Mortimer Adler & the Context of an Educational Philosophy

Mortimer Adler & the Context of an Educational Philosophy by Christine Norvell at The Imaginative Conservative. It all comes down to wisdom really. In Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle says, “Now it is thought to be the mark of a man of practical wisdom to be able to deliberate well about what is good and expedient for himself . . . about what sort of things conduce to the good life in general” because “it is impossible to be practically wise without being good.” To be fully human, to have a whole and full education, is to know what is good. Read

Get Organized to Teach History by Andrew J. Zwerneman at Cana Academy. One important area of teaching history is planning what we typically call a unit, which might cover an era of time within a civilization or a civilization as a whole. Below is a set of frequently asked questions about teaching history followed by helpful answers. I have designed this post mainly for teachers of middle school students. My examples are from Greek antiquity, but you could easily adapt the guidelines to teaching another ancient civilization or to teaching medieval or modern history. Read

Catholic Trainer Merges Faith and Fitness in Theology of the Body-Inspired Program by Francesca Pollio Fenton at Catholic News Agency. In 2019, Chase Crouse was working two jobs — in ministry at the Archdiocese of New York and as a personal trainer. He quickly realized that while he loved working with people at the gym, he hated not being able to talk about Jesus with them. So he decided to combine both of his passions and create a Catholic fitness and personal training apostolate called Hypuro Fit. Read

Apprenticeships for High Schoolers are Touted as the Next Big Thing. One State Leads the Way by Kavitha Cardoza at The Hechinger Report. Elkhart County is at the forefront of a movement slowly spreading across Indiana and the nation to make apprenticeships a common offering in high school. In 2019, as part of a plan to boost the region’s economic prospects, county leaders launched an effort to place high schoolers in apprenticeships that combine work-based training with classroom instruction. About 80 students from the county’s seven school districts participated this academic year, in fields such as health care, law, manufacturing, education and engineering. Read

Tips and Tricks for a Screen-Free Road Trip by Lindsey Fedyk at Refine. A screen-free road trip is not the easiest choice. It requires planning and active participation from the parents of young children. But we have found the effort to be well worth it every time. Here are a few tips and tricks I have learned along the way. Read

New Bill Expands School Choice; Catholic Leaders Applaud, Urge Caution by Kate Quiñones at Catholic News Agency. Congress has approved a historic school choice scholarship program designed to help families send their children to the schools of their choice — a “weakened” form of a program long anticipated by the U.S. Catholic bishops. With the passage of the “One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act,” tax credits will be given to donors who contribute to nonprofit scholarship-granting organizations in what school choice advocates have called a “historic” moment for school choice. Read

Revive Civics Education for America’s 250th by Madison Marino Doan and Jonathan Butcher at The Daily Signal. The National Assessment of Educational Progress civics exam, which evaluates the civic knowledge of a representative sample of students in fourth, eighth, and twelfth grades, found that nearly one-third of eighth graders are performing below NAEP “basic” level in civics—meaning many cannot explain the structure and functions of government. Read

3 Powerful Lessons from the Unforgettable Ulma Family by Theresa Civantos Barber at Aleteia. Some saint stories are very hard to read: Good, kind people who suffered so much that it seems wrong and unfair. But when you read the story of the Ulma family -- as horrifying as their death was -- you can’t help but get chills at their almost unbelievable courage. Here are a few concrete takeaways from their extraordinary life. Read

2 Sisters, Catholic-School Students, Lost in Texas Flood Remembered for Faith and Kindness by Madalaine Elhabbal at National Catholic Register. Two sisters who attended St. Rita Catholic School in Dallas were among the victims of the Texas Hill Country flash floods that have devastated parts of the state, the school confirmed in a statement on Saturday…They were discovered in Kerrville, 15 miles from their cabin community, with their hands clasped together, according to reports. Read

Throwback Thursday

Whether & When to Read a Book by Jim Hanink at New Oxford Review on March 13, 2024. In his classic How to Read a Book, Mortimer Adler, citing Francis Bacon, tells us that “some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.” Yes, but which books and in what order?... To be sure, the “whether” and “when” of reading a book depends on the reader and life’s endless variables. Still, there is a philosophical framework that can help structure our choices. How so? Because it is a framework of every human action. Read