Top Five Differences: Modern Catholic Schools & Classical Catholic Schools

Top Five Differences Between Classical & Modern Catholic Schools

My name is Maia Minakas and I am an 8th-grade student at St. Ann Classical Academy.  I have attended Catholic schools since kindergarten. Until last year, there did not seem to be much difference in what, and how, I learned at school from my friends at public schools, except that I took a religion class each day. For the past two years, I have been fortunate to experience a classical Catholic curriculum instead of the modern curriculum followed by many Catholic schools today. So what is the difference between a modern Catholic school curriculum and a classical Catholic curriculum?

1. The Teacher’s Role - In typical schools, the teacher’s role is to lecture the students, present facts, assign work, and administer tests. In the classical Catholic model, the teacher’s role is to guide the students through class discussions. There are greater opportunities for students to participate in the discussions, identify and discuss related topics, and ask or answer questions. Our teachers love to engage the class and it is a lot more fun when everyone is participating.

2. How We Learn - Most schools focus on memorizing facts in order to pass tests. Afterward, many students forget a lot of the facts they memorized just for the test. In the classical model, the focus is on learning how to think and how to solve problems, as well as how to clearly express those thoughts. Of course, we still have to memorize some facts, but they are more meaningful and even easier to remember when you spend time understanding the reasons behind the facts through class discussions or projects.   

3. What We Learn - In the past, my schools taught the usual subjects in isolation from each other – math had nothing to do with religion, which had nothing to do with science, which had nothing to do with history, and so on. The classical model connects each subject to God and to each other, showing us how to look deeper into the subjects to discover how they relate to each other. One of my favorite topics in science is astronomy, and instead of just learning facts, I really enjoy learning about how astronomy relates to other subjects such as math, religion, and history. Another subject that is unique to the classical Model is Latin, which appears across many other subjects, especially history, language arts, religion, and science.       

4. Catholic Studies – A key part of the curriculum in a classical Catholic model is to allow students to discover God throughout the school day, across all subjects. The search for goodness and truth are incorporated into all subjects, which makes this approach unique from typical schools, even modern Catholic schools, where such discussions, as well as Catholic history and values, are only covered in religion class.

5. Objective of Education - The goal of many schools is to enable students to pass tests in order to move onto the next level, whether that be middle school, high school, or college, and eventually enter the workforce.  The goal of classical education is instead to ignite curiosity and creativity, and to inspire students to never stop learning and growing.  

The classical Catholic model helps students learn to think, ask questions, and solve problems; providing the time and guidance to step back and gain a deeper understanding of our world.