Every teacher, including those who teach within the Church, can find ways to improve his or her teaching. Indeed, the very best teachers constantly seek to explore new and improved ways of teaching topics they have taught for years. Almost every educational institution sponsors some kind of “in-service” program to help teachers consistently update, improve, and sharpen their methods and skills.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has practiced this concept for many years. Originally, auxiliary leaders held workshops for teachers in their organizations and distributed materials and ideas to help their teachers be better prepared to teach. Many Church members will recall flannel-board lessons, filmstrips, “stick figures” drawn on the board by a teacher, and various other methods of helping students understand a concept.

Although our teaching methods have become much more sophisticated with the advancement in multimedia technologies, the basic need for a teacher to help students grasp and understand a concept remains constant.