41 of 46 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Revisiting the Vision, May 11, 2003
This review is from: The Case for Classical Christian Education (Paperback)
Doug Wilson is the father of the Protestant classical Christian school movement. This book is a mature statement of why classical Christian schools are needed and what they stand for. Many have been introduced to the movement through his book Rediscovering the Lost Tools of Learning (Crossway, 1991). This book is a far better starting point. One does not have to agree with Rev. Wilson on all points to appreciate the distinctive vision this book outlines. It is highly recommended and should be read by every teacher, parent, student, and board member associated with classical Christian schools. Once again, we owe Doug Wilson an enormous debt.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not for the homeschooler interested in classical training, March 21, 2011
I purchased the Kindle edition after seeing it quoted in The Core, by Leigh Bortins.
I was interested in his title because all the books I have been reading on classical training, something is missing in the biblical approach to different subjects. I thought Mr. Wilson had another angle for a Christian homeschooler. In that, I was disappointed. He is definitely not writing for the homeschooler.
I am very pro-homeschool and felt somewhat insulted by his claims regarding the pitfalls of parents teaching their children. I realize he made a strong effort to not do that, but I still came away from it believing that this book had little to offer me, personally.
I wholeheartedly agree with the reviewer that Mr. Wilson quotes himself from his other publications alot! This disturbed me a bit, since he is truly not the author of classical education.
Obviously, I should've read the reviews on this book prior to purchase.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Quick Review of A Case for Classical Christian Education, June 14, 2010
This review is from: The Case for Classical Christian Education (Paperback)
Douglas Wilson's book, The Case for Classical Education, is a challenge to Christian educators, true, but also a challenge to Christians. He writes of the Paideia of God, (the title of another of his books), which is more then the education of children, but the "enculturation," which is providing more than biblical stories or platitudes, but living, worshipping, working, and thus teaching the Christian life. This is required of the teachers, the administrators, the board, and the parents.
The classical Christian education trains children in the faith, but also the Western civilization in which Christianity prospered. Wilson's plan, put into practice at Logos, the elementary school he founded, is more demanding than the average public school's. It is not vacation Bible school. Wilson mentions some of the unusual subjects, (by today's standards), like Latin, Greek, Hebrew languages. He also writes of how subjects that are not specifically religious or irreligious are a part of the holistic Christian education, such as mathematics and athletics. He lays out the overall plan of the Trivium: grammar, dialectic (or logic), and rhetoric, as they determine the subjects; grammar from first grade to junior high, dialectic until senior high, then rhetoric. Grammar gives children basic knowledge to accumulate, dialectic is the arrangement of this knowledge by its interconnectedness, and rhetoric is the expression of the student's conclusions.
Also useful for any adults interested in specific texts that are taught, or who would like to have an idea of what a classical education includes, a list of twenty-five books that represent the Western canon is included. If you are interested in some classical training yourself, most of these books are available online for free.
The book is a well-reasoned explanation of why many parents have quit, or are ready to quit, the status quo among public schools. It's not to make it easier for the children; it's to have a higher standard of academics, and some standards of God's in the school.
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