What is Classical Christian Education?

Formation Not Merely Information

Unlike most modern educational methods that tend to focus on memorizing information in order to pass a test with the goal of preparing a student for a future vocation, classical Christian education (CCE) begins with a different goal- that of cultivating the whole student to view the world with certain foundational truths and to align their desires with God’s ideal.  The goal is formation, not merely information.

Classical Christian education is a time-tested education that teaches students how to learn, how to think and reason, how to work hard and to communicate clearly and persuasively.  While there is no single recipe for CCE, emphasis is on a “language-learning” approach (reading and writing) as opposed to “image-based” (videos, tv, etc.)  that prioritizes the study of “great books” (the classics), immersion into the study of history using original sources, and the study of Latin, foundational to success in learning the Romance languages and biblical study.  Teachers employ a Socratic discussion of questioning-answering to encourage reason and critical thinking skills.

Christian Paideia

Classical education, originally created by the Greeks, later became Christianized to become “classical Christian.” The goal is to cultivate wisdom in light of Christ’s creation and train students to establish a biblical worldview. Paideia is the Greek word for an ancient concept referring to the rearing and education that forms the soul of a human being and results in a person who can think critically and logically and be an ideal member of society. The concept of the Christian paideia lies in the Bible as foundational and the standard of truth across all subjects, not confined to one aspect of life or Bible class. Before the mid-eighteenth century, the Christian paideia was the purpose of nearly all Western education. Students are taught to make connections across subjects and to learn to use all of their skills in every class. The result is a well-educated student who can see the rich interconnections across subject matter, all the while connecting it back to God’s hand in all creation.

The Trivium

Classical education is a three-stage process that follows a child’s natural stages of learning: the Grammar, or early years, where facts and information are primary; the Logic stage, where those facts are integrated and arranged to form an argument; and the Rhetoric Stage, where the previous two stages are integrated to “make a case” eloquently, logically, and forcibly.  This classical pattern is called the trivium, meaning “the three ways.”

The trivium, taught since ancient times, has remained the most effective structure for educational success. When subjects are taught in a way that follows a student’s natural learning progression, learning becomes a delight and a natural interest in learning the subject is enhanced.  

Those familiar with CCE will undoubtedly know of Dorothy L. Sayers, who, while studying at Oxford in 1947,  presented an essay titled, “The Lost Tools of Learning,” in which she argued that “modern” education was failing to teach students the ability to learn; instead it simply taught students what to learn by teaching various subjects in isolated fashion.  She called for a return to the methods of teaching found in medieval universities, the “trivium.”  Her remarks set the stage for a return to the tried and true classical education style that has become the foundation for today’s classical Christian education.

CCE embraces the trivium as a way of learning that goes hand in hand with a child’s natural ability to learn and develops a student’s ability to think critically and speak clearly and eloquently, all the while seeking truth, goodness, and beauty as it reveals connections between subjects and shares the view of God’s overarching sovereignty in all creation. 

As an interesting note, although today’s classical Christian education is centered on the trivium, spanning grades K-12, in the ancient world, after completing the trivium, students would progress to the quadrivium, “the four ways,” to learn arithmetic, astronomy, geometry, and music.  While the trivium focused on the “language arts,” the quadrivium focused on the “number arts.”  Together, the trivium and quadrivium completed the study of the traditional seven liberal arts.  Completing the full study provided students an appreciation and understanding of the interrelatedness of God’s creation and the correct ordering of the soul.