Blog
James Franklin
Mathematics has always been a core part of western education, from the medieval quadrivium to the large amount of arithmetic and algebra still compulsory in high schools. It is an essential part. Its commitment to exactitude and to rigid demonstration balances humanist subjects devoted to appreciation and rhetoric as well as giving the lie to postmodernist insinuations that all “truths” are subject to political negotiation.
Denise O'Hagan
As a poet and editor, this is a sentiment I’ve heard expressed more than once, albeit less bluntly. And I can’t help thinking that it’s a very modern question: our twenty-first century world increasingly values those activities which can be linked to tangible and financially lucrative ‘outcomes’ over others. This is reflected in turn in current trends in education, both in Australia and overseas.
Cheree Harvey
While preparing for our Parent Practicum on 28 June, I have had the marvelous opportunity to dwell on yet again, the fifteen tools that Classical Conversations promotes and teaches to gift your child (and yourself) a classical education. These are not new, they are derived from the classical style of learning from centuries before with Aristotle and Plato, and they really help to train the brain to think classically.
Miriam Thompson
People often ask, 'What is the best age to start Latin with children?". This brief article will look at a new program coming out of the University of Dallas, which, using Classical pedagogy, presents Latin to children in a meaningful and engaging way from a very young age.
Andrew J. Zwerneman
At the heart of an authentic classical education is the range of studies we call the humanities. Together, they are the principal means by which we learn what it is we hold in common as humans: our nature, the human condition, our origins, and our common purposes.
Kenneth Difff Crowther
If you are a teacher in Australia that has an interest in Classical or Liberal Arts education, a group I call the ‘Classically Inclined’, what should you do?
I ask this very pointed question because it is not only the logical, but also the imperative question to ask. The recent online conference hosted by ACES and CIRCE demonstrated the interest in classical education in Australia. It was heartening to see over 100 virtual attendees in many presentations, most of which were from Australia, not to mention the countless others who have watched the presentations after the fact.
Education is born free and everywhere is in chains. The quote may be mistaken but I trust the sentiment is not: the mass of contemporary schooling is anything but liberal, being the servile follower of every fad and fashion that descends out of academia’s ivory tower like mana from heaven. A generation ago, information technology was touted as the new summum bonum for students; since then, we’ve had open-plan classrooms with flexible or project-based learning and, more recently, STEM. All the while, the gap between young people’s years in school and their basic competencies in reading, writing and arithmetic is growing further and further apart. Why is this happening?
- Written by: Jonathan Hili
Why we need a classical renewal? This was the theme of a conference hosted by the Circe Institute, with the support of the Australian Classical Education Society. Held in April over two days, expert speakers, from both the USA and Australia, spoke about the importance and benefits of a classical education.
Dr Paul Morrissey, principal of Campion College, Australia’s only tertiary college dedicated to the study of the liberal arts, reminded listeners that wisdom is a most fundamental principle for the education of our young. It is a principle, or more accurately, in the words of Dr Morrissey, a “virtue,” that is often neglected in today's modern education system.
After the wave of inspiration and connection arising from the ‘Renewal’ conference a group of us in Queensland were fortunate enough to meetup on Monday, 11th April. This was the first of hopefully many face-to-face meetups that will serve the Classical Education community in South East Queensland.
Dr. Christopher Perrin's presentation highlighted the profound importance of studying history as there is significant wisdom to be gained from learning from the past. Questions such as: Why has the study of history diminished and what forms of folly is our ignorance leading us into? How can history be taught to impart virtue and as a meaningful and engaging story or narrative? How can we revive the study of history in order to acquire prudence or practical wisdom to examine lessons from the past and extract what speaks to us today?
By Cheree Harvey
When I discovered Classical Conversations I realised this was what I had been looking for. I had providentially found a community which was focused on empowering and encouraging parents to homeschool their children classically. A space which places the emphasis on virtue, on the centrality of God and the authority of scripture.
Hi, my name is Cheree Harvey and I am your Classical Conversations Country Coordinator. Although we have only been running in Australia for four years, we have seen enormous growth, from just two mums on the Gold Coast to five locations - Gold Coast, South Brisbane, Cairns, Western Australia and Adelaide, with more to come!
In this short article I will give a summary of the main points that were presented by Andrew Kern during his plenary session which is titled “Why We Need a Classical Renewal. This session was the opening session for the April 8-9 Conference organised by the CiRCE Institute.
Andrew first spoke about what is the purpose of classical education. Classical education which began in Ancient Greece is not a new technique nor is it another method. When the Romans encountered it they tried to preserve it. According to the CiRCE Institute, Classical Christian Education is the cultivation of wisdom and virtue by nourishing the soul on the true, good and beautiful so that in Christ the student is better able to know, glorify and enjoy God.
- Written by: Kon Bouzikos
By Carrie Eben
In this article Carrie Eben examines the Seven Liberal Arts ( the trivium and quadrivium).
Over twenty years ago, a spark ignited within me.
I was invited to teach at a new “classical school” in Tulsa, Oklahoma (USA) and promptly read as much as I could to understand this “new” way of educating—which wasn’t actually new. I did not make it to the end of the school year due to the birth of my firstborn child, but I learned enough that year about the classical liberal arts tradition which changed the trajectory of my teaching and learning. This was how I wanted to teach, this was how I wanted to be educated, and this was the education I wanted for my newborn son.
I begin with a confession. Despite the historical memory we have inherited of this disdained and much-maligned man, with all the negative associations that go along with him: a petty, puritanical character (that could verge at times into envy and vengeance), an uncompromising revolutionary zeal that did not even spare his closest friends, ostensibly tyrannical leadership, and his undoubted involvement in the excesses of the French Revolutionary Terror, I love Maximilien Robespierre. Now, it is true that his history is more complex and nuanced than the loathsome caricatures popularly presented in the West, but my admiration for him will tend to somewhat optimistic judgements where others would see only darkness. So, accordingly, please excuse any bias that follows in this article.
- Written by: Jonathan Hili
By Émile Troullier
It is an unseasonably foggy and cold morning in Sydney and I am supervising the last skirmishes of a rugby training session. As the boys are still scrimmaging around the ball, the baritone voice of the school bell brings the action to an end. Magically, the fog begins to disperse, and so do the boys, some of them rushing to the pavilion to recover their accoutrements for the school day, while others head to their boarding house. Still in my coaching tracksuit, I reflect on the modern scourge of mature men in activewear as I make my way to the refectory to have breakfast. I sit in a quiet corner and start gathering my thoughts for the day’s activities. Breakfast does not take long. Then, I move to the teachers’ quarters to have my daily ablutions and put on my full teaching regalia. I straighten my tie, I put on the essential name tag and off I go again. Senior Latin will be opening the day’s proceedings. Soon, some of the mud-clad boys whom I was supervising on the rugby pitch will be joining me in the classroom for a lesson on Virgil’s Aeneid.
Difff interviews ACES President Kon Bouzikos (Educating Humans Podcast)
In this bonus episode, Difff interviews Kon Bouzikos, President of the Australian Classical Education Society. Kon speaks about his passion for classical education, and the mission of the ACES.