The Hidden Curriculum of Church Communications

by Ashley Graham-Wilcox

In schools, teachers talk about the “hidden curriculum.” It’s not the official lesson plan, but the unspoken rules students learn: Who gets called on most often, how questions are received, what behaviors are rewarded, and what’s quietly ignored.

Church communications carry their own hidden curriculum. Even before someone attends worship, they’ve already absorbed cues about your community through your website, bulletin, email, or Instagram post. Every font choice, caption, or livestream link sends a message, whether you meant to send it or not.

And here’s the kicker: Those small cues often teach louder than the official message. You might say, “All are welcome,” but if your registration form is confusing or your photos only feature one kind of person, the hidden curriculum says otherwise.

So, what are we teaching through our communications? Here are three places to start paying attention:

1. Accessibility is theology

Accessibility isn’t a side issue; it’s core to how people experience church.

• Example: If your newsletter has tiny font or your livestream link is buried six clicks deep, the hidden curriculum is: This church wasn’t designed with you in mind.

• Flip it: A clear button in an email, a simple registration process, or captions on a video says: We thought of you, and we want you here.

Accessible design communicates welcome before anyone crosses the threshold. It’s worth asking: if someone new, someone tired, or someone with limited tech skills tries to engage with us, will they feel cared for—or left out?

2. Hospitality shows up in tone.

It’s easy to say “All are welcome.” But tone matters just as much as content.

• Example: “Join us this Sunday for Eucharist (Rite II, Nave)“ makes sense if you grew up Episcopalian. To an outsider, it might as well be Greek.

• Flip it: “This Sunday at 10:30am, we’ll gather for worship with music, prayer, and communion. Come as you are—there’s coffee afterwards!” That’s the hidden curriculum of actual welcome.

Hospitality in communications looks like: Assuming people don’t already know the inside scoop and giving them enough context so they won’t feel out of place.

3. Equity is communicated by who’s pictured (and who’s missing).

Photos and videos silently teach who belongs in your community.

• Example: If every picture you post features clergy, or if your congregation photos are always all white folks, the hidden curriculum says: Leadership looks like this. Belonging looks like this.

• Flip it: Show the fullness of your community—kids and elders, volunteers and leaders, newcomers and longtimers alike.

Representation is discipleship. It’s saying, The Body of Christ looks like this—and you’re part of it.

The hidden curriculum can’t be avoided; it’s always there. But the good news (we love Good News!) is we get to choose what it teaches.

• Does this make it easier or harder for someone new to join in?

• Does this assume knowledge, or offer clarity?

• Does this reflect the diversity and gifts of the community—or just one slice of it?

At its heart, communication is ministry. Every email, post, or video teaches something about who your church is. Paying attention to the hidden curriculum helps ensure the lesson people learn is the one you’re working so hard to teach.