Mark Wheeler

Mark Wheeler is a rhetoric English teacher at Hickory Christian Academy in Hickory, North Carolina, where he has taught various classes since 2006. He has also coached the Mock Trial team for several years. He and his wife, Leah, have six children who attend Hickory Christian Academy. They are members at West Hickory Baptist Church, where Mark is a deacon and teaches the youth Sunday School class. Mark’s thesis for his degree from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary is on the role of beauty in the spiritual formation of Christian high school students.

2024 Speaker Topic

What 400 Hours of Discussion over 50 Texts in 16 Months as a Student Taught Me about Graded Discussions

While in school as a student, I never experienced academic discussions that were designed to foster learning. As a teacher, I wondered for many years what I might have learned about structuring discussions if I had participated in that kind of academic exercise. Over the last 16 months, while doing an MA at St. John’s College, I have been able to answer that question to some extent. Based on my experience at St. John’s, this practicum will offer ten elements that have improved academic discussions in the classes I teach.