Loading summary
Transcript25 lines
- [00:03]
A
Hey there, it's Scott Bertram, host of the Radio Free Hillsdale Hour. Hope you had a fantastic Thanksgiving. We're back at it this week with an in depth conversation with Dr. Matthew Spalding. He's Vice President of Washington Operations and Dean of the Van Andel Graduate School of Government at Hillsdale in Washington, D.C. but to our point, his new book is the Making of the American Mind, the Story of Our Declaration of Independence. As we approach the 200 150th anniversary, it will be a very important book talking about the intellectual tradition that inspired the writing of the Declaration and how it all came together. That's this week. Matthew Spalding on the Making of the American Mind on the Radio Free Hillsdale Hour. Find it at podcast hillsdale.edu or wherever you get your audio. Foreign.
- [01:04]
B
Welcome to The Hillsdale College K12 classical education podcast, bringing you insight into classical education and its unique emphasis on human virtue and moral character, responsible citizenship, content, rich curricula and teacher led classrooms. Now your host, Scott Bertram.
- [01:22]
A
Thanks for listening. The Hillsdale College K12 Classical Education Podcast is part of the Hillsdale College Podcast Network. More episodes at podcast hillsdale.edu or wherever you get your audio. You also can find more information on topics and ideas discussed on this show at our website, k12 hillsdale.edu. we're joined today by Julie Apel. She's assistant Headmaster at Hillsdale Academy here in Hillsdale, Michigan. Julie, thanks so much for joining us.
- [01:53]
B
Thanks Scott. Good to be with you.
- [01:55]
A
Talking today About Classical Education 101 an education about classical Education Hillsdale Academy, where you teach Hillsdale College K12 member schools across the country are distinctly classical. Can you describe for someone new to all of this, what exactly we mean by that?
- [02:16]
B
Yes, the essential ingredient in a classical education is its aim. Classical education at its core believes that human flourishing is deeply connected to learning and that what we learn is formative for the child. So education at the K12 level isn't about securing a particular trade or learning from the most current trend in education. Classical education schools have an explicit mission, and those missions include the development of the whole student, both both heart and mind, the cultivation of moral character, civic virtue, and the teaching of a robust curriculum in the liberal arts and sciences. I'd also describe classical education as something that prioritizes learning the knowledge and ideas that last. It's about teaching with tried and true practices, cultivating the students love for things worth loving their country, their community, things that are noble and true and things that are beautiful. And it's also about learning to participate in those things. So in a nutshell, if I were thinking About Classical Education 101, those are the things that make a classical school classical. The purpose of the education is the flourishing of the student, the cultivation of his character, virtue through an education, liberal arts and sciences. And so the culture of the school is a reflection of that purpose, and the curriculum and the pedagogy within the classroom serves those ends.
- [03:39]
A
We should mention that though The Hillsdale College K12 network is expanding, there are more member schools. Classical education overall is more top of mind. This is not anything that is new. It is a return to something that is old.
- [03:56]
B
That's right. It's not new. And you're right, it's a return. I think of it as a renewal of classical education. And there's something about that that's, that's interesting. We, I think there's a renewal because we may have forgotten exactly what education's supposed to be, but we can recognize when it's turned in the wrong direction. So I think there's. There's people. There are people across America who are curious about what that ought to be and are starting to really look into what is this classical education. And I think you're right. It's not that they're looking for something old. They're looking for something true, something that resonates and is worthy. And I think those components that I mentioned, it's. It's what you study, it's how it's taught, it's the kind of environment it's taught in. But ultimately, all of those things serve its purpose. And so when you turn education toward primarily the cultivation of a human being, then everything you do, from the selections of what you read in the classroom to how you teach literacy, to the opportunities to let the children play on the playground, you know, all of those things are in service of that aim.
- [05:10]
A
Let's talk about the what and the how. Maybe take them one at a time. If, if we were to peer inside the classroom at a Hillsdale member school, what are some things that might stand out in terms of what students are learning? The content.
- [05:25]
B
Yeah. You know, it's fascinating. People come to visit our schools all of the time, whether they're prospective family or maybe interested parties, even, you know, local authorities. They're just really curious about what's happening in our schools. And I often get comments on specifically what they're learning. Adults are always surprised when I walk with someone down the hall, say in the kinder through fourth grade hall. They will see examples of students who in first grade who have written multiple sentences about Mesopotamia, the words are spelled correctly and, and they're, the letters are formed beautifully and there's a clear example and all of them are a little bit different. So the things that students are learning are not copied. But, but what you can see there is that the students are learning very explicitly skills in literacy and numeracy in the language arts, but they're also learning rich content. So from day one in kindergarten, they're learning science, they're learning about reading good literature, having solid, beautiful literature read to them, they're learning history. And so you can, you can walk through the halls, you'll see students who are writing in cursive starting in second and third grade, students who are writing five paragraph essays in fourth grade, all the way through teaching of Latin. Stepping into an upper school classroom. I Sat in an 11th grade American literature classroom with just a fascinating discussion of a Hemingway short story this morning. But I also peeked into a kindergarten classroom where they are partner reading for the first time. So there's, there's a richness to the curriculum. It's not so much that it's rigorous or that we're trying to do something hard, it's that we're, we're learning the fundamental things and they build on one another. And so when you get to 12th grade and you take a year of civics and government, you're prepared for that. You've learned to read well, you've learned to write well, and you've learned to think well.
- [07:37]
A
And then what about the, how we look inside that same classroom and what stands out in terms of how students are learning things? What does the classroom look like? What is the approach of the teacher?
- [07:48]
B
Yeah, I think you see active classrooms and that looks different depending on the age level of the children in the room and maybe the content that they're learning. But I mentioned, for example, literacy. You will see the students who are actively participating from how they're holding their pencil, they're repeating back phonograms, they're articulating in choral response the rules that govern the spelling of the particular word that they've just learned. So there's an active engagement with the body and the mind. You will see that carried out in the teaching of math, where the students will physically work with manipulatives to understand a math concept before they learn the algorithm. But when they learn the algorithm, you'll see teachers ask questions such as why does that work? And why is that the fastest? Is that the best way to do it? Is it the most efficient way, Is there another way you can do it? So what you'll see is students who are thinking and being asked good questions so that they think about not just how to do something, but why and why it works. And if it makes sense, you'll see classrooms where teachers are asking many, many questions. There's a certain kind of pace of discussion today. As I mentioned the class I was in, I could take a tally of all the questions that were asked in 20 minutes, but they were all building to a really thoughtful discussion in which the teacher was leading the classroom, but the students were articulating the ideas. And so you see that at a kindergarten level and, and you see that at the 11th grade level. But that combination of it's students who are actively engaged. But it's because it's a teacher led classroom. So that teacher leading means we major in the content. The teacher's not the content, but the teacher is the steward of the content. And so he or she is the one who is leading the classroom. And the students are eagerly engaged in that because they recognize once they start to really understand what's happening in the classroom, they recognize that it's worthy of their participation as well.
- [09:59]
A
Talking with Julie Apel, she's assistant headmaster at Hillsdale academy. Classical Education 101. Hillsdale schools are classical. What makes them also distinct from the perspective of American classical education?
- [10:16]
B
I really love this about our schools. There is something really special about the initiative that Hillsdale College has taken to provide an American liberal education to families who want it in our country. And so when I think about our students from kindergarten all the way through their 12th grade year, they get a rich, robust study of history. And that includes basically four layers of learning American history every year. In the lower school, they spend half the year learning world history and half the year learning American history. When they enter into sixth grade, they'll, they'll recap their whole lower school with an examination of the ideas and the major themes that they've learned throughout their studies of world and American history. And then they'll step into seventh and eighth grade and get an excellent two years in learning this story of America. They'll come back to it after studying the ancients of the medievals in their 11th grade year where they'll study again at an 11th grade year where they have a much better understanding of, of all of those things together, as well as survey of ideas that they've learned in their philosophy and their literature classes. And they'll, they'll kind of synthesize that all together when they study political thought. And then, as I mentioned earlier, an entire year of government and civics in 12th grade. And so by the time if a student enters our schools and kindergarten and stays all the way through, I think about the things that they'll learn. They'll. They'll learn. It's over a hundred items of the student who can name key pivotal dates, events and people in our country's history and in world history. They'll be able to recite to you the preamble. They will be able to recite to you Lincoln's second inaugural address. They'll have read portions of the Federalist paper. So I think something that's really special. We talked about the renewal of classical education, and that aim is essential. But what I love about our schools is part of that aim is as a human being, you're part of a community. And so who are you? Becoming is not only for your own flourishing, but for the flourishing of your people, of your nation. And so our students are getting the kind of understanding of who we are, where we came from, the founding ideas that makes this nation great. And they have something to steward both through their knowledge and then the virtue that they've cultivated as students.
- [13:03]
A
A lot of talk about culture. Culture. What are the similarities or differences in what we'd see in the culture of a Hillsdale affiliated classical K12 school and other K12 schools more broadly?
- [13:18]
B
Yeah, when I think about a realm of comparison, first of all, any school that is a K12 school all together is probably a beautiful place. I think there's something really rich. You know, as families, we're a family unit. As churches, we're a church unit. And so there's something really special about a school that says it's important that students are together and faculty are together. From the time you're five years old until you're 18, there is a culture that happens within that. When you are a classical school. That that very idea that I've shared with you, that it's a human education designed for human flourishing, means that you're thinking about what are the elements that need to be a part of a school that reflect that development? Like I mentioned before, that there's a cultivation of loves. And so when you think about a school that has activities, right, those activities, what purpose do they serve? Many of them serve a place for students to kind of an outlet for students to grow in their particular interest or maybe their talents. But they're also participating in things that hopefully are beautiful and worthy of pursuing, but as whole Human beings. So when I think about a classical K12 school, what you'll see is a display of those values. So you'll see students who are physically active, lots of play on the playground. PE is essential because we're not just academic beings, we're physical beings. We're also beings who are fulfilled by beauty. And so the same students will participate in music and in art. You'll see in most classical schools and all Hillsdale K12 affiliated schools, you'll see students in uniforms. They're dressing in a worthy way for something that's important for the day. And so they're dressed up. They look nice, but they look like kids. They've got comfortable shoes. They're running and playing, but they're also paying close attention and learning, and they're. They're entering the day's work with a particular kind of purposefulness. I think in the culture of a Hillsdale school, you'll see teachers in the hallways with. With the children. You'll see. You know, I think about our schools. At my particular school, you'll see students in the hallways, and they might be around their lockers, and they don't even have locks on their lockers because it's a place where we take care of one another. It's a small enough environment where the relationships are a part of the full school environment. Yeah. I think the culture is one of those things that it's hard to define, but it's a reflection of what is normal there. And what is normal is a kind of attitude, disposition toward learning and toward participating together in such a way that it's an orderly place, but it's a happy place.
- [16:11]
A
What are the expectations for students who attend a Hillsdale affiliated classical school? How do we know they're thriving?
- [16:19]
B
Yeah. Oh, that's good. Well, first and foremost, in terms of expectations, I think about classical education as an education for anyone who wants it. So I say that because I think sometimes there can be a pendulum swing for families if they're thinking about classical education, like I mentioned before. Maybe we. We know that something's awry in the education that our students have pursued, but we don't know exactly what we're. What we're striving for, or what kind of education our students would thrive in. But I think that students and families who thrive at our schools are ones who have spent time really considering the mission of the school. If you were to visit the website of a Hillsdale affiliated school, you're going to see an explicit explanation of what the mission of the school is and then a clear outline of what that curriculum is going to look like. So when you see a student thriving, sometimes it takes a little bit of time. It can be something new, and the students work hard, but I think something starts to click and they recognize that they're actually enjoying learning and that there's actually something quite satisfying about being among other students who also want to learn. So students who thrive are doing the best that they can with the skills that they have at that point and are seeking out the support from their teacher and their admin to grow as students. And so what we see is whether the student starts in kindergarten and has that kind of initial burst of learning, or whether they join us in 9th grade and are kind of doggy paddling for the first few months, there's this evening out, and they start to figure it out, kind of taste what it looks like to pursue something for its own sake instead of sort of checking educational boxes. They thrive when they join the soccer team, or they join the chess team, or they participate in the service club. That's when you start to see a student thriving. I love seeing when the whole family's thriving. So I think about some things that are seemingly small, like the basketball game, high school basketball game, and a family's there cheering, cheering on the community. And they, all of their children are in fifth grade or below. But I also think, for example, every senior in a Hillsdale school writes a senior thesis. They choose a work in the curriculum that they want to. They want to contemplate for longer. They make a claim about it. They write a long paper about what that book teaches about the human good. And then they share. They present that for the school community. And my favorite thing is when their little siblings are there and raise their hand to ask a question because they've been having dinner table conversations about the works they read at school, school, or maybe even a mother or a father will do the same. And so that that idea that the student's learning is for his own flourishing, but it actually affects the culture of a whole family. So when the parents have really bought into the mission of the school, supported their students through the hard work of learning how to be a student at a classical school, I think they're a student who thrives is one who begins to see what that really means, feels like, and looks like to participate in that way.
- [19:46]
A
We've talked about what classical education is. What about what classical education isn't. Are there some common misconceptions that parents have about Hillsdale schools or about classical education? In general, we should address.
- [20:01]
B
Yeah, I like that question. I mentioned that. I think this is an education for everyone. And the misconception that that addresses is that this is an education for the elite. It's an education for human beings. And so it's an education that's worthy of our attention and our pursuit, but it's not for the elite, like I mentioned. It's, it's. It's for those who, who think learning is. Is worth pursuing for its own sake. So that's the biggest misconception, I think. The other component I think that is tied to that is if you think a classical education is only for those who, you know, will make the highest scores on the SAT or will become a particular profession after going to a particular college, I think that's a real misconception because many students will go on and study something that in our society comes with some good accolades. And many of them, most of them in fact, will do extremely well in college or any kind of further education because they've been equipped to learn and because they have really substantial content background knowledge which helps them to just be interested in all kinds of things. But many of those students will go into the trades and live a very fulfilling life working a trade and being able to pivot, quote or learn about anything they want to for a lifetime. And so I think that's a misconception that in my mind is the most dangerous because it has the potential to steal. I think one of the greatest rewards of a classical education.
- [21:45]
A
Are there any things that are vital for a family to know? Family considering classical education or teachers, or those who perhaps are considering teaching inside a school, what should they understand?
- [21:58]
B
I've hit on it a little bit, but I think that idea. Think about the things I mentioned. For the families and the students who are considering, I think they apply in some ways very similarly for a teacher. Most of us, if you're my age or younger, and most who are entering education or teaching these days, are younger than me. But we didn't receive a classical education. So there is a sense in which we are wanting to participate in something that we didn't receive ourselves. And that requires a particular kind of humility. And I think also a recognition that education is always sort of a roll up your sleeves and get into it kind of work. And so it means the magic formula isn't about running away from something that you're dissatisfied with, but learning about the thing that you're running to. And so beginning with the mission of the school, I think the first step into a classical school as a teacher is to really give yourself to the mission of the school and do everything you can to figure out what does it mean to live that out in your classroom. The other thing I think is just recognizing that you're a part of a renewal. And so in my mind, when you're in the classroom on a daily basis, you're serving your 24, 26, 27 students, but you're also participating in something larger than yourself. And so I think seeking out mentors, getting your admin and your maybe the deans of your school or fellow teachers to observe you and give you feedback, really wrestling with the idea that the things that you learn as you're teaching your students are formative for you and are helping you become a kind of person that your students are going to imitate. And I think those are the kinds of things that can help a teacher who's interested in classical education really take that leap and do it successfully.
- [23:58]
A
Julie Apoll is assistant headmaster at Hillsdale Academy in Hillsdale, Michigan. Talk today about Classical Education 101. Julie, thanks so much for joining us here on the Hillsdale College Classical Education Podcast.
- [24:12]
B
Thanks, Scott.
- [24:12]
A
I'm Scott Bertram. We invite you to like us on Facebook search for Hillsdale College K12 classical education. You also can follow us on Instagram hillsdalek12. That's hillsdalek12 on Instagram. Thank you for listening to The Hillsdale College K12 classical education podcast, part of the Hillsdale College Podcast Network. More at Podcast Hillsdale Edu or wherever you get your audio.