Posts Tagged Equipping Parents
Shaky Speculation: The Lost Tools Of Learning
Posted by Diane in Various Essays for Homeschool Parents on January 22nd, 2008
First, here’s a little history lesson. The classical model of ancient Greece and Rome was resurrected during Emperor Charlemagne’s reign in the Middle Ages and given a Christian twist. This classical Christian model which included the trivium, the quadrivium, and many more subjects was faithfully followed in Europe and North America for several centuries thereafter until around the middle of the 1800s when the Common School Movement began in the United States in response to a huge immigrant influx. A secular public educational model and lack of classically-trained teachers effectively removed the classical Christian method from schools. For the next 100 years, classical education was practically nonexistent with the exception of some prestigious private academies which catered to the elite classes.
During the 1940s, British author Dorothy Sayers, presented an essay at Oxford University called The Lost Tools of Learning in which she compared the sorry state of modern education with the historically preferable state of classical education. She proposed that we had lost the tools necessary for learning how to think. In the early 1990s, respected pastor and private school educator, Douglas Wilson read Sayers’ essay and then wrote his own book, Recovering the Lost Tools of Learning
Early in the essay, Sayers accurately recounts the composition of the medieval classical education: first, the trivium which included the “tools” of learning: grammar (language acquisition) logic (critical thinking), and rhetoric (written and oral composition) which young men tackled before moving on to the quadrivium (the specific “subjects” of arithmetic, astronomy, music, and geometry.) In her anguish over the modern state of nations where men and women don’t know how to think, Sayers speculates that there may be a connection between the medieval trivium and the stages of child development. She posits:
what if the psychology of the child progresses through the 3 stages of the trivium?
Sayers names the 3 stages of child development poll-parrot, pert, and poetic; she then concludes that the 3 stages of the trivium are “singularly appropriate” to the 3 stages of child development. Based upon her own personal experience as a child, preteen, and teen, this hypothesis does seem to make sense, but in real life, it has never been clinically proven, and in fact, in my own experience as a mom who has tried to follow this model, I have found that the 2 pieces do not correlate. In fact, Sayers absolves herself from blame by saying, “My views about child psychology are, I admit, neither orthodox nor enlightened.”
My objection relates to the current classical renewal movement’s (1) misinterpretation of Sayer’s personal opinion on child development as gospel truth, (2) misapplication of Sayers’ hypothesis to a 12 year schedule, and (3) deviation from the historic classical education model by tackling subjects as soon as the child can read. In practice, we have taken a public school model (12 years of subjects) and dressed it up by incorporating classic literature, ancient languages, formal logic, and oratory as follows: 4 years (grades 1-4) in the “grammar” phase doing subjects, 4 years (grades 5-8) in the “logic” phase doing subjects, and 4 years (grades 9-12) in the “rhetoric phase doing subjects. No wonder moms and dads who try to adopt a classical education model fail! If you look closely, this is a public school paradigm with “classical” subjects tacked on!
Medieval scholars did NOT impose a 12 year trivium on their apprentices. They taught their students the basics first, and when the student had the tools for critical thinking, speaking, and writing, he or she was instructed in subjects. In our current culture, we rush to formally educate; you might be surprised to discover that medieval and colonial students began the trivium at a much older age (14 years old) and quickly progressed through the trivium so that they could dive into the meatier subjects of the quadrivium. In later years, additional subjects were added to the curriculum including law, medicine, and theology.
“Ask…Don’t Tell:” How You Can Use Socratic Dialogue in Your Home School
Posted by Diane in Personalized Homeschool Curriculum on November 22nd, 2007
Socratic Dialogue refers to a method of classical home education that was first recorded in ancient Greece by Plato. In two of his more famous works, The Republic and The Apology, Plato records the conversations between the teacher, Socrates, and a variety of students. Although not immediately apparent, these conversations represented a method of inquiry in which an abstract moral concept such as justice, temperance, or virtue was examined through the process of asking questions. In effect, the master Socrates taught the pupil a concept by asking instead of telling.
So, how do you use Socratic Dialogue in your own home school? Well, the parent decides what concept he or she wants to explore and plans a series of specific questions that will eventually eliminate contradictions and reveal underlying beliefs. The questions are intended to…
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What Does Inductive Reasoning Have to Do With Homeschooling Rabbit Trails?
Posted by Diane in How to Teach Homeschool Skill 2: THINKING on November 9th, 2007
Have you ever started your homeschooling day with a plan only to find yourself chasing a rabbit? I recently heard a well-respected authority say that all knowledge was related, and after following a link for learning a foreign language this morning, I landed on a blog which featured this beautiful video about Bosnia Herzegovina. I’m sure the author of the blog only intended to promote her beautiful country, but I ended up pondering other ideas related to Christianity and classical education. Today I’ll show you how to take seemingly unrelated trivia and incorporate it into your classical education. Enjoy the video then continue reading…
Trivia
Bosnia Herzegovina is located in southern Europe on the Balkan Peninsula directly east of Italy. 
Previously part of Yugoslavia, Bosnia Herzegovina is home to Sarajevo, host city of the 1984 Winter Olympics. During the struggle for independence in 1992-1995, the people of this country experienced war in their homeland. According to Operation World
Although the war officially ended in 1995, NATO maintained a stabilization force there until December 2005. The video clip portrays a countryside of beauty and tranquility, and the people appear to be at peace, but there are ongoing ethnic and religious tensions. During the 500 year Turkish occupation, many Bosnians became Muslim (38-50% of the population), and during the ’90′s, the Croats created an alliance with the Bosnians against the Christian Serbians (35% in a 50/50 split: Catholic/Orthodox.)
You may recall seeing news reports during the ’90s about ethnic cleansing, looting, destruction, and death under Serbian Milosovic’s reign of terror. Such horror has “left deep scars and abiding hatred between communities that once lived together, spoke the same language, and even intermarried.” (Operation World p.116) The Bosnian language is based on the Latin alphabet although the Cyrillic alphabet is used occasionally.
Observation
So how can you apply seemingly unrelated facts or news events to your classical home school? One of the hallmarks of a classical education is inductive reasoning which involves 3 steps: (1) observe, (2) interpret, and (3) apply. In this particular situation, I have observed (step 1) something in my world (the enticing video) which caused me to want to learn more. My first reaction was a desire to visit Bosnia Herzegovina; then I wanted to learn more about the people of the country so I did a little more research.
Interpretation
Next, I quickly catalogued my new knowledge so that I could interpret (step 2) what I had learned. What did I learn? I discovered that Bosnia Herzegovina has recently experienced war; in fact, my peers there were fleeing their homes and losing loved ones while I was adding to my family and creating a safe home for my newborns! I learned that there are more Muslims than Christians in the country, and that Protestant Christians are nearly nonexistent. I learned that these people have a long history…they were around when the Turks dominated the world during the Crusades. What is the meaning of this information that I have gathered.
Application
Finally, I apply (step 3) what I have learned to our own home school situation. Application will be unique for each family, but here are five ideas I might use in my family.
1. Currently, my teenage son is studying the American Civil War, so I could relate the Bosnian Reconstruction to the American Reconstruction period of the 1860s-70s as homes were rebuilt and ethnic divisions were examined with a view towards healing.
2. I could take a thematic approach to application by talking about grief and forgiveness. We’re studying I Kings at table in the mornings, so I could relate the Bosnian situation to family divisions in ancient Israel during David and Solomon’s reigns.
3. We could discuss what it would be like here in America if conditions allowed a foreign religion to evangelize mass numbers of citizens like the Muslim conversions that occurred during the Ottoman occupation of the Middle Ages.
4. Right now, the kids are immersed in this year’s policy debate resolution on illegal immigration, so we could talk about the refugee situation in Bosnia and how it relates to immigrants like the Somalians or Liberians seeking asylum in the U.S.
5. Or I could go back to that original rabbit trail and relate the Bosnian language to the Latin language!
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So, keep your eyes, ears, and heart open when you follow rabbit trails and come across seemingly unimportant information…the possibilities for meaningful discussion in your classical home school are endless!
Sola Scriptura: The Centrality of Scripture in our Home School
Posted by Diane in Personalized Homeschool Curriculum on October 30th, 2007
In our classical Christian home school, Scripture takes priority over all other subjects or activities. Why is that? Are we “Bible-thumpers” who learn Scripture so that they can correct others? No, we want to drink deeply of Scripture because we find that the Lord regularly reveals His character through His Word, and we want to know Him better! We also find that He uses regular time in His Word to transform our minds and hearts so that we look and act more like Jesus.
The Protestant Reformers knew this truth, and if you’ve ever heard the Latin term “sola Scriptura” which means “by Scripture alone,” you are probably familiar with the assertions that (1) the Bible authenticates and interprets itself, (2) the Bible is clear to the average reader, and (3) the Bible is sufficient to be the final authority for Christian doctrine. You may recall that the Protestant Reformers were pushing against the idea that experts (ordained clergy) were necessary to reveal and interpret God’s Word; they also opposed the idea that man’s traditions could determine doctrine.
Anyway, in our home school, Scripture takes priority in our list of 7 essential elements, and we consider it central to all learning. God’s Word is the lens through which we see the Lord, ourselves, and the world. Thankfully, David takes his responsibility from Deuteronomy 6 seriously and joyfully. He would never delegate this privilege to another. There is nothing my husband enjoys more than being in the Word! Every morning before the kids do any other homeschooling assignments, we gather around kitchen table and read the Word together over breakfast. We take turns selecting the book we read, and everyone is expected to read out loud. David doesn’t tell us what the text means; rather, he asks leading questions so that we come to understanding in community, and it’s amazing how the Lord does give us fresh insights that we may not have had if reading alone. We cherish our daily time together at table in the Word, and it keeps us all on the same path. It also shapes our worldview so that when we encounter ideas in our classical education we can evaluate them for truth and meaning.
Additionally, when the kids were around 12 years old, we felt it was time to introduce them to their own private quiet time with the Lord. They each retired their precious picture Bible to the closet and received a “real grownup” Bible. We shepherded them in making time with their Lord the first priority of their morning so that when they came to table, they were already in conversation with Him. The format for quiet time is flexible: we encourage reading of Scripture, prayer, journaling, taking a solo walk, or just getting away to a quiet spot for retreat time. The important condition is allowing your spirit to grow still so you can listen to His Spirit speak.
If your husband is not already leading the family in daily Scripture time, I’d encourage you to begin praying that the Lord would whisper His will to your husband. Don’t nag him about it…wait on the Lord to convict and provide the desire to guide your children (and you) in understanding and applying the Word. I’ll be writing more posts in the future about Scripture since it is such a critical component of our home schooling. Look for the next post on our belief that both Mom and Dad need to be involved to provide the richest classical Christian home education experience!
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Learn more about the 7 essential elements of a classical Christian homeschool. Don’t forget to rate this article by clicking on the stars above the headline. Thanks!
