Classical & Christian Education
Sixty-seconds on Classical Christian Education
All knowledge must have a core of truth from which it is derived, analyzed and expressed. At The Oaks, all subjects are taught from a Biblical worldview and are integrated to show the unity of all knowledge. This is not intended to be a narrow view of education excluding alternative perspectives, but rather a broad view, integrating all subjects through a Christian worldview.
The teachers, staff, and Board members will provide positive examples of living the Christian life. They will be expected to hold to a strict standard of conduct and integrity outside, as well as inside, the classroom.
The staff and administration of The Oaks will encourage and reinforce the spiritual training the students are receiving at home.
♦ For a copy of our Statement of Faith click here.
♦ For A Christian Worldview Defined click here.
♦ For more information on what the Bible says about education or for more reasons to consider a Christian education, click here.
♦ For a discussion of the Public vs. Christian school choice that parents face, click here.
The true mark of a quality education must not be simply a mind full of facts. It is accumulated knowledge with a hunger for more, the ability to express what has been learned, and most importantly, the acquisition of the proper tools with which to continue the learning process throughout an entire lifetime. If a student merely learns 'subjects', but not how to think, he has learned everything except the "art of learning."
Dorothy Sayers, a clear thinking Classicist, was indeed insightful in 1947 when she proposed the solution to this educational void and suggested that we return to an older educational method, the Trivium of medieval education. The Trivium consists of three parts: Grammar, Dialectic (Logic) and Rhetoric, which were preparation for the study of particular subjects. The Trivium equips students with the tools of learning, and therefore prepares them for the discipline of continued studies.
Miss Sayers matched the three stages of the Trivium to the three basic stages of child development. Grammar, which involves the memorization of basic facts, goes nicely with what she called the "Poll-Parrot" stage. Younger children love to chant, recite, and memorize. Dialectic is the study of formal logic and argumentation, and fits well with the "Pert" stage. Because children are naturally argumentative at the junior high and early high school level, they should be taught to argue properly and logically. The third level is Rhetoric, which is the study of the art of public speaking and reasonable, persuasive expression. This compliments the student's "Poetic" phase, in the high school years, which is the age when a student is concerned with appearance and identity.
When Grammar, Dialectic and Rhetoric are taught at these ages, the teacher is teaching "with the grain." Two things are accomplished. The children enjoy what they do, and what they do equips them with the tools of learning. They are then ready for a lifetime of study and thinking. Fundamentally, they are not taught a different body of knowledge, but with a method of education that is different.
The Oaks Classical Christian Academy utilizes the Trivium as our method of education. The curriculum focuses on the basics of mathematics, science, history and language studies, including a study of Latin and classic literature. An awareness of, and gratitude for the heritage of Western civilization will be developed. The Trivium approach to education has proven to be an effective method in providing students with not only the knowledge of facts, but the desire and tools for continued learning as they move out into the world, and for the rest of their lives. It is our goal that when students graduate, they not only know how to read and cipher, but are truly trained to think critically.
Adapted from Recovering the Lost Tools of Learning by Douglas Wilson.
For more great reading on Classical Education:
The Lost Tools of Learning by Dorothy Sayers
Recovering the Lost Tools of Learning by Doug Wilson
The Case for Classical Christian Education by Doug Wilson
Repairing the Ruins by Doug Wilson
Classis - The Quarterly publication of the Association of Classical and Christian Schools with great articles on a variety of topics concerning Classical Education. http://www.accsedu.org/2009%20CLASSIS.ihtml?id=303710
The Oaks is an accredited member of the Association of Classical and Christian Schools (ACCS).