Classical vs. Classical Christian - What’s the Difference?
A few months ago, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Mr. Paul Fisher, the Headmaster of Capstone Classical Academy - a new Classical Christian school located in Fargo, North Dakota. As someone who works at a public classical charter school, I was keen to hear the perspective of someone working to bring classical education to students and families on a private, religious platform.
Our conversation was, by no exaggeration, fascinating to me. If you’ve ever wondered about the difference between classical and classical Christian, then this post is for you.
If you’re ever in the Fargo area, be sure to stop by and see the impressive work of Capstone Classical Academy. They are doing great things.
Let’s start with some nuts and bolts - for those new to classical education, what would you name as one major difference between a classical charter school and a classical Christian school?
I don’t think that pedagogy and method differ too much between the two models or what the typical school day looks like, but a classical Christian school will speak often about being rooted or immersed in a biblical worldview. That certainly brings some distinct features to it. But the truth is most classical schools, charter schools included, are immersed in western civilization. The western tradition was immersed in a biblical worldview - at least historically. So there is a lot more in common between the two models than you might think.
However, classical Christian schools do differ pretty markedly in that there is an incorporation of religious and cultural liturgies that are overtly Christian and openly from the Bible. We would see the teachings and narratives of the Bible as informing Socratic discussions that point to human narratives. In the public setting, you might look at other human narratives that fit, but they won’t come from scripture.
“I think, ultimately, both Christian and public classical models are best equipped to accommodate diverse worldviews in the classroom…
…That is, if they live up to their core principles”
Tell me a little bit about how a classical Christian school might approach curriculum and pedagogy versus a public classical school. What differences can parents expect to find?
The risk in a classical Christian school is forcing a moral lesson or a Sunday school lesson into content where it doesn’t belong. For example, What we don’t want to have happen is a science lesson on light that digresses into talking about the importance of being a light for Jesus.
The subjects and content that you think of at a classical school point to an order, creator, and designer. In a Christian classical school, the curriculum illuminates the apologetics and the teachers are able to name it explicitly within the context of scripture, religion, or worship.
All in all, I don’t think the pedagogy is all that different. I think there is a lot in common, but it comes back to classical Christian schools being much more explicit. In a charter school, there is no stated desire to make disciples. In a classical Christian school, discipleship is an important and acknowledged goal.
The classical view that education is a partnership with parents is one that has always intrigued me. Parents put their trust in teachers and administrators to educate their children in some of the most important ways. This becomes all the more important in a classical Christian setting - where the school plays an active role in religious and faith formation. What does that kind of partnership look like in real time?
We talk a lot with parents about what partnership looks like - both in admissions and again when they are experiencing the life of the school. Ultimately, what it means is that the parent has a seat at the table.
We believe that the parent is the steward of their child’s education. That means that we are actually beholden to the parent and answer to them as an authority in their child’s life.
When a parent comes to sit at the table with a classical Christian school, they come with many views about human nature already aligned - though not all. We have agnostic and Muslim families and others who aren’t Christian too. But we still have this unique “kindred spirit” of sorts that is, perhaps, more closely aligned than the more pluralistic context of a charter school. That trust helps elevate that parent partnership.
Now, one fundamental difference between the charter and private model is that we actually have an admissions process that is very transparent about difficulties or the things that might trouble them as parents. We want them to self-select out if they think they can’t be good partners with us. That is essential.
Our school is Christian - but under a very broad creed, the Nicene Creed. I think, ultimately, both Christian and public classical models are best equipped to accommodate diverse worldviews in the classroom. That is, if they live up to their core principles. The best classical Christian school is not trying to protect the truth but to pursue truth. If we are pursuing together on a journey it creates this lifelong learner who is humble enough to learn from someone who they thought they disagreed with, but ultimately ends up sharpening them.
Many classical Christian schools ask that parents or students sign a statement of faith, but some do not. In the instance that a statement was signed insincerely or not signed at all - how does a school such as yours authentically instruct a student who does not share the same principles?
Part of it is that we don’t have a tradition of an “alter call” or a call for students to ask Jesus into their hearts in the school setting. The idea is that we present things. Every model of education serves a god or an end of some kind - even if its the god of economic utility or citizenship. It’s not that those things are illegitimate - in fact they might be quite good at helping the school to achieve excellence within its own context.
For us, you can have a very diverse group as long as they understand where we are trying to go. We don’t need to be particularly sensitive to or persuasive about someone who does not share the same belief system. We do have a community covenant - a lot of schools have them. Ours expresses the convictions and world views that students will encounter at out school. We ask that families read through them and see how they feel. Can you still see yourself in this community and thrive? We encourage debate, we encourage questions, but we will always be respectful. We are essentially asking that they don’t become antagonistic. It’s a promise that we are making too. We want families to discover that they feel respected and that their dignity is honored.
How does a classical Christian school determine what makes it in the curriculum? To what extent are differing world views presented or examined through the curriculum?
Like most classical schools, we choose the best tools to accomplish the most important tasks in the lives of our students.
We’re looking for time-tested resources that are modeled off our exemplars. In literature, for example, we are picking books that help form and shape the moral imagination of our students - We’re choosing books that are, on multiple levels, feeding kids’ souls, not just affirming their worth, or helping them wrestle with politics.
“But classical education is not a specialty form. It’s not elitist, or for students of particular academic giftedness…
…It’s for any student who desires to desire learning. “
You might think that a classical Christian school wants to censor certain content. But the truth is that you need the world to show you what is false, ugly, and wicked. If you don’t encounter that, then you’ve both had a very anemic education and you’re not as inspired by the true and good and beautiful.
You have to do a study on folly - why do people choose to pursue something that is worthless and leaves them empty? The only way you can do that is to read books that are full of immorality. But they have to be books that present it in such a way that it is true. That can be tricky.
I lead parent tours all the time and often get asked the question, what kind of student is best for your school? Or is there a particular type of student who will do well at your school? And so I pose the question back to you: Who should attend a classical Christian school?
Everyone. Humans. The question presupposes that success is defined as getting a good report card or some other outcome that a parent is thinking about. A lot of parents look at a school and ask: will my child get into college? Will they get a scholarship? Will they graduate and not drop out? Will they be socially happy and safe? These are the kinds of things that parents are thinking about.
But classical education is not a specialty form. It’s not elitist, or for students of particular academic giftedness. It’s for any student who desires to desire learning.
All classical schools are going to agree on that.
Learn more about Capstone Classical Academy and Mr. Paul Fisher here. Mr. Fisher has served in classical Christian schools for a decade and in Christian education for 25 years. Mr. Fisher came to Capstone after serving as the Head of School at Edent Christian Academy, where he led their three campuses through a time of transition in leadership. Mr. Fischer provides consulting to Christian schools across the country in the challenging task of authentic, rigorous biblical worldview integration across all facets of schooling and the life of the school community.
