By Nathan Carr Conversion being a central tenant of the Christian understanding of salvation, Plato’s description of the “repentance” of the darkened eye of the soul leading to its intended ability to later discern the world outside of the cave has the overtones that make for easy employment in the service of the church. The paideia kyriou (“instruction of the Lord”)[1] places Christ as the … Continue reading Paideia
By Ian August Mosley Editor’s Note: On October 10, Joshua Gibbs wrote a piece for Circe Institute entitled, “Harkness Cautions: You Need a Sage on the Stage.” On November 16, Circe Institute published a response to that piece by Bill Zimmerman entitled, “The Sage at the Table: A Response to Gibbs.” We highly recommend both articles and the excellent conversation regarding pedagogy that arises out … Continue reading Classroom as Greenhouse: A Response to Joshua Gibbs’ “Harkness Cautions”
By Cheryl Swope, M.Ed.[1] Even if we fail, those who make an effort to get to the top will climb higher than those who from the start despair of emerging where they want to be, and stop right at the foot of the hill. – ancient Roman orator Quintilian, Institutio Oratoria, Book 1 Special education began nearly five hundred years ago when a Benedictine … Continue reading Teach Them to Climb
Top 5 Books of 2018 by Ian Mosley, Latin Teacher at School of the Ozarks As the year comes to a close, we as a staff have decided to detail our favorite reads of 2018. The Dearest Freshness Deep Down Things: an Introduction to the Philosophy of Being, by Pierre-Marie Emonet What a sublime little book! In attempting to give a non-technical introduction to some … Continue reading My Top 5 Books of 2018 (Ian Mosley)
By Lucy Watson Lucy is a senior at School of the Ozarks located in Point Lookout, Missouri. She is looking to study graphic design with a minor in accounting in college. When she isn’t doing school work or reading, she loves to play sports, paint, spin pottery, and spend time with her family. I am in my fourth year of a classical Christian education, and … Continue reading On Beauty and Longing
By Josh Dyson The subtitle from the ESV editors for Psalm 78 is “Tell the Coming Generation”. In a handwritten note to the side, I have labeled it simply “Education”. Perhaps John Milton Gregory could have based his famous (at least in the CCE world) book, The Seven Laws of Teaching upon this chapter. Maybe he would have written it something like this: 1st Law—Law … Continue reading Psalm 78
By Christine Norvell Humanity of every age and culture has sought a sense of purpose, often in semantics—perhaps fulfillment, contentment, joy, pleasure, satisfaction, or happiness add meaning to our life on earth. However, some of these words appear interconnected or lend to a dichotomy, either relating to the physical senses or to intuitive ones. Aristotle saw how these separate terms could intertwine to define happiness: … Continue reading On Aristotle and Happiness
By Joshua Bruce “Potato chips may be eaten, but only in moderation.” The philosopher Aristotle said that. Well, he didn’t exactly say that. But if Aristotle had known about potato chips and how good they are, he definitely would have said that about them. Which is why my son, a classically trained toddler, already well-versed in Aristotelian categories, always says the same thing when he … Continue reading Chips: In Moderation
By Dr. Steve Turley There’s an interesting term that’s developed among scholars over the last several years: retraditionalization. While certainly a bit cumbersome, it is a rather simple and indeed profound concept. In the face of threats to a sense of place, identity, and security so often posed by globalization, populations tend to reassert historic identity and security markers – religion, custom, and tradition … Continue reading Why Classical Education is the Future
By Christine Norvell It was a classic when it was first published in 1949, but it remains a classic because it is one-of-a-kind. Marchette Chute’s Shakespeare of London[1] absolutely is the best biography because of her approach. Chute essentially crafted the story of Shakespeare’s life from a paper trail, from wherever she could find town records, lease arrangements, tax papers, theatre programs, personal letters, and … Continue reading The Best Shakespeare Story Ever
By Ian Mosley, Instructor of Latin, School of the Ozarks Tom was not raised a Christian. Growing up, his family never went to church, never read the Bible together or practiced family prayer or worship. Nevertheless, he was lucky to have two parents who loved him, made sure he got a good education (by their own best lights, of course), and always encouraged his voracious … Continue reading What’re You Going to Do with Socrates?
By Ian Mosley The dawn does not disperse, but in fact removes the image even of the dark which just one moment past, in cloak intact and seamless seemed to own the world–remark the ways in which our mind cannot embrace contráries: ashen bones cannot be raised, the purest hyssop won’t our filth efface, but rather death will drag us where none are praised. But … Continue reading Sonnet for the First Week in Lent
The Classical Thistle 