Classroom

Grading a paper can feel as daunting for the teacher as writing it was for the student in the first place. What should be our goal in evaluating student work? By what standards do we grade, and how do we help our young writers improve without discouraging them? Is grading even helpful for our students, or a necessary claim on our time? We’ll be spending this hour discussing an evergreen teaching conundrum.

True education reinforces a framework of absolutes, the conservation of which is the most important work a teacher can ever do. The framework emerges from the literary tradition, but also from the pedagogical attitude we take – toward the student, the tradition, and the idea of education. What does this kind of culture-building look like in the homeschool and classroom?

We talk about the writing life, what it takes and how to encourage students interested in pursuing it.

Naturally, we are eager to see our students succeed. But what do we do when they, as human beings, inevitably fail?

American higher education has become unfriendly territory in many ways. Some parents wonder whether they should consider sending their students to college at all. Drawing from extensive experience in higher education, CenterForLit Director Adam Andrews contemplates this all important question, suggesting ways to make the considerable benefits of a college education available to your homeschool graduates and offering valuable tips for deciding what kind of school to choose – and for avoiding the pitfalls that await the unsuspecting freshman.

How do we pass on our philosophies and theologies to our students without force-feeding them the books we like or insulating them from the ones we don’t? How do we get them to recognize truth for themselves?

Discipline can be particularly challenging in the homeschool where teacher and parent blur together. How do we navigate it?

A look into the art of the interpretive question.

What are the pros and cons of joining a co-op? How do you find one right for you? And once you’re in one, how do you maintain a balance between it and your personal homeschool?

How can you make sure that what you’re teaching your students now will prepare them for the future? What if they’re not ready? Is it too late?