Wisdom and Eloquence: A Christian Paradigm for Classical Learning Review

Wisdom and Eloquence: A Christian Paradigm for Classical Learning

Publisher: Crossway

Authors: Robert Littlejohn, Charles T.  Evans

Price: Softcover: $14.99 - Purchase Here

Available at: Crossway, 1300 Crescent Street, Wheaton, IL 60187; Phone: 877.872.2871 ; Email: orders@crossway.org

If you are looking to start a classical Christian school, Wisdom and Eloquence: A Christian Paradigm for Classical Learning will give you a good starting place, and lots of food for thought. Both authors are Heads of School, and their experience shows in the thoughtful construction and organization of the text, as well as the content. Here you will find discussion of the purpose of education, the years of tradition upon which Christian classical education is based, along with thoughts on the both the intangible (building community) and tangible (pulling together curriculum) parts of a school built on the classical model.

For the private Christian home educator there is also food for thought, though rather than nuts and bolts you'll find a more general discussion of topics. I found the curriculum discussion (the liberal arts in general, language arts, mathematical arts, and rhetoric in particular) of great interest, and my homeschool planning changed as a result of the reading. The book also caused me to re-evaluate our curriculum in light of our goals. The discussion of character formation was thought provoking and practical, even though it was aimed at the deportment of students in an institutional setting.

Three appendices offer a message to parents about the importance of real education versus educational experimentation, an apologetic (or defense) of a liberal arts education shaping a Christian worldview, and strategic planning in building a dynamic community of learning. The book concludes with endnotes and a bibliography.

Review by: Virginia Jones
Virginia Jones hails from a small town in the Midwest, where “Nothing ever happens, thankfully!” Her family’s interests include horseback riding, cross-country skiing, swimming, and—when they can manage to sit still—reading.