WILKES-BARRE – As he began his presentation to teachers in the Diocese of Scranton, Dr. Brett Salkeld struck a deal with his audience.
“If I can convince you that math can be taught from a Catholic point of view, will you come along with me for the ride?” he asked.
The crowd filled with hundreds of educators, seated inside the Holy Redeemer High School auditorium, willingly agreed.
Over the next hour, Dr. Salkeld explained how faith can be integrated into math – and many other aspects of a school curriculum – from literature and language, to science, art, and even health.
“Kids naturally want to ask the big questions,” he said. “We have to be willing to engage in the big questions.”
For example, in his math analogy, Dr. Salkeld focused on a question most teachers have heard before: “Why do we need to study math?
He said simple answers like “to graduate,” “to gain marketable skills,” and “to be a productive citizen,” all miss the mark.
“In a Catholic school, if a student asks, ‘Why should I study math,’ we can answer something like, ‘You are created to know and love God and God’s works, and math is a unique and powerful way to explore the beauty and order of creation.’”
He even acknowledged a simpler answer, “because you can,” would suffice.
“There is nothing else we know in creation that does math and it is amazing that human beings do math,” he said. “Math is a tool in our toolkit to take care of creation. You’re using math to develop some potential that God built into creation.”
Dr. Salkeld served as the keynote speaker for the 2024 Diocesan Teachers’ Institute. He based his presentation off his book, “Educating for Eternity: A Teacher’s Companion for Making Every Class Catholic,” which explained every subject can – and should – be taught from a Catholic worldview.
During his presentation, Dr. Salkeld, who serves as the Archdiocesan theologian for the Archdiocese of Regina, Canada, said teaching every subject from a Catholic perspective does more than just prepare students for the job market, it forms people who can change the world.
He also stressed that it should not be just “one more thing” to do in the classroom. Using the approach authentically, no matter what the class or age being taught, is a way to explain and model eternal truths to students.
However, he stressed, especially as his presentation drew to a close, that educators should not simply “add things that feel forced or contrived.”
“The point isn’t to add ‘Catholic’ to check a box. Teaching from the Catholic point of view does not require mentioning God or the church in every single class,” he said.
“Do it when it is appropriate and when it makes sense. Do it when it is authentic. Sometimes when you’re just doing quadratic equations, if you’re pursuing the truth, that is fine.”