Watch the Film: Using Statistics to Guide Sunday School

Written by Tim Smith

By watching game film and reviewing statistics, football coaches better analyze and correct a team's weaknesses. Reviewing past performance aids preparation for the next practices and games. The winning Sunday School leader will also be careful to check vital statistics. In your Sunday School ministry there are some important numbers you should systematically review.

A Word of Warning about Statistics

The measure of a successful ministry is never found in statistical data. Christ-honoring, Bible-centered ministries can experience statistical decline for a variety of reasons. It is also true that erroneous, fleshly, and heretical practices can result in numerical growth. The success of a Sunday School ministry is not ultimately measured by “nickels and noses” but by obedience to the Savior and His Word.

Having stated this, the wise "Sunday School Pastor" understands the proper use of statistical data. He and his team will keep their fingers on the pulse of the Sunday School and will observe certain numbers with a keen eye. These numbers include the roll (enrollment), the reach (prospects and contacts), and the room (space).

The Sunday School's Roll

The issue of enrollment is a critical one for the healthy Sunday School. It is, perhaps, the most important statistic in the whole church because it is the root source of many other critical vital signs.

A winning Sunday School will generally average in attendance between 40-60 percent of its total enrollment. Averaging under 40 percent is a potential sign that classes are not ministering to their enrollment. If attendance rises above 60 percent, it's usually a failure to capitalize on outreach potential. Classes that proudly display their 100 percent attendance banners unknowingly demonstrate their commitment to a maintenance ministry and a lack of understanding about enrollment.

The winning Sunday School constantly searches for new people to invite and enroll, often the unchurched and unsaved. When a person is enrolled in a Sunday School they don't commit to the class; the class commits to them. Many of these new enrollees will require months of prayer-filled ministry before they will attend. The class must then maintain efforts to cultivate and disciple them into regularly attending members.

Weekly statistics by their nature are snapshots and may or may not provide the most accurate picture of the organization's health. Rather than measuring week-to-week, consider measuring month-long statistics against the previous month and against the same month the previous year. This analysis will take fluctuations into account and perhaps give a more accurate picture of short-term and long-term trends.

The Sunday School's Reach

Your ministry's number of prospects and weekly contacts is of vital importance because they measure outreach efforts. The goal of every class should be to make a weekly ministry contact to every member and an outreach contact to every prospect. In many churches the idea of making an official contact died along with the 8-point envelope system. The language may seem archaic to some but it still works.

A contact is a personal touch of ministry. Phone calls and personal visits remain the most effective forms of contacts. The number of contacts in a healthy Sunday School will be equal to 50-100 percent of the enrollment. If each student who attended has a meaningful contact with an absent enrollee, the number of contacts will almost automatically be 50 percent of enrollment. This does not include contacts made with other guests and potential enrollees. If the class members cannot make a phone contact during the week it is a likely indicator that other key ministry elements have been forsaken as well.

A prospect is a person without a legitimate commitment to a Sunday School class. The healthiest Sunday Schools have a prospect file equal to 50-100 percent of the enrollment. If 40-60 percent of the enrollment is present and if they each contribute a legitimate prospect card, the file will naturally reach the goal.

The prospect file becomes the seedbed for the outreach and visitation ministry. While any class can make any visit, consider assigning prospects to classes that fit them best. The hope and prayer is that the prospect will enroll. This empowers and enables the class to perform caring ministry, which has a great likelihood of seeing a lost enrollee accept Christ or a saved enrollee become involved in fellowship.

The Sunday School's Room

Few statistics are as overlooked and misunderstood as those regarding space. A vibrant Sunday School organization will eventually be forced to ask difficult questions about space, the most common of which are "when to build" and "what to build."

The question of when to build is usually answered by two extreme positions. Some churches take the approach of, "If we build it they will come." Others say, "Let's wait until they come so they can help us pay for it." Each approach contains both an element of truth and a degree of shortsightedness.

Generally a facility will not average more than 80 percent of its maximum capacity. A building may reach 100 percent or more capacity for special events, revivals, and the like, but such events are not the norm. Therefore a church should seriously consider building when it begins to reach the 80 percent capacity mark.

By using a measuring tape and calculator you can make a fairly accurate assessment of your current facility's average seating capacity. Remember, the average will be about 80 percent of the maximum capacity. In looking at individual departments, certain numbers should be used as ideal measurements. Preschoolers (birth through Kindergarten) need 35 square feet per person. Children (grades 1-6) need 25 square feet per person. Youth (grades 7-12) and adults need 18 square feet per person.

Churches often fail to look at their entire facility in light of the 80 percent rule. For example, if the sanctuary will seat 500 but the parking lot will only accommodate parking for 200 people then there are 300 useless seats in the sanctuary. If there is ample Sunday School space for young adults but not for the preschool department then the deficiency in one department will adversely affect the other. Simply put, it is not enough to measure the entire square footage of the building to determine capacity. There must be room for growth in every area of the organization.

As this discussion begins with the church, keep in mind that building the Sunday School will naturally build the church. Providing worship space without considering the need for educational space may prove to be a shortsighted solution.

Conclusion

Sunday School requires a team effort, and, like all team efforts, there are statistics you can measure and study. Diligent "Sunday School Pastors" and leaders will make every effort to locate and review these critical numbers. Like a football coach watching game footage, a constant and systematic evaluation of these Sunday School statistics will help strengthen your ministry.

Dr. Tim S. Smith serves as the Team Leader and Consultant for the Sunday School/Open Group Ministries of the Georgia Baptist Convention. He served for 15 years as a minister of education in churches in Georgia and North Carolina. Tim earned his Doctorate of Ministry degree from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, and his Master of Divinity with Christian Education from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. He and his family live in White, Georgia.

 

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