Dr. Junius Johnson on The Art of Teaching & Cultivating the Imagination
Classical Education
The Problem with Teaching Classically Using Objectives
This chapter discusses the problem with teaching classically while using objectives and checklists. It explores how this approach contradicts the essence of classical education and promotes a mindset of test-focused thinking. Instead, the speaker emphasizes the importance of cultivating a lifelong relationship with the texts and allowing students to engage in a dialogue with the material.
About the Guest
Junius Johnson is a writer, teacher, speaker, independent scholar, and musician. His work focuses on beauty, imagination, and wonder, and how these are at play in the Christian and Classical intellectual traditions. He is the executive director of Junius Johnson Academics, through which he offers innovative classes for both children and adults that aim to ignite student hearts with wonder and intellectual rigor. An avid devotee of story, he is especially drawn to fantasy, science fiction, and young adult fiction. He performs professionally on the french horn and electric bass. He holds a BA from Oral Roberts University (English Lit), an MAR from Yale Divinity School (Historical Theology), and an MA, two MPhils, and a PhD (Philosophical Theology) from Yale University. He is the author of 5 books, including The Father of Lights: A Theology of Beauty, and On Teaching Fairy Stories. An engaging speaker and teacher, he is a frequent guest contributor to blogs and podcasts on faith and culture. He is co-host of The Classical Mind podcast and is a member of The Cultivating Project.
Show Notes
Dr. Junius Johnson joins Adrienne to discuss the art of teaching. In this episode they discuss some important mistakes that happen in classical schools and how to overcome them. Junius explores the creative ways in which teachers should approach ALL subjects and help students enter into fruitful discussions no matter what the subject.
Some Ideas Discussed:
- The importance of helping students engage with real learning and relational connections
- The importance of believing in students
- The pitfalls of teaching objectives
- Holding onto lesson plans loosely
- Creating an atmosphere of wonder
- How a teacher can increase his or her own imagination!
Books Discussed in This Episode Include:
On Teaching Fairy Stories by Junius Johnson
The Chronicles of Narnia
JK Rowling
Dante's Divine Comedy
The Sword in the Stone by T.H. White
Through The Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll
The Dark is Rising Sequence by Susan Cooper
Beowulf
Hamlet
The Voyage of the Dawn Treador by CS Lewis
Paintings to inspire imaginative conversations with your students
(Print them in color and let them study it with a partner and then narrate as many details as they can remember without looking at it.)
- Children's Games by Bruegel
- Masque of Love by John Duncan
- The Plumbers by Norman Rockwell
- Declaration of Independence by John Trumbull
- The Death of Caesar by Jean-Léon Gérôme
- Sudden Shower over Shin-Ōhashi bridge and Atake by Hiroshige and then compare it to van Gogh's Bridge in the Rain (after Hiroshige)
Books to Build Imagination (for educators to read for self-edification in learning to wonder)
- Godel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid, by Douglas R. Hofstadter. This book can get really dense at times, but it uses the work of these three figures to stretch and challenge our view of reality.
- G.K. Chesterton, Tremendous Trifles. A delightful, accessible must-read in which Chesterton re-orients our attention to the small and everyday things.
- Fantastical and speculative fiction. A great place to start is The Neverending Story by Michael Ende, one of the unsung masterpieces of the 20th century.
- The Awakening of Miss Prim by by Natalia Sanmartin Fenollera
Games mentioned
- Splendor
- Lords of the Waterdeep
- Golf card game... can be played with regular card of buy this already made set called Play Nine.
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Credits:
Sound Engineer: Andrew Helsel
Logo Art: Anastasiya CF
Music: Vivaldi's Concerto for 2 Violins in B flat major, RV529 : Lana Trotovsek, violin Sreten Krstic, violin with Chamber Orchestra of Slovenian Philharmonic
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