Via Facilis

So, you say you want your very own education consultancy?

Actually, I didn't. Well, I didn't like the title "education consultancy."
We're talking about changing not simply the fabric of education, but the manner in which that fabric is woven.
"education consultancy" seems too self-satisfied, too self-important, too self-absorbed for so critical a mission.

But my colleague and executive director, the great, the inimitable, the unmatched, the Master Team Builder Par Excellence, Dr. Annette Kramer, pointed out the obvious to me:

"People won't have any idea what we do if we don't say that's what we do."
Or words to that effect.

She had a point.

So we're an education consultancy.

That answers that question.

But why the UK?

Long-winded, blog answer for that.

Annette had been to the UK on many different missions before taking up her position with cagse.

She knew many people in education very well.
Everyone from the ground up.
She'll talk to anybody any time any place.
And she has this amazing knack for meeting people in key positions, usually on a plane, a train, or some such similar fast-moving vehicle.
I think it's genetic, but that's not exactly my field.

In short, Annette knows everybody, and those people she doesn't know, she will soon meet.

Meanwhile, the UK government has imposed literacy requirements on its schools. Schools must meet the requirements which are laid out in somewhat complex form on the UK government web site.

But schools are at a loss as to how to meet those requirements.
cagse is not.

But why didn't you start cagse in the US?
Well, technically we did.
We're a registered LLC.

But.
And this is a big BUT.

The US is a bizarre place to introduce Latin and Storytelling.
Half the schools have Latin and think their Latin programs are superior;
the other half don't think it's worth their time.
Yes, there is a movement to replace existing Latin programs going on, but as yet it is not at a critical stage.

You could ask two different people the same question, "How's Latin in this country?"
and get two completely different answers: "Nobody does that anymore" or "I didn't know schools still did that here" vs. "Latin is making a comeback." Don't bother consulting the New York Times (a rag if ever there was one) on the matter. They come up with figures for those who take Latin from the years in the '50s and 2005. Not the best comparison.
But hey, nobody ever accused the Times of getting a story right.

But the US does like stuff that comes from the UK.
Cambridge and Oxford bring "instant credibility" and "name recognition".

So. We prove ourselves in the UK.
We show that the program for Latin and, coming soon, the program for Storytelling, help state schools more than meet key expectations for literacy.
Combine that with the fact that my Executive Director is a dynamo, a five foot juggernaut who can move not simply mountains, but whole mountain ranges.
Add in a touch of US knowitallness.
Gently mix in US academic insecurity regarding UK programs.

And Voila!

Go to the UK.

If you can make it there, you'll make it anywhere.

Wait, isn't that what Frankie said about New York!?

Yep.

New York's Next.

drg

Last week - directly below this post, actually - I commented on the sentiments expressed by the authors of The National Curriculum regarding modern languages.

This is That Post, Part II, Paragraph II of Modern Languages:

"Learning languages gives pupils opportunities to develop their listening, speaking, reading and writing skills and to express themselves with increasing confidence, independence and creativity. They explore the similarities and differences between other languages and English and learn how language can be manipulated and applied in different ways. The development of communication skills, together with understanding of the structure of language, lay the foundations for future study of other languages and support the development of literacy skills in a pupil's own language.

I'm a Latinist/Classicist/linguist.
I agree with the sentiments of this paragraph wholeheartedly.
The question is how to effectively achieve its purposes.

Here is my response:
Learn Latin.

"But Latin isn't a modern language."
"True."
"It's also dead."
"Also true."
"So?"
"So, word one: Frisp."
"Frisp? Never heard of it."'
"French
Romanian
Italian
Spanish
Portuguese

Which are all recognized languages of the European Union.

We also refer to them as Romance Languages."
"So?"
"So the structural basis of these languages is Latin.
Learn Latin, and you exponentially increase your capability of learning a Romance Language."

"Okay, but what about the other EU languages? Latin can't help with those, can it?"
"Actually, it can."
"How?"
"Many of the languages of the EU are inflected."
"Infected?"
"No, 'inflected'. A language that is inflected establishes meaning by changing the forms of its words, particularly nouns, pronouns, adjectives, and verbs. The form of the words shows their function in a sentence."
"And?"
"And Latin is also inflected.
Learn Latin, and you exponentially increase your capability of learning a non-Romance language."

"But it's still not spoken, right?"
"Right."
"So how does that address the "listening, speaking, reading, and writing" part of the paragraph?"

"In terms of listening and speaking, it doesn't."
"But isn't that a problem?"
"Actually, it's a solution in conundrum's clothing."
"You'd better explain."
"Sure. When students learn a foreign language, it often happens that their proficiencies - speaking and listening - mask their deficiencies - reading and writing."
"So they can't read or write."
"And how would you rate the literacy of someone who can't read or write?"
"Low?"
"There is a technical term for it. A person who cannot read or write his own language is 'illiterate'."
"So much for national literacy."
"You said it."
"But how does Latin help deal with this problem?"
"Which problem?"
"The literacy problem."
"With which language?"
"Better start with foreign languages."
"Fair enough. You have to ask why students find reading and writing difficult in the first instance."
"Okay, consider it asked."
"They find reading and writing difficult because they have done very little of those exercises with their own language. To really read and to really write, you have to more than inherently know a language; you have to understand it. You have to understand how words relate, how they fit together to make sentences, ideas, concepts, etc. You have to have done time, so to speak, working with the nuts and bolts of language - its grammar, its syntax, its vocabulary. To write it out long-hand, type it, chant it, play with it. Become friends with it. Writing is the tactile recording of literacy. Reading allows you to see how others go through that experience. Literacy is, in effect, the expertise with which you deliberately handle your own language. So if you are going to master another language, you will have to spend some serious time with your own."

"But why Latin then?"
"Because when students learn Latin, they cannot hide behind a good ear and convincing accent. They must focus on the other two aspects: reading and writing. Latin forces them to account for everything. That, in turn, forces them to account for everything in English. Which reenforces what they are doing with language in Latin. It becomes a benevolent cycle, feeding on itself."

"So, you're saying that Latin is good because it addresses reading and writing almost exclusively?"
"Basically, yes."
"So it makes students hyper-aware of their choice of words, and why they are saying what they are saying?"
"Yes. It turns a potentially passive exercise into an active one. It requires that they develop critical tools of linguistic discernment."

"And the student who takes Latin will be ready to study a modern language in all aspects?"
"Yes. They will be happy to be speaking a foreign language, but it will not be so completely different in terms of vocabulary or structure. They will have already been there. They will be jazzed up about going forward in their study of language."

"And this same student will have done a tremendous amount with the building blocks of English, too? All that grammar and vocabulary?"
"Yes."

"But doesn't that take care of two major concerns of the government?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, there's the national literacy recommendations, and there's the modern language entitlement, too."

"Right."

"Wouldn't a serious study of Latin help students, particularly at Key Stage 2, make significant strides in both these areas?"

"Let me get this straight. You're saying that you think that the study of Latin at...?"
"Key Stage 2."
"What's that mean in American English?"
"Ages 7 to 11."
"Oh, right. Okay, so you're saying that you think that the study of Latin at Key Stage 2 will facilitate both a growing mastery of English and set the stage for the thorough learning of Modern Languages? As required by the UK government?"

"Yes."

"I couldn't have said it any better. Thank you."

"You're welcome."

drg

I've been thinking about a poem I could write about cagse and what it does in the UK.

First I wrote this:

cagse's Latin program's cool,
it's got patterns for all to see,
it gives kids the blueprint
for National Literacy.

Yeah, I know.
A bit tooooo.....
Or maybe not enough.....
Let's just say, I wasn't thrilled with it, either.
So I wrote some more.

Here it is.

cagse gets Latin
into UK schools of State ilk,
we're not too concerned
with Public school silk.

At Key Stage 2
year five's our first stop
the structure of language
is our priority top.

In Latin your students
will see by and by
that knowing it well
they'll have learned how to fly.

Their minds will be honed
to the sharpness of a blade
they'll learn how to think,
not just grub for a grade.

Your students will excel
well beyond what's expected
and in them your wisdom
will be brilliantly reflected.

Latin, we aver,
is everyone's gain
it relieves state schools
of literacy pains.

It's not just for the "elite"
or "the best and the brightest",
though who those folks may be
I haven't the slightest.

On this let's be frank,
we'll cost you some dosh,
but it's wisely invested,
not wasted on bosh.

For the national requirements,
walls though they be,
will be by your students
breached - no, smashed - easily.

So for Stage 2 and beyond
cagse sets schools up right;
use our program, head teachers -
you won't stay up nights.

drg

Fourteen months ago, I wrote the following entry for this blog regarding the years right after college graduation - years I would never want to experience again. Still.

"...I was living in Boston, specifically in Allston.
And it was here that I learned an amazing lesson.
From a plant.

My apartment was pretty nice, aside from (or next to) the roaches. With it came a plant which the previous owner had thoughtfully left for me. Or had simply forgotten.

I had no idea what to do with a plant.
I'd never really had one.
Still, I couldn't bring myself to throw it out.
So I just let it sit there, a soon to be no longer living memorial to my directionless existence.
The plant's leaves died, and so, seemingly, did it.
I could relate.

Then one day, I decided, What the heck, I'll water the plant.
Yes, it needed it. But I think I needed it more.
And besides, I had nothing to lose.
And everything.

A few days went by, a week, a month.
I kept up my daily ministrations.
I even got a spray bottle so I could keep its leaves moist.
And the plant - an English Ivy, I think - came back to life.
And began to grow.
And grow. And grow.

When I finally left Boston for my first teaching job, the plant was lush, its vines tumbling over the sides of its pot to the floor seven feet below, an emerald cascade.

I had never felt such an enormous sense of accomplishment.
But it was more than that.
I myself was pivotal in the turn around of this plant's life.
I mattered.

And in the simple act of giving this living thing the chance to grow, I had done the same thing for myself.

I did not then fathom the plant's gift to me. Nor did I see how great a role it played in my quest for the meaning of meaning. I didn't even know I was on a quest.

That plant may not have been key in my becoming a teacher. But it was instrumental in my staying one.

As I said. I didn't know then.
Now I do."

So, yes. Now I will say this, quoting my buddy Marcus Tullius Cicero (it's up to you readers to figure out how it applies to what follows):

"Qui ipse sibi sapiens prodesse non quit, nequiquam sapit."

Translation:

"The wise man who cannot help himself is wise in vain."

Now.
One thing I neglected to mention in that story:

I didn't just leave Boston.

I also left the plant.

That always bothered me.
The leaving the plant part, that is.
(Leaving Boston was easy.
I'm a Yankee fan, for goodness sake.)

Nagged at me.
Niggled.
Still does.

So why am I bringing this up now, you ask?
"Yes. That would be nice to know."
Fair enough.
Recently and with increasing vigor, I've been working with my education consultancy in the UK.
Coming over here every month, working with all the teachers for a week or so each time.

But somewhere in the back of my mind has been lurking the thought that I would teach again next year.

And that it would be in an independent school in the US.
And that it would be full time.
I had already spoken with various placement services, and had received phone calls regarding my availability.
I even went through an interview for a paternity leave position for April and May of this year.
It was okay.
Even good.
But it was lacking.
Or rather, I was preoccupied.
I could talk the talk, even walk the walk.
But my heart was nowhere in sight.

How could I just be a substitute teacher with this school when I have my own work to do?
My own teachers to work with?
I was offered that position.
I turned it down.
I couldn't in good conscience accept it.

cagse requires commitment.
Full Commitment.
From Everyone.
My executive director is the best there is.
But she can't do it herself.
My pro story teller is fabulous.
She can't do it all, either.
My head of Latin Programs is tremendous.
She can't do it by herself, either.

Then there are the teachers themselves.
They are hardworking, dedicated, enthusiastic.
Most of them are new to teaching.
Even those who aren't are new to my book.

'Everyone' includes me.

But I still wasn't quite getting it.
Recently, I had a phone call from the folks at Dalton School.
They wanted me to come in for an interview.
I said I would.
But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I could not do it.
So I cancelled.
Why?
Because I already have a job.
I also removed my name from placement services regarding further consideration for the foreseeable future from any school.

Why?
Because I finally got it.

I (still) already have a job.

And what a job it is.

The work we are doing over here is nothing short of critical.
To the UK's national curriculum, certainly.
But even more to education itself.
We have here a new, powerful mechanism which will serve as a paradigm for real teaching and learning in the form of our Latin program.

cagse can be the cutting edge, not just on it.
Can shape vibrant, energetic, thoughtful teaching and learning for decades to come.

We are Compelling.

We put the R E A L back into L E A R N i n g.

But for cagse to take wing,
it is up to me.
And so, here I fly.

So why the reference to that earlier blog?

Haven't you figured it out yet?

Simple.

I've come back for my plant.

drg

"So let's see if I have this straight. There are twelve strands in the UK's National Literacy Curriculum:
1. Speaking
2. Listening and Understanding
3. Discussion and Interaction
4. Drama
5. Word Recognition
6. Word Structure and Spelling
7. Understanding and Interpreting Texts
8. Engaging with and Responding to Texts
9. Creating and Shaping Texts
10. Text Structure and Organization
11. Sentence Structure and Punctuation
12. Presentation"

"That's correct."
"And of these twelve, strands 1 and 2 get the students "booted up", so to speak, and #3 is one application of #s 1 and 2. Yes?"
"I'd say so."
"Alright. #4, meanwhile, is a variation of #3, yeah?"
"In some cases, not just a variation, but a deepening and fleshing out of expression, as well."
"Strands 7 and 8 address reading and comprehension of various types of writings."
"Yes."
"Strand 9 goes from the purely mental activity of reading to the physical activity of writing - not copying other texts, but writing one's own material."

"Indeed."

"Strands 10, 11, and 12 flesh out the writing aspect: the general organization of the text, the specific structure of the sentences that make up the paragraphs and how they are annotated, and finally, the polished presentation. Yes?"

"Yes."

"And you believe that the centerpiece, the sine qua non, of these strands are #s 5 and 6?"

"Yes. Word Recognition and Word Structure and Spelling are the nexus. Every one of the twelve strands draws power from these two."

"How do you mean?"
"Alright, take strands #1 and 2, Speaking and Listening and Understanding."
"Okay."
"Without word recognition, can these strands hold?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because Speaking, Listening, Understanding all have to do with the spoken word. And if you don't recognize that what is said is a word, it doesn't matter if you hear it or not, because you won't understand it."

"Then what about Word Structure and Spelling? How does that fit in?"

"Well, there are many words that sound the same but mean different things."
"Such as?"
"How about 'there', 'they're', 'their'? If you don't know that those are three different words, there's going to be a problem. Spelling really helps you nail down those differences."
"So would you call Word Structure and Spelling a refinement of Word Recognition?"
"I would do."
"As would I. Let's talk more about this tomorrow."
"But...."
"Don't worry. I won't leave you stranded."

"So where've you been? And what's wrong with your face?"
"Sporting, isn't it? Only the best education consultants are wearing it."
"No, but seriously. Where have you been?
"In hospital. Getting my left nostril's septum undeviated."
"That would explain the chic gauze moustache. For a second I thought you were the physical manifestation of Drama, strand four."
"I appreciate your imagination. But no. Just got my nose fixed."
"If only fixing the UK curriculum were so easy."
"It's not broken. It's just a matter of understanding how the pieces work together, and which are the central strands. And then how to make those strands powerful."
"Right. I've been thinking about that since you were away, brief though it was."
"Wait. Wasn't this the long Easter week-end?"
"Yes."
"I thought all thinking was generally suspended until after it ended."
"Well, I was bored."
"To tears, apparently. So what did you come up with?"
"To be honest, I think I got myself even more muddled than I was before."
"Well, let's see if we can't remedy that. What does 'Word Recognition' entail? Is it simply a matter of recognizing a word as what it stands for?"
"Could you explain that more?"
"Sure. What does 'cow' mean to you?"
"It's an animal we get drinking milk from."
"Anything else?"
"Beef, too."
"No, I mean, is that all 'cow' means to you?"
"Well, they wear bells, sometimes."
"Okay, wait. Let me rephrase. At its most basic level, what is 'cow'?"
"A mammal?"
"Hold on. This isn't working. Let's take a different approach."
"Please."

"How about this:

'cow, picture, ship, chair, book, grass, foot.'

What do you make of that?'

"They're a bunch of nouns."
"That it?"
"Yes. Just random nouns."
"Nothing else?"
"Well, there are seven of them."

"Fine. Now what about these?
'cows, picture, ships, chair, books, grass, foot.' "

"The same seven random nouns again."
"Random, huh?"
"Oh yes, they seem so to me. But they're the same."
"No changes?"
"Let's see. Actually, now three of them are plural."

"Right. So what about this?
'cows grass.' "

"Still nouns - from that same set. But now only two."
"Do they still seem random?"
"Well...what do you mean?"
"I mean, Do those two nouns placed right next to each other like that have any meaning for you?"
"They seem to."
"Meaning what?"
"Cows and grass seem to go together. But not as you have them, 'Cows grass.'
"What would you do so that they could go together?"
"You'd have to add another word."
"Okay, how about 'cows hills grass.' "
"No, that doesn't help."
"Why not? You said to add another word. 'hills' is another word."
"Yes. But it's the same sort as 'cows' and 'hills'.
"How so?"
"It's another thing."
"So?"
"So you still have to figure out how the first two, 'cows' and 'grass', fit together. If you add only another noun, you've have three things to explain, not just two."

"So what word would you add?"
"Well, first I'd have to ask myself about what 'cows' and 'grass' have to do with one another."
"And what's the answer?"
"Several, actually."
"Do tell."
"Let's see. Cows stand on grass. And they eat it. Yes. That's easiest. I'd add 'eat'."
"Okay, 'cows grass eat'. Right?"
"No. That doesn't look right."
"How about, 'eat cows grass'?"
"That just doesn't make any sense."
"So what would?"
" 'Cows eat grass.' "

"So 'cows' and 'grass' are 'things', and 'eat' isn't?"
"Right."
"What is the technical term for 'things'?
"Uhhh, I think it starts with an 'n'..."
"and ends with an 'n', too."
"I'm not sure..."
"And has '-ou-' in the middle."
"A NOUN!"
"Exactly. So 'cows' and 'grass' are nouns, and 'eat' isn't, right?"
"Right."
"But if 'eat' isn't a noun, what is it?"
"It's the action word."
"What is the action word called? Does it have a specific name?"
"This one I remember. You don't have to spell this one out for me. It's called a verb."
"Excellent."
"You're too kind."
"I'll take your word for it. Now, let's consider your creation:
'Cows eat grass.' "

"Okay."
"Is this a complete thought?"
"What do you mean?"
"Does 'Cows eat grass' convey a complete thought or idea?"
"Does it?"
"What would happen if I put the word 'If' right before 'cows'? Then you'd have 'If cows eat grass'. Does that sound complete?"
"Well, if you added something like, 'then they get fat' it would."
"But by itself?"
"No."
"How about if there's no 'If'? Just plain old 'Cows eat grass'?"
"Yes. That's a complete thought."
"What do we call that? Technically?"
"Hmmmm."
"I'll give you a hint. When a person is convicted of a crime, the judge in the case pronounces....?"
"Sentence! Right, it's a sentence. A sentence is a complete thought. Of course."
"Tremendous. Now, in that sentence, 'Cows eat grass', how is 'Cows' functioning?
"They're doing the eating."
"They're performing the action of the verb?"
"Yes."
"And when a noun is performing the action of a verb, it is functioning in a particular way. It is acting...?"
"on impulse?"
"Inventive, but no. Think technically, again."
"I'm lost."
"Okay. Someone gives a talk on a particular what?"
"Field? Area?"
"Close. Maybe a little narrower?"
"Expertise?"
"No. How about this? All UK nationals are the Queen's..."
"Subjects! Oh, right. Subject."
"Right. The Subject is the noun that does the action of the verb."
"And the verb is the action word that the Subject is doing."
"Also right. So in the sentence 'Cows eat grass'..."
" 'Cows' is the Subject."
"And 'eat'..."
"is what the 'Cows', the Subject, are doing, and is, therefore, the verb!"
"Excellent. Only one word left to account for. How is 'grass' acting in our favorite sentence, 'Cows eat grass'?"
"It's what the Cows eat."
"It's receiving the action of the verb?"
"Yes, I suppose it is."
"What term do we give nouns when, like 'grass', they receive the action of the verb?"
"It's on the tip of my tongue...."
"Okay. Hint: 'Not the Subject of my attention but the...."
"Object!"
"Yes. But because it is directly receiving the action of the verb, we can go one step further and call it the ___________ object."
"Direct! The direct object!"
"Precisely. So, to review:
1. Nouns are things (or persons or places)
2. Nouns can act as subjects, i.e., doers of the action of the verb
3. Nouns can act as Direct Objects (i.e., direct receivers of the
action of the verb)
4. Verbs are action words, i.e., words that denote action performed
by Nouns acting as subjects on nouns acting as direct objects.

Make sense?"

"Yes. But how do we know when a noun is acting as a subject or a direct object?"

"Excellent question. And psychic, too. You have anticipated our next lesson: The Primacy of Word Order. So see you tomorrow."

"Brilliant."

"Good evening."
"To you, as well. Did we shave?"
"What? Oh, you mean the gauze. Or lack of it. Well, no, but my nose has healed considerably. Nice to breathe again through that left nostril. Haven't used it for forty-two years."
"That must be a strange sensation."
"It's quite liberating, actually."
"I'll bet."
"You'd win, so I'm not laying odds. Anyway, when we last were having our discussion, you asked a critical question."
"I did?"
"That wasn't it."
"Oh, right. I remember now."
"Will you reask it?"
"Surely. I asked, 'How do we know when a noun is acting as a subject or a direct object?' "
"Have you thought about it since then?"
"No, that wasn't the question I asked. I remember clearly."
"No, I mean, have you thought about an answer to your question which you just right now brought our attention back to."
"Oh. Well, yes."
"And you have an answer?"
"I said I thought about an answer. I didn't say I had one."
"Shall we conjure up that sentence which gave rise to your question?"
"Good idea."
"Our sentence was, 'Cows eat...'"
"'grass'!"
"Right. Did we decide anything about the function of 'Cows' in the sentence?"
"Yes, that it was a noun acting as the subject, i.e., the doer of the action."
"Right. Did we decide anything else?"
"We determined that 'eat' was the verb, i.e., the action that the subject, 'Cows', was performing."
"Okay. And?"
"And that 'grass' was the direct object of the verb 'eat' because it was what the 'cow', the subject, was eating."

"Let me ask you if you would agree to the following as a summing up of what we discussed last time:
1. Nouns are things (or persons or places)
2. Nouns can act as subjects, i.e., doers of the action of the verb
3. Nouns can act as Direct Objects (i.e., direct receivers of the
action of the verb)
4. Verbs are action words, i.e., words that denote action performed
by Nouns acting as subjects on nouns acting as direct objects.

Anything else?"
"No, that's about it."
"Okay. So your question then was, in a nutshell: How To Decide?"
"How to decide what?"
"Well, if a noun can act either as a subject of a verb, or a direct object of a verb, how do you know when you see a noun how it's acting?"
"I need some help here."
"Okay, let's bring back our sentence."
"Let's."
" 'Cows eat grass.' "
"So much is clear."
"How many nouns?"
"Two."
"Subject?"
" 'Cows'."
"Direct Object?"
" 'grass'."
"Verb?"
" 'eat' ."
"Where is the subject placed?"
"At the beginning of the sentence?"
"Yes, but let's be even more specific."
"Okay. Directly in front of the verb."
"Correct. How about the direct object?"
"That's directly after the verb."
"Correct. Do you know the answer to your question yet?"
"Sort of...."
"Take our sentence again."
" 'Cows eat grass.' "
"Switch 'Cows' and 'grass'."
" 'Grass eats Cows.' "
"Do those two sentences mean the same thing?"
"Don't they?"

"Look at them closely:
'Cows eat grass'
'Grass eats Cows'
Are they the same?"

"Well, no."
"What did I change?"
"The placement of 'grass' and 'cows'."
"What happened?"
" 'grass' became the subject; 'cows' became the direct object."
"What happened to the placement of the verb?"
"Nothing. It stayed the same."
"So what are we saying about where words appear in a sentence?"
"That it means a lot."
"It actually means everything. Where a word falls in a sentence determines its function in the sentence, and therefore, the force of that sentence."
"Could you summarize?"
"Absolutely. Word order tells you word function. An English sentence is completely dependent upon its word order to establish meaning."
"Are you sure?"
"Let me rephrase. 'Cows grass eat.' "
"What does that mean?"
"Exactly."

Altius
Fortius
Citius

The motto for the modern Olympic Games.

Translation:
Higher
Stronger
Faster

Implication:
Anybody who thinks that Latin has nothing to do with the Olympics, please, think again.

Obviously, the founder of the modern games seems to believe that Latin plays a critical role.
And yet, it is an understandable misconception.

I mean, really, what does athletic competition have to do with the mind?
Isn't it just a body thing?

Well, actually, no.

As any athlete will tell you, athletic competition is a total mind game.
To compete at the highest level, you have to train your body and mind like nobody's business.
You have to force yourself to do gruelling work-outs, to keep going when you'd rather not, to never, ever give up.
And even that doesn't guarantee a victory.
You may have the body, the athletic prowess, to excel.
But if you don't have the mind-set, cannot harness your powers when you need them most, you are in trouble.
If you are a stride behind in the ten thousand meter hurdles with fifty meters to go, and you cannot call on your kick when you need it, you won't win.
The same is true if you are a stride ahead.

This is the essence of
Mind Over Matter.

Or, if you prefer the Latin,

Mens omnia vincit.
The Mind conquers all.

Imagine what would happen if you could give your mind commensurate training.
If you could harness your mind, and have its powers accessible when you need them.
At your beck and call.
This is what we do at CAGSE.
This is our Latin program.
Yes, it's about Latin.
Yes, it's about helping schools meet the challenges of the UK National Curriculum.
But more than anything, it's about getting young people to harness their brains, their minds, their potential, to tap into it, and to live life to the fullest.
We do that by training students in language.
The brilliance of English.
The brilliance of Latin.
The discipline to harness language, to mine it, so that in any situation, it is there for you.
Imagine if young people had such linguistic skill.
They could do anything they wanted.
Be anything they wanted.
Their prospects would be...

Unlimited.

There is as much joy in executing a complex linguistic maneuver as there is in performing a complex floor exercise in gymnastics.

Imagine students being able to parry with a mental deftness that an Olympic class fencer would admire.

CAGSE's approach to Latin is linguistic. It involves discipline. There is no short-cut to comprehension, any more than there is a short cut to winning a place on your country's team in the Olympic Games.

We won't even talk about winning a medal.

We are the linguistic regimen that complements the athletic regimen of the Games.

We do not pull punches.
We do not give false confidence.
Students who go through our Latin program excel.
It is that simple.

My email was bombarded recently.
Friends, students, colleagues sent me a link to a
New York Times article on the resurgence of Latin in schools.

Fabulous.
Wonderful.
So glad other people decided to join the party.

I'm thrilled that the Times would deign to take an interest.
Twice within a year, too.

But some of this has to be addressed.
Actually, a lot.
And we'll start with this quote from the article.

"Ms. Abbott, a former Latin teacher, said that today’s Latin classes appeal to more students because they have evolved from 'dry grammar and tortuous translations' to livelier lessons that focus on culture, history and the daily life of the Romans. In addition, she said, Latin teachers and students have promoted the language outside the classroom through clubs, poetry competitions and mock chariot races."

"'dry grammar'"
Yes, grammar is dry.

BUT ONLY

if you teach it that way.

If you expect a thing to be boring,
guess what.

It Will Be.

Very simple.
Kids aren't stupid.
And when they know that a teacher feels a particular way about something, and it happens to fit their desired outcome (i.e., to junk it because they find it 'boring', - read, Challenging), they will be all over it.
Grammar is doomed to fail.
It's a self-fulfilling prophecy.

That is why my favorite oxymoron is
An English Grammarian.

English teachers don't generally teach grammar anymore.
Oh, and look at that.

One of the things that employers have the biggest problem with is that their folks
don't know how to write.

The same is true, of course, at the university level, where many tests have become multiple choice.

Oh, but, I know, let's just make sure our kids are having FUN in school.
That's really all that matters.
Having Fun.

I mean, who cares whether or not they actually LEARN anything?

Good Idea.

As teachers, why don't we go down to our students' level instead of bringing them up to ours?

Why Didn't I Think Of That?

Enough of the ranting.

Here's the deal.

The linguistic study of Latin helps people identify and establish the underpinnings of language. It is a scientific approach to the acquisition of language.

All the other stuff is fun.
No question.
I myself like a chariot race first thing in the morning to really get me going .
Though I'd rather skip the dormice for breakfast.
Or dinner.

What is particularly critical about the study of Latin is that it helps young people harness their minds. (Take a look at my previous blog post Altius Citius Fortius.)

All this other stuff is window dressing
It's okay.
For window dressing.

Language is part and parcel of "culture" and "history".
Anybody who doesn't get that is going to be in trouble, as many of the major wars that have been fought in Europe are matters of Language.

Just look at Adolf Hitler and his reclamation of Austria, the Sudetenland, Poland, etc., all because of his "concern" about the persecution of the ethnic Germans in those lands.
Oh, and does the word "holocaust" mean anything?

Language, let's get real here, is pivotal.

As George Santayana said in A Life of Reason,
"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."

You cannot splice culture and history away from language.
Language is the nervous system of a people.
It is what communication is based on.
People don't say
"You're the same culture as me"

or

"You've got the same history as me"

No, they say,

"We speak the same language."

Language.

It is the key.

And Latin, when it's taught effectively, can turn that key into a Master.

drg

I was going to continue responding to that New York Times article on the resurgence of Latin from last week. Then an old student of mine read the blog post right before this one. His/her assessment (all tongue in cheek/sarcastic) was so right on, so funny, so much better than anything I could say - this is a student, you see, someone in the system, as opposed to yours truly, who writes, shall we say, against the system - that I reproduce it here verbatim.

And no, none of this is mine.

Except the quotation marks, the bold, and one bracketed pointer.

The rest is hers/his.

And here it is:

"Ha. In a Latin LANGUAGE class, culture and history are the only things that matter, not to mention the spells in Harry Potter. Who are these people actually teaching Latin grammar and vocabulary? Someone should give them a good talking to....

And to use that lovely metaphor of yours [see the post just before this one], window dressing is okay, but without the window of language to put it on, it is oh so much more enticing."

A number of different folks from completely different walks of life have said to me in the last three weeks that I need to bring what we do with CAGSE to the US.

This is a move I always planned to do.
I just hadn't intended on doing it so soon.
Especially in this fabulous economy of ours.

But maybe just because of this economy of ours, CAGSE's work is more pertinent than ever.

What happened there?
People did not do their due diligence.
People assumed that things were happening.
And they weren't.

So here we are.
But how does CAGSE's Latin program help?
Well, what we do is we require our students to master language.
To understand precisely what is going on.
To fathom the underpinnings of language, you must explore, observe, and understand everything you see.

CAGSE's Literacy and Latin program leaves nothing to doubt or speculation.
We ask our students to leave no stone unturned.
We ask our students to take responsibility for their own work.
We show them how to do that, but for them to truly succeed in this program,
they have to invest themselves.
To the hilt.
With all their mind.
Can you imagine such a financial crisis occurring if folks around the globe had, from the beginning, left no stone unturned?
Had understood precisely what was going on?
Had not left it to others to do their work for them?
Had done the analysis required from the very beginning?

This is what we do.

We're the next wave in education.

We're dynamite.
We ain't no gimmick.

We are the real deal.

And so, CAGSE is coming to America.

drg

So here I am, getting CAGSE's Latin program into schools in the US.
Only, it ain't happening.
Kids think its better to have a live language, a modern language.
Even one that's swank, like, say NAIS' flavor of the month Mandarin Chinese.
The parents don't know better.

So here's what I have to say to the parents.

Call me. 845 309 5808.
Come to a class.
We'll do some Latin together.

Then you can make an informed decision about how critical Latin could and will be in your son's or daughter's education.

It ain't just about feelings. Oh, I love that book.
Yeah, but why?
Well, because it's cool.
No, there has to be something.
You have to be able to articulate what that something is.
English doesn't necessarily accomplish that for you.

Latin will.
And here's the fun part.
It is immediately applicable to everything you do.

I kid you not.

drg

O come let us Learn IT,
Oh Come let us Learn IT,
OH COME LET US LEARN ITTTTTT
Laaaa aaaa tin!

My Latin class for adults continues tomorrow evening in Newport, RI.

We'll be doing English Building Blocks for verbs and their Latin counterparts.

No, not the whole verb.

Just the Present Indicative Active.

We'll take language apart and see how it ticks.

It'll be a blast.

Come ON OVER!

-drg

An Open Later to Parents re: After School Latin at All Saints Academy, Newport, RI

Over the last twenty-four years, I have been teaching Latin and Greek to students of every level from fourth grade through graduate school. Three years ago, I founded CAGSE, a company which has been getting Latin into schools, and teaching it, in the UK. Five schools in the London area use our program to help their students meet government standard literacy requirements. To get a better idea of what CAGSE does, I encourage you to explore our website at www.cagse.com. Most recently, I decided to bring this program to schools in the United States, with Newport, RI and the surrounding area as the focal point.

I’ve written my own text books, and developed my own pedagogical tools whereby students of any age and perceived capability can readily learn Latin. When students work with CAGSE’s Latin, they are asked to grapple with the building blocks of Indo-European. In doing this, they begin constructing a door through which they can readily access English as well. Learning Latin also puts students in a good position to pick up any European language: the Romance languages as well as the rest, which, like Latin, are inflected: word endings play a significant role in establishing the syntax, and therefore the meaning, of a sentence. Working with the basics, in turn, helps students develop their language skill to the point where any language they look at, whether or not it is Indo-European, is accessible.

I would like to meet with you regarding the offer of my Latin course to your children in an after-school program. Not because six out of every ten words in the English language are Latinate, or that your students’ SSAT scores will go up. We go deeper than that. CAGSE’s Latin program has students working with every part of every word to determine what role each has in the formation of linguistic meaning. The fact of the matter is that your students’ linguistic competence, not merely their dictionary knowledge, will both deepen and broaden as they work with the nuts and bolts of a language which is integral in the development of their own.

I look forward to meeting with you.

Very Sincerely Yours,

Dr. Richard Gilder III
CAGSE
(845) 309 5808 (cell)

Six Week Program
$180 per student

Each class as a group is unique. What we cover will vary. We go as fast as the class goes. There is no constraint upon the students one way or the other.

A Sample Syllabus
Week 1 – Learn Latin Greetings and numbers I-X
Who were the Romans?
When were the Romans?
What would have happened if Remus had prevailed?

Week 2 – Revisit Week 1
New Material
Build Up English Parts of Speech – Focus on Noun
Noun in English vs. Noun in Latin
English Building Blocks manipulatives
Latin Building Blocks

Week 3 – Revisit Weeks 1-2
Build Up English Parts of Speech
Work with the Verb in Latin and in English
English Building Blocks
Latin Building Blocks

Week 4 – Revisit Weeks 1-3
Build Up English Parts of Speech
Noun and Verb together in Latin and English
How does the English sentence establish meaning?
How does Latin establish meaning?

Week 5 - Revisit Weeks 1-4
Build Up English Parts of Speech
Prepositions in English
Prepositions in Latin

Week 6 – Revisit Weeks 1-5