You have heard the old saying, “Everything old is new again.” Usually it refers to fashion and home furnishings. And there certainly is some truth to the saying.
Things my mother couldn’t wait to replace like her Melmac dinnerware, Pyrex bowls and Chenille bedspreads — all considered to be thrifty choices back in the day — are now demanding big prices in vintage stores and thrift shops. These items are now part of the Mid-Century Modern craze. Maybe the renewed popularity is because of nostalgia or durability or just simplicity. It does seem to signify a growing interest in basic things.
And society’s compulsion to get back to the basics is fueling more than just vintage bargain hunters.
A back-to-basics approach is also finding its way into our Catholic schools, and its popularity landed one of our schools as the centerpiece of local and national news and television recently.
St. John the Baptist Catholic Academy in Johnsburg began the school year offering what it calls a “classical curriculum.”
But the remarkable thing about the back-to-basics education isn’t that it attracted local and national media attention. The newly adopted approach attracted students.
In this age of parents having few or no children and eschewing religious education, it is more common to hear about schools merging or closing.
The fact that St. John’s Catholic Academy has attracted 34 percent more students is certainly something to celebrate.
But what exactly does this new approach mean?
The whole approach is best explained on the St. John the Baptist Catholic Academy web page:
“At St. John the Baptist Catholic Academy, we believe education should shape more than just minds — it should form souls. That’s why we’re joyfully transitioning to a Catholic classical education model: an approach that’s timeless, intentional, and rooted in the beauty of truth.
“Classical education draws on the tried-and-true methods of the Church and Western tradition, emphasizing wonder, wisdom, and virtue. It teaches students how to think, not just what to think, and it’s done all through the lens of our Catholic faith.
“We’re not just updating curriculum — we’re building a foundation for lifelong discipleship and leadership.
“Our Education Commission and teachers had a book study before making the decision to move to a Classical Catholic school model. If you would like to read it, you can find it here: Renewing Catholic Schools.”
The school is phasing in the classical model over a three year plan:
first in fifth through eighth grades, then kindergarten to fourth, and finally to preschool.
The school boasts the fact that every subject is infused with the Catholic faith and that the students learn from reading, writing, questions, conversations and discovery, not worksheets and iPads, and that they “use beautiful, time-honored works that spark curiosity and deep thinking, rather than just textbooks.”
Ashley Gaura, principal of St. John’s told The Loop that “People want it in this area, and are coming from towns away” to enroll their children.
But also commenting in the local and national media are the parents and the students who say they appreciate the change in curriculum and have noticed positive changes.
Watching and reading about this newly adopted approach in our Catholic schools definitely provides hope. And it illustrates that faith in God is an asset and not the deterrent society leads us to believe. Strong basics give young people the tools they need to move forward, to learn more over a lifetime. Many of us remember and cherish that kind of education.
We remember a time when we read some history, a novel or about some grammatical rule and wanted to know why or where it came from. We couldn’t turn to a computer or say “Hey Google” and immediately be given an answer. We learned to research and discover and discern the sources. Learning that way has been a blessing to me, giving me skills I use every day. And of course, they make me appreciate the gift of Google all the more.
And isn’t it something for our diocese to celebrate — that something old is bringing about new life, new interest and strengthening our Catholic schools which build our next generations?
Another little resurrection story for us to reflect upon in the coming weeks.
(St. John the Baptist Catholic Academy was featured on Zeale March 5, and on Fox and Friends, March 22)
