Teacher Profile

Dr Andrew Carter, BA, MA, PhD, PGCE

Economics & Christian Worldview

I have 20 years of teaching experience gained in four countries at both secondary and undergraduate levels. In 1992 I graduated in Economics and Public Policy with an upper second degree from Leeds Metropolitan University.  After working as a careers advisor in state schools, I obtained a PGCE in 1997. My first teaching job was at The Mombasa Academy, a private school in Kenya, where I taught A-Level and O-Level Economics and Business Studies. From there I moved to London and, while studying for an MA in Systematic Theology at King’s College, taught A-Level Economics at the Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle (London’s French school).  I also worked as an examiner for Edexcel. In the years following, I have combined Christian pastoral ministry with part-time teaching, holding teaching positions at the Heritage School in Cambridge, the African Bible University in Uganda, and Grace International School in Thailand. I was awarded a PhD from the University of Durham in 2024 for my research on the L’Abri Fellowship and Francis Schaeffer – a pioneering thinker in the development of a Christian worldview in the modern era.

From my teenage years onwards, and wanting to understand the issues behind the news, I developed a keen interest in Economics and Politics. Studying – and later teaching – Economics followed on naturally from this. I came to realise that in one way or another none of us can escape the scope of Economics: we visit a country in Africa and wonder why the majority are so poor while a few rich people are so wealthy; we shop and wonder why the price of milk and butter rises year on year; we are indignant that young premiership footballers earn more in a week than we do in a year; we want to buy a home but find that housing is increasingly unaffordable; we watch the budget and discover that income tax is rising yet again; we need to see a doctor but wait a long time to access State-provided healthcare; we plan to start a business but discover that Government regulations make it increasingly difficult to do so. My point is that economic issues are fundamental to our modern way of life and that without some understanding of the subject, our grasp of the world will be forever partial. This is the value of studying Economics with me: students gain a framework for grasping how our world works on so many levels.

I am deeply committed to being a Christian teacher. Over the years people have expressed surprise that my interests and education span the fields of Theology and Economics. But it is actually my theological mind that enables me to challenge the secular assumptions behind much economic theory. A-Level and GCSE Economics is saturated with assumptions that run contrary to the Bible, having roots in Enlightenment and Marxist ideas about the nature of the world and what it means to be human. While recognising that my students need to pass their exams, whenever I feel that assumptions need to be challenged, I bring my faith to the discussion, seeking to develop in my students a Christian and discerning mind. I want them to think about what a biblically informed economy would look like.

All of this means that as well as being committed to young people being educated to a high standard, I am particularly committed to equipping children raised in Christian homes to think biblically about all of life. For me this has been worked out in our own home context: convinced that Christianity is the truth about the universe, and wanting to limit the influence of secularism so prevalent in the classrooms of our State schools, my wife and I homeschool our six children. Teaching them at home has enabled us to pursue a curriculum underpinned by a Christian worldview, asking how we should understand the world if we place the Lord Jesus Christ where He belongs: at the centre of all learning and life.

In addition to teaching Economics, and applying the lessons learned in both our home and school classrooms, I have taught numerous Worldview courses in several countries. My experience in this area has persuaded me of the necessity of Worldview and Apologetics training, if young people raised today are to survive the collapse of our Judeo-Christian heritage and rebuild from the ruins.

I offer the following PX Classroom courses:

Christian Worldview and Apologetics Primer

• This course is aimed at 12- to 18-year-olds and runs for 14 weeks (one hour per week). I introduce students to the concept of ‘worldview’ and its value for understanding the world. From there we study the unavoidable questions of life. E.g. Why is the world here? Is there a God? What is a human being? Where do ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ come from? What happens when we die? etc. Then we study four competing approaches to answering these big questions: theism, atheism, pantheism, and paganism. Finally, we seek to understand the Christian faith as a worldview using the four headings of creation, fall, redemption, and consummation.

IGCSE Economics

• This prepares students for the Cambridge exam board.

A-Level Economics

• This prepares students for the Cambridge and Edexcel exam boards.
• Starts with a one-year AS-Level course.