Solutions to common problems (videos)

A list of videos that show the solution to problems that Didasko learners often have. Click here

Is it really free? What's the catch?

Yes. Didasko Academy offers high-quality courses totally free of charge. No strings attached, no premium versions, no advertisements or trial periods, no follow-up sales, nothing.

Our desire is to help people get involved in the fulfilling of the Great Commission.

You will not need to buy additional books or any other material to do the courses, although we do suggest good books and other resources at the end of each module or course - those you will have to buy if you want to read up more.

If you want to give a donation to Didasko Academy you are more than welcome to do so, but this is totally voluntary. Our courses are really free!

The price some of our students will pay, might cost them everything — when they take up their cross and follow Jesus!


Free things are usually not very good, are they?

The Didasko Academy courses are an exception! Our main objective is to produce high-quality courses with well-researched contents. Our main expenses are for course development, and these are paid for by the generous help from our financial partners. This support allows us to concentrate on producing high quality material.


Can I do the course on my own?

Yes, you can. But it would be better to do it in a group if at all possible. In a group you'll hear other people's opinions and thoughts on the topic under discussion. Group discussions have been shown to be an effective aid to learning. Why don't you take the opportunity to try to recruit some people from your church or home group to do the courses together? You don't need to have an expert present.

Who is able to do the training?

The courses are appropriate for mature Christians who are at least eighteen years old. Younger people should do the courses under parental observation.

The soundtracks of the video lectures are in English, but subtitles are available in many other languages.

 

How do I get started?

Instructions on how to register as a user, sign in, and enrol yourself in courses are here


How do I print my certificate? How do I send a digitally signed certificate to someone?

How do I print my certificate? How do I send a digitally signed certificate to someone? Click here

Can I facilitate a Didasko Academy course in my area or church?

Yes, you may. In fact, we encourage it. For more detail, click here.

 

How are groups formed?

Groups are usually formed by individual Christians who are interested in missions, or who want to do missionary training. Some churches and missions agencies also form groups.

Each course has the facility for a groups to form "teams". Each "team" has its own online discussion forum. Such "teams" can be formed out of people from a certain church or organization, or who speak a certain language, or have specific interests, etc.

Who can lead a group?

Any person who starts a group can lead the group, or the group can choose a leader. The group leader does not need to be a subject specialist, all the information comes from the online courses. The leader serves as a facilitator - someone who organizes meetings, a venue, and who organizes group discussions. The course material provides group instructions after most videos.

Where will the classes be held?

Even though you can do Didasko Academy courses fully online, they should ideally be done in a group. Recruit a group who are all interested, and meet at regular times to do coursework together. As an example, some groups meet weekly, and agree that they will each watch say five videos between meetings. At the meetings they discuss the reflection questions of the videos they have watched.

Group members can decide where and how often they will meet, and how many videos they will watch between meetings. See more detail here.

How often do classes meet?

Didasko Academy courses are fully online, so if you are doing a course on your own you can decide on your pace.

If you do a course as part of a group, the group members decide where and how often they will meet.

Why does Didasko Academy focus on Unreached People Groups?

The Bible clearly states that one day people from every nation, tribe, people and language will be worshipping before God’s throne (Rev 7:9). The Greek word for nation is the origin of the modern English term ethnic group.

Out of around 16 000 People Groups on earth, almost 7 000 have very little or no witness of Christ (see Joshua Project). To complete Jesus’ Great Commission (Mt 28:18-20), Christians will have to make disciples among each of them. This is to prepare for the return of the Lord (Mt 24:14).

Read more here on our Unreached People Group focus.

Who should enrol for Didasko Academy courses?

Even though Didasko Academy courses are aimed mainly at intercultural workers, it is not limited to them. The courses will benefit any Christians who are serious about gaining a deeper understanding of God’s ultimate purpose for the world, and who want to align their personal goals to those of the Lord.

Do you wish to gain insight and direction, so you can impact your generation for God’s Kingdom? Do you wish to have a closer walk with God? Do you wish to strategically align your life with God’s purpose? If so, a good place to start is with our course The Bible and Missions. Once you have done this, you can enrol for the Missions 101 course and/or the Roles in Missions course. These courses “paint the big picture” of the remaining part of the Great Commission, and provides insight into what kind of training you may need depending upon where God is leading you.

Who will teach the courses?

All our researchers and presenters have relevant first-hand experience in helping to reach Unreached People Groups (UPG/LRP).

How long will it take me to complete a course?

Each course differs in length. Once you are signed into the system, you will be able to look at each course's "about" page. This page gives an estimate of how long that course will take to complete.

Our courses are based on adult training principles, which means that you choose what you’d like to learn, when you wish to learn it, and at what pace you wish to complete it. Courses vary in length — each course indicates on its information page the minimum time we estimate it will take.

For example, here are timing indications for a longer course, like Missions 101:

  • If you were to do “Missions 101” full time, it would take around 4 days.

  • If you were to do the course on your own, spending 3 hours per week on the course, you would complete the same course in about 10 weeks.

Can I repeat a course?

Yes. You can watch any video, and go through entire courses, as many times as you want. We will be offering a facility for you to download videos onto your computer, if you so wish.

You will also be able to pause, rewind, slow down or speed up a video as you like.

What happens if I have to suspend learning for a time?

Didasko Academy courses are based on adult training principles, so learners choose their own pace of learning. If you need to suspend your learning for a time, you can. Resume classes as soon as you are able to.

Self-paced learning takes self-discipline. Our suggestion is that you set goals for yourself, and stick to them. A goal could be a certain number of hours per week, or a certain number of videos per week.

The only exception to this is if your organization requires you to complete a course in a set time, or together with a team.

 

Can I quit a course if I realise it is not what I need to learn?

Yes. You can leave any course unfinished. If you decide later on you do wish to carry on with it, just sign in again and select that course. The Didasko web software will remember where you were last.

With which course should I start?

If you are new to the field of intercultural ministry, you may not know what you need to learn first, and what later. As we develop our courses, we will update our Web pages to provide assistance in this regard.

A good place to start is with our course The Bible and Missions. Once you have done this, you can enrol for the Missions 101 course and/or the Roles in Missions course. These courses “paint the big picture” of the remaining part of the Great Commission, and provides insight into what kind of training you may need depending upon where God is leading you.

What are the course entry requirements?

There are no entry requirements to do the courses on Didasko Academy. If you are a Christian with a passion to walk closer with God, and want to strategically align your life with God’s purpose, then you meet the requirements.

We strongly recommend you start with the course "The Bible and Missions", as this will lay a solid foundation for you.

Some of the more advanced courses may require knowledge from earlier courses in order to grasp the material properly. These requirements will be stated on the course information page. These courses may have a short entrance exam. If you don’t pass it, you can do the required course first, and then return to the course you were primarily interested in.

You also need to have a working knowledge of English, a smart phone or computer, and Internet access.

Can I take the Didasko courses for college credit?

No. Didasko Academy does not currently offer college/university credits. However, there is a possibility that we may offer such credits in future as an add-on.

How can I preview the material before facilitating a group?

Have a look at the list of courses here, and click on "Learn more" for the course(s) you are interested in, and get an overview of the course.

You can also look at the evaluator's guides for an outline of the courses. Click here to access.

Then enrol yourself in the course, and work through it yourself. Didasko Academy courses are self-paced, which allows you to do this. We strongly advise that you do the course "0010 Learn How to use Didasko" first to familiarise you with our software.

What is the difference between multi-cultural, intercultural and cross-cultural?

The best explanation can be found at this web site:

https://springinstitute.org/whats-difference-multicultural-intercultural-cross-cultural-communication/

What do we mean by the word academy?

By the word "academy" in "Didasko Academy", we mean this (Webster Dictionary 1913):

A school or place of training in which some special art is
      taught; as, the military academy at West Point; a riding
      academy; the Academy of Music.
      [1913 Webster]