What Is Classical Education?
"Classical education can be likened to a vast museum, filled with numerous awe-inspiring rooms that could be explored for a lifetime. It’s a long-standing tradition of learning that focuses on the pursuit of truth, goodness, and beauty, while also delving into the liberal arts and the study of great books."
- Dr. Christopher Perrin
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Classical Ed A.K.A. Liberal Arts
The term "liberal arts" is a derivation of the Latin liberalis for
"free" and ars for "knowledge." This expression refers to the unbinding of the soul through the acquisition of knowledge. In a classical school setting, it includes grammar, logic, and rhetoric (the verbal arts of the trivium), as well as arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy (the mathematical arts of the quadrivium). This approach also involves the study of Latin. Beyond absorbing facts, classical education teaches students how to learn and think critically.
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Why is classical education so effective?
A major factor is its thoughtful approach to when and how students are taught based on their developmental stages. Children go through three distinct phases of learning (grammar, logic, and rhetoric), collectively known as the trivium. In the grammar stage (K–6), students are naturally skilled at memorizing through songs, chants, and rhymes due to the patterns and structures of the brain at this age. In the logic stage (grades 7–8), teenagers begin to question the world around them, seeking the “why” behind things—the logic and reasoning. During this time, they learn reasoning, logic, and how to engage in a thoughtful and purposeful debate. Finally, in the rhetoric stage (grades 9–12), students become independent thinkers and effective communicators. They study the art of persuasive speaking and writing that moves their audience.
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This method of education has produced countless influential leaders, scientists, writers, philosophers, artists, and musicians throughout history. While classical education has never truly disappeared, it began to fade after the rise of progressive education around 1900. In recent decades, however, the K–12 liberal arts tradition has experienced a resurgence. Over the past thirty years, more than 500 classical schools (including private and charter institutions) have been established, and tens of thousands of homeschooling families are now embracing this time-tested approach to learning.
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