The Joy of Remote Learning: Meet Kim Wright

Vocational Bible College is able to transcend geographical boundaries by delivering its training online. So what sorts of people enroll in remote learning at VBC?

Kim Wright juggles being a wife, a mum to two teenage boys and a part-time job as an Occupational Therapist. She’s also a student at Vocational Bible College.

“I've always wanted to do some further study,” Kim says. “I wasn't sure whether to do it in health or whether to do it in theology. But because life's busy, I thought I needed to be quite motivated to do it.”

Kim lives in Baranduda, regional Victoria, where she is involved with her local church. Late last year she joined a few others from her church in attending the annual FIEC (Fellowship of Evangelical Churches) conference in Stanwell Tops.

During the six-hour drive home from the conference, Kim mentioned that she had been challenged to consider doing some kind of theological study. Her pastor told her about a few different options, and one of those was Vocational Bible College.

By the time Kim got around to investigating VBC earlier this year, she realised that first semester was about to begin online that very night.

Her pastor told her that she could attend classes for five weeks with no obligation to continue or pay course fees, so she decided to give it a go.

“I had previously been considering university study,” Kim explains. “And to do one subject at uni takes about 10 hours per week. A VBC subject takes roughly three hours.”

Kim soon discovered that VBC would be a much more manageable option.

“It’s also more cost efficient,” Kim says. “It’s nowhere near as much money as a uni subject.”

It didn’t take long for Kim to realise that training through VBC was perfect for her, so she has enrolled in a Diploma of Christian Ministry and Theology. The nature of remote learning is one of the things she appreciates most.

“I think we all got a bit Zoomed out during COVID, so people might feel as though they don’t want to go back to online learning, but I think we learnt a lot during COVID as well,” Kim says. “We learnt that we can do things where we don't have to drive somewhere and be there in person.”

For Kim personally, if VBC only held classes in-person, she wouldn’t be able to access the training. 

“Sydney is six hours away, and we don’t have anything like it locally,” Kim says. “So online makes it really accessible for me. I have found it surprisingly good.”

Kim also appreciates the convenience of remote learning in her role as a mum. “The kids can be here in the background doing their homework,” she shares. “And often I’ve done the dinner prep beforehand, so all I have to do when class is over is warm it up.” 

Something else Kim appreciates about training through VBC is the nature of the classes.

“The smaller class means that we get to have discussion,” she explains. “It's not just a lecture, it is an interactive class. We get to pray for each other's needs. We get to know each other a bit.”

Kim can already see her training benefiting her ministry at church, where she serves as a growth group team leader. She doesn’t yet know whether she will end up in full-time ministry at some point, but that doesn’t worry her.

“It’s never not going to be useful doing Christian study,” Kim says. “I don't know where it's going to lead, but God does.”

Kim is enjoying her training through VBC so much that she has already encouraged someone else to do it, too.

“From one mum to another, I was able to say, ‘Practically, you can do it. This is what it looks like,’” Kim says. “The cost effectiveness, the smaller time investment and the fact it’s online all means it’s really accessible for people in my situation, whether you're rural or whether you're a mum or you're just busy.”