Developing Classical Thinkers

Each year, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky releases a report entitled the “Festivus’ Report on Government Waste.” He catalogs different projects that the federal government has used taxpayer dollars on that, in Paul’s estimation, is not a wise use of tax payer funds.Many of these projects are funded through various scientific laboratories and, upon reading the list, looks eerily similar to the adventures of Lemuel Gulliver in Gulliver’s Travels, a work of satire by the 18th-century writer Jonathan Swift. In the episode, Matt, Winston, and Josh play a game in which they guess whether or not the experiment is from Jonathan Swift’s “Gulliver’s Travels” or from Rand Paul’s Festivus Report. Then, the group discuss the larger implications of satire and the purposes of scientific investigation. In short, they follow the purposes of satire itself: they use works of classical literature to try and better understand our own culture and our own foibles. For a copy of this year's Festivus' Report (and others), click on this link here: https://www.paul.senate.gov/?s=festivus

To celebrate and explain St. Patrick’s Day, today’s episode features a brief biography of St. Patrick. Roman-British missionary St. Patrick lived from 385 to 461 and is famous for bringing Christianity to the people of Ireland. Learn the full story and how Patrick’s life shows the value of being classically educated. The quote from St. Patrick’s Confessio is available from https://www.confessio.ie/etexts/confessio_latin#01The story about Irish monasteries preserving manuscripts from the ancient world is drawn from “How the Irish Saved Civilization,” available here: https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/how-the-irish-saved-civilization-the-untold-story-of-irelands-heroic-role-from-the-fall-of-rome-to-the-rise-of-medieval-europe-by-thomas-cahill/247589/?resultid=14dc8acd-4e59-40b8-b2ef-02c8bb1116a9#edition=2381566&idiq=4442804

Socrates described himself as the "gadfly" of Athens, someone who continually bothered Athenian citizens with his incessant questioning. Socrates' goal with these questions was to spur people onto greater understanding and self-reflection--and this is ultimately the goal of the teacher imitating Socrates in the classroom through Socratic questioning. In this episode, Isaac Jennings and Winston Brady talk through the idea of Socratic questioning, as well as ways of inserting such questions into your lessons and thinking of such questions on the fly. Isaac Jennings teaches logic and philosophy at Thales Academy Apex. Mr. Jennings earned a B.A. from North Greenville University, a M.Div. from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a M.A. in Philosophy of Religion from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Mr. Jennings teaches Trivium.

In this webinar geared for middle school teachers, Heather Brame and Winston Brady will present best teaching practices for teachers with large classes. Heather Brame will present an overview of direct instruction and strategies for implementing DI into their lessons. That way, teachers will have more tools to facilitate student engagement and aid in student understanding. Winston, meanwhile, will present an overview of seminar teaching and how to lead large classes in meaningful discussions, drawing from principles of Direct Instruction to help increase student participation and produce better educational outcomes.

On this special President's Day episode, host Winston Brady interviews Amity Shlaes, author of four New York Times-bestsellers and Chairman of the Board of the Calvin Coolidge Foundation, to celebrate the life and example of President Calvin Coolidge. On President's Day, we focus on those presidents who accomplished great deeds for their country: men like George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln, among others, who led the country through times of great crisis and hardship. Often, President Calvin Coolidge is overlooked amongst such notable leaders because his presidency did not include such events, but his life and example, as well as the genuine prosperity that occurred during his presidency, merit President Coolidge being celebrated on such occasions as President's Day. As president, Coolidge believed that his role was to step back and refrain from doing anything that might limit the opportunities of individual Americans to pursue their natural, God-given rights of life, liberty, and happiness. Check out this episode celebrating the life and example of Calvin Coolidge, and be sure to look into the Calvin Coolidge Foundation. For more information, check out their website at https://coolidgefoundation.org/about/

Happy Valentine's Day! In this reposted episode, Winston Brady speaks with longtime DCT contributor Will Begley about the life of St. Valentine. St. Valentine is a holiday that many people celebrate but few people know why we do so. When did we start celebrating Valentine's Day? Who was St. Valentine? Why hearts? Was this holiday cooked up to sell cards and chocolate, or was there something real, true, and meaningful at the heart of Valentine's Day? In this episode, Will Begley makes some guesses about the origins of St. Valentine’s Day, how Valentine’s Day became a day of card-and-rose-giving, and the backstory behind a number of the different St. Valentine figures.

In this episode, host Winston Brady speaks with Jarrid Looney, humanities teacher and Upper School Director at Millennium Charter Academy in Mount Airy, NC. On the episode, they discuss the joys of teaching at a classical school, what makes the charter schools unique in the educational space, and their favorite books. Millennium Charter Academy is an independent, public school whose classroom is the community, which invites parents, teachers, students, and the community to collectively challenge each child to achieve superior academic standards and to develop the highest moral character. We will expand educational choice with an innovative, student-centered environment producing life-long learners equipped with the knowledge and critical-thinking skills necessary to become leaders in the 21st Century.

In this episode, Winston Brady speaks with Gene Fisch, author of To Have a Tomorrow, a memoir of World War II and the hardships that the Fisch family and millions of other people endured while living in Nazi-occupied, and later Soviet-occupied, Poland.In the episode, Gene talks about his experience growing up in the forest hideaway in Polesie and his journey to the United States and Ellis Island as a young child. Along the way, Winston and Gene talk about the meaning of the American dream and the kinds of habits students and teachers need to develop to reach their real potential. Be sure to check out Gene's website https://www.genefischstory.com/ to find out more about his books and how you can find a copy of them.

This week is National School Choice Week, a series of events to draw attention to various school choice initiatives across the country. For any one unfamiliar with school choice initiatives, these are policies to make it easier on parents to send their students to a school of their own choice. These educational options may include charter schools or private schools but at its heart, these are schools that provide the best fit for a student. On this week's episode of Developing Classical Thinkers, Winston Brady speaks with Ray Nothstine, Senior Writer & Editor at State Policy Network. Ray joins the program to talk about school choice initiatives and how they help provide better educational outcomes for students and parents, why they tend to be popular across the political spectrum, and why they are important to sustaining a free and virtuous citizenry.For more information about school choice policies, check out https://schoolchoiceweek.com/.

In this episode, Winston Brady speaks Mark Bauerlein, Professor Emeritus at Emory University, about the need for high-quality, content-rich educational programs, the perils of young adulthood, and the joy that comes from reading and learning about worthwhile things. Mark Bauerlein is a prolific writer and scholar. He is a Professor Emeritus of English at Emory University, serves as Senior Editor at First Things, and hosts the First Things podcast. Amongst his many books is "The Dumbest Generation Grows Up: From Stupefied Youth to Dangerous Adults," available on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3TbiQToLearn more about Dr. Bauerlein and his work at https://www.firstthings.com/featured-author/mark-bauerlein