someone reading the questions and answers to the Baltimore Catechism.

The students take turns reading each question and answer. If the answer needs clarification, we go to the matching paragraph in the CCC and the Bible. They ask questions, we discuss and answer and move on.

Shouldn’t your students be attending the RCIA AND pre-Cana?

. My class is, in the eyes of the pastor, sufficient for RCIA. These students are also meeting with Father for marriage prep.

Joe

 

[1ke]

The students take turns reading each question and answer.

It seems that you don’t understand that this isn’t any different or better than the instructor reaading the questions and answers. This is horrible.

My class is, in the eyes of the pastor, sufficient for RCIA. These students are also meeting with Father for marriage prep.

Well, God bless your students because that sounds like torture to me. I know you mean well, but I sugggest you get with your diocesan director of catechesis and get some instruction in catechetical methods and recommendations on RCIA materials.

Also, the YOUCAT is for teens, not adults. It really isn’t appropriate for them It has examples that are about teenage life, not adult married life.

I suggest the US Adult Catechism from the USCCB as a reference that you give to each couple, NOT something you read to them in class for two hours.

 

[Jguerra]

It seems that you don’t understand that this isn’t any different or better than the instructor reaading the questions and answers. This is horrible.

1ke, it’s unfortunate you feel that way. The class had 6 students total. They never grumbled or complained to the pastor about anything. The thank you card proved to me there was nothing out of place about the class. It ran from early January to last night. If it were me just doing the Q & A by myself, we would have finished a long time ago.

Well, God bless your students because that sounds like torture to me. I know you mean well, but I sugggest you get with your diocesan director of catechesis and get some instruction in catechetical methods and recommendations on RCIA materials.

I’ve seen the RCIA materials: huge 3 ring binders of nothing but text, lesson plans, integration into the liturgy, a commitment to a year of preparation. IMHO, our parish is ill-equipped and understaffed to take on such a large scale program. The pastor made do with what he has on hand. I’ll be the first one to tell you I don’t have formal training in catechetics, nothing in the form of a certificate I can hang on the wall or embellish my resume. I don’t use the classroom as a launch pad for my own personal agenda because I don’t have one. I taught only what the Church teaches, the love of God and neighbor, the sacramental life, our faith based on the Bible and Sacred Tradition, etc.

Also, the YOUCAT is for teens, not adults. It really isn’t appropriate for them It has examples that are about teenage life, not adult married life.

I suggest the US Adult Catechism from the USCCB as a reference that you give to each couple, NOT something you read to them in class for two hours.

These couples read at about the 9th grade level. They may be smart enough to get married civilly and have families but the common mindset still seems to be in the late teens. I would often point out a paragraph from the CCC you and I can easily comprehend but I would have to parse out each sentence and explain it to them. Mind you, I have not started using YouCat, I’m still thinking it over.

In all charity and peace,
Joe

 

[jmcrae]

Ok. What did you do at the end of the lesson to assess how well the students understood the material?

BTW, I read the intro by Pope Benedict XVI. If it were me introducing the YouCat to the class I would have them read the first and the last 3 paragraphs. When I read them, my heart started pounding with hope and love.

Joe

I have a standard set of questions that I use for all reading assignments, which is in two parts: Reading for Comprehension, and Applications. Feel free to adapt it to your own needs:

Reading for Comprehension

What is the subject of the text? (or story)
What arguments are being presented in the text?
(What is happening in the story?) - have the students make a chronological list of at least three or four things.
What facts do we see presented?
Is there anything in this text that you didn’t know before?

Applications

What does the author intend for us to do with this information?
How can we do these things?
What are some obstacles that we may encounter when attempting to do these things, and how can we overcome them?

I hope this helps you!

 

[Jguerra]

I have a standard set of questions that I use for all reading assignments, which is in two parts: Reading for Comprehension, and Applications. Feel free to adapt it to your own needs:

Reading for Comprehension

What is the subject of the text? (or story)
What arguments are being presented in the text?
(What is happening in the story?) - have the students make a chronological list of at least three or four things.
What facts do we see presented?
Is there anything in this text that you didn’t know before?

Applications

What does the author intend for us to do with this information?
How can we do these things?
What are some obstacles that we may encounter when attempting to do these things, and how can we overcome them?

I hope this helps you!

Thank you