The Philosophy of Teaching

The philosophy of the school room in one generation will be the philosophy of government in the next. ~ Abraham Lincoln

I grew up in Catholic schools, elementary and high school (there were no junior high or middle schools in the Catholic parochial system when I was young). I generally loved school in all of its seasons. Despite modern-day rumors and half-truths, the nuns who taught me were not abusive to me or to any of my classmates. Yes, children got well-deserved punishments for bad behavior, but no one ever complained in my hearing that the punishments were arbitrary or outlandish; everyone knew better. I have photographic proof that our school was completely and fairly integrated; in fact, I was smitten with a young mulatto boy in first grade, and proudly boasted to my racist grandmother that I intended to marry him one day. (World War III almost started in our house that day!)

Being a Catholic at the time, I attended Mass every day when I could. I heard many, many passages from Scripture that spoke of love and compassion, and how Heaven was available to all people through the Cross of Jesus Christ. Of course, the Catholic priests and nuns emphasized that one had to be a Catholic to have been afforded the correct sacraments and path to be sure to “get in,” but apart from that little detail, I saw repeated confirmation of the openness of Catholic teaching to all races. The school library was full of stories of missionaries to all lands who spread the Gospel. I sat next to my black friends in the classroom; I marched in school parades and May processions along with hundreds of children of all skin shades, eye formations, and nose shapes and sizes. Every girl and every boy wore the exact same (appropriate) uniform, and everyone received the exact same education. I even had a sweet, sweet Sister Alphonsus who taught me piano from first grade through third grade, who gave her students prizes for accomplishing our set piano assignments. (I still have a statue of Mary she gave me six decades ago!)

When I graduated from eighth grade, and entered the Academy of the Holy Names, there was nothing unusual in the fact that it was an all-girls’ school, or that some non-Catholics competed to get into my school. We had “streams” – academic or business – within the system, but no one ever complained that they were “relegated” to an inferior set of classes. (In fact, I tried very hard to get into the typing class, but was required to practice piano 1-2 hours per day to get my Piano Certificate, so I was told it couldn’t fit into my schedule. I continued to be a two-finger typist for a long time!)

Going to a secular college was a shock to some of my family, but – as it turns out – it was a decision that opened my eyes to just how lax college education was becoming in the ‘70’s. My secular friends didn’t think twice about skipping lectures; they stated that an auditorium which seated 200 students was just an opportunity for the professor to “show off” what he knew (I encountered no female professors in the University of Maryland School of Medicine at that time). I had to admit that I detected quite a bit of bravado and chutzpah in the tone of the lectures I attended in that one year, including one Humanities class where the professor dared anyone to stand who believed abortion was wrong. I stood, and students were allowed to berate me and tell me that I didn’t know anything. I DO remember arguing against the silly statement that “babies are not conscious,” as if that changed their status as baby humans – I argued that everyone sleeps every day, and during that time is technically “unconscious” of their surroundings. Did that fact mean that they could be killed at will? They could not come up with an answer to that, except to dismiss me as a lunatic, and dumb-as-dirt. (This dismissal tactic has survived for many years, apparently.)

I must move quickly into the present-day disastrous state of teaching; otherwise, you will be reading this for hours. After one year of college, I married my husband (49 years ago this past June), started a family, and moved abroad twice so that my husband could serve our country (military first, then civilian). From 1972 until 1988, we lived abroad, and my eyes were open to the truth of the Gospel – more on that era in my life in later blogs.

Prior to returning to the U.S. permanently, I had taught piano, and had given Christian talks to groups of women. I had assisted the British public school teachers who taught my two children; I had taught Bible classes and led Vacation Bible Schools. I had started a Christian Book Shop in England, and had built it steadily to a thriving business in six years. I had done all of this without a college degree; all I had was the fatherhood of the Lord Jehovah, the leadership of Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit, and access to good reading. People asked me where I had learned what I needed to do all of this. I answered: from the Lord. But that did not make any impact on those who interviewed me for jobs. "No qualifications" was the typical response.

Following inspiration from the Lord, I decided to pursue a teaching degree, a teaching certification, and then a master’s in theology. During the ten years it took me to accomplish all this, I was shocked to my core by all the God-denying, faith-defeating, and manipulative so-called “education” I had to work through.

Was my work towards these degrees and certification all futile? No, not at all! Besides (eventually) landing me a job in an all-girls’ Catholic high school teaching English, literature, computer, and stagecraft, all my educational experiences awakened some fundamental, common-sense realizations in my mind. I realized that the model of schooling I had been a part of in my young years was good and pure and workable.

In this post, I will share three main insights that have become “written in stone” in my own teaching philosophy:

1.      There is nothing wrong with so-called “old-fashioned” teaching values, such as respect for teachers, discipline in the classroom, and moral and life-affirming reading in all subjects.

2.      The content of each subject in each traditional subject is an important step in a rational educational hierarchy. Why are we teaching children on a level that does not relate to their maturity or their comprehension?

3.      Education cannot be divorced from God-given wisdom and rules. Anarchy is rampant in the educational world, with arbitrary, moment-to-moment decisions that are not backed by true wisdom and understanding.

If you choose not to agree with my own insight, at least pay attention to our 16^th president, Abraham Lincoln, who understood the relationship between what we teach our children now and what they will do to rule over us in the future.

Until next time, peace and joy ~ Mizz Liz