Over the years the Archives staff has helped many teachers develop assignments for their classes, involving use of the Archives collections. These assignments have been for classes in many diverse subjects: Chinese language, social psychology, Asian History, African History, Latin American History, Evangelistic Preaching, Educational Research, World Politics, Missions History, Women's History, Organizational Management, Chicago History, and Print Journalism, to name a few. These assignments not only expose the students to the historical documents in the Archives but also give them hand-on experience in using primary sources. Students almost always found it an exciting and worthwhile experience. Doing an archival assignment usually involves actually coming to the BGC in Wheaton, Illinois to work in the Archives Reading Room, so this option is most accessible to teachers at schools (Sunday, public and private, Bible, secondary, colleges and universities) in the Chicagoland area of the United States. However, a small number of our collections are accessible through inter-library loan or over the Internet, so in some cases we can also develop assignments for classes at remote (from Wheaton) locations.
If you are interested in the possibilities of our developing an assignment for your class, please contact us. We will be happy to discuss the possibilities with you. Or click here for a description of the possibilities of a visit by your class to the Archives.