By Mrs. Robin Johnston The Western belief in the efficacy of examinations is a symptom of a widespread and deep-seated tendency,—the tendency to judge according to the appearance of things, to attach supreme importance to visible ‘results,’ to measure inward …
By A. Mausolf What do I notice?What do I wonder?What does this remind me of? In our professional development sessions with teachers, our team recommends again and again the use of these three questions in order to engage students in …
Three Questions That Lead to the Joyful Act of Learning Read more »
One of the most surprising things about Classical Education today is the widespread utilitarian approach to teaching Latin. Although classical educators generally emphasize intangibles like Truth, Goodness, and Beauty and regard wisdom and virtue as the proper ends of education, …
It’s the time of year when many people like to watch Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker ballet. But did you know that in the story on which it is based, the evil mouse king is in fact not defeated by Marie’s shoe, but …
One of my main inspirations for UD’s Living Latin curriculum, for which I am currently writing Level 1 (K-4th grade), came from an appendix in a book on St. Ignatius’ Idea of a Jesuit University (1954), by Father George Ganss (1905-2000). In this appendix entitled “Historical Sketch of the Teaching of Latin,” Fr. Ganss shows that up until the 1700s, and especially during the Middle Ages and Renaissance Humanism, Latin was taught as a living language, and this corresponds to different objectives than today: “[M]odern methods of teaching Latin aim chiefly to impart knowledge about the language and its literature. In contrast, the ancient methods in the 13th and in the 16th centuries aimed chiefly to develop an art – the art of speaking, reading and writing the language” (p. 226).
The UD K-12 Classical Education team has been offering Professional Development for classical educators over the last 12 months. Most recently the team visited five schools and led teachers through the process of creating Socratic questions for any subject. As …
Professional Development for K-12 Classical Schools Read more »