Author Archives: Cheryl Swope

What I Learned from a Cohort

Cohort

One morning a welcoming cohort gathered with me around a seminar table for the course “Difference and Human Dignity in the Great Tradition” at Templeton Honors College at Eastern University in Philadelphia. A cohort, I had learned prior to my arrival, is “a group of people who are banded together.” The intelligent faces around me […]

Why Study Western Civilization?

Why Study Western Civilization?

Once upon a time, when a person intended to learn about education, the words “Western civilization” did not offend him. Today, for reasons that elude many of us, hearers now take offense at these words and the studies they embody. I witnessed this firsthand at a recent homeschooling convention in a room filled to its […]

Letter From the Editor Winter 2020: My Child is Human

My Child is Human

A friend and I brought our children to a playground one summer many years ago. As heat, humidity, and noise intensified, one of my twins became unruly and unkempt and had a wild look in the eyes. My friend’s child quickly backed away with fearful disgust and exclaimed, “A monster!” My friend quickly chided, “That’s […]

The Liberating Arts

Liberating Arts

Some parents and educators have the misconception that classical education is only for “smart kids.” It is easy to understand why someone might think this way. Latin at age eight? Homer by fourteen? With such standards, one might reason, surely classical education is only for born geniuses—the brightest and best of our children. But what […]

The Futility of Facilitating

The Futility of Facilitating

In recent years I find I have begun serving on boards, task forces, and even in a Think Tank. Such appointments are an honor, and are idyllic in many ways. Dropped into the midst of brilliant, visionary people, I appreciate listening, learning, and contemplating ideas. However, I have learned that no matter the intelligence or […]

Nothing Ordinary

Nothing Ordinary

When my grandma left me more than half a century of diaries, she gave me much more than large boxes of small books. She gave me a keyhole through which to peer into the span of her life. Often at night I draw open another volume and close my eyes to breathe in the faint […]

At the End of the Day, You Have a Book

End of the Day

Recently I attended some out-of-town meetings on parochial education. As I left my hotel room to face the long day ahead of me, prepared but a little hesitant to begin the extended and mind-intensive work, I gathered my name tag and folder. I scanned the hotel room one last time to see if I had […]

Aesop: A Good Beginning

Aesop: A Good Beginning

Classical writings possess a distinctly concise wisdom. Rather than distant relics or dusty artifacts, these treasures instruct our children in our own time. When we want to introduce classical literature, Aesop is a good place to start. Aesop’s fables have long been considered “the ideal pedagogical vehicle, second only to the Bible when it comes […]

The Danger of Discovery

Danger of Discovery

One of the most heartbreaking things I hear is fatigued resignation from a parent: “I loved the curriculum, but I gave up after the first few weeks of trying to make my child like it. Maybe he would do better with a non-traditional approach, like ‘discovery learning.’” Such a homeschooler has often spent months researching […]

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