The Role of the Parents
First and foremost, we must begin by stating that the education of children is primarily the duty of parents; it is no more the duty of private Christian schools than it is of public, secular schools. For this reason, we do not seek to be a replacement for parents, but an educational tool in the hands of parents who are serious about fulfilling their God-given role as the teachers of their children. We do recognize, however, that God has called and equipped certain individuals for the task of teaching. The lack of being especially equipped by God for teaching does not excuse parents from their responsibility, but indicates that they may make use of others gifts in the instruction of their own children if necessary or preferable. Ultimately, however, parents are accountable to God for the worldview passed on to their children by the school(s) those children attend (whether home, private, or public).
Christ-centered Education
At Veritas your children are taught that believing, fearing, and loving God is the first and most crucial step in acquiring knowledge. "The Fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction," (Proverbs 1:7). Thus, all instruction at Veritas begins by acknowledging that God is the sovereign Creator and Ruler of the universe, whose sovereign hand is seen in the unfolding of history and in the revealing of his Son Jesus Christ. This God who has ordered all things has made us in his image and for his glory and commands us to love Him "with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind." There is not an aspect of life or a realm of knowledge that does not find its purpose and meaning in Jesus Christ; without Christ, all knowledge is fragmentary and the unifying principle of all things cannot be found. In Him are hidden "all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." (Colossians 2:3) We do not believe that we are a truly Christian school if we only add "Bible" or "Theology" to Math, History, Reading, and Writing. If these subjects are the planets of the educational solar system, the Bible is not just one more celestial body orbiting the sun; it is the sun. "[T]rue Christian education is a Copernican revolution which comes to see Scripture as the sun, which sees Scripture at the center. And that sun, that light, provides the light in which we see everything else." (Douglas Wilson, Introduction to Antithesis in Education in Repairing the Ruins: The Classical and Christian Challenge to Modern Education, [Moscow, ID: Canon, 1996] 14).
Since the Bible aims mainly to reveal Christ to us, our Scripture-centered approach turns out to be a Christ-centered approach. Children attending Veritas are taught to relate all things to Christ as he is revealed in Scripture, because the truth that will set us free is the truth of Christ's words (John 8:31-32). All other truth is to be seen by the light of the Word of Christ; therefore, no subject is learned in isolation from all others, least of all from theology. This integrated, Bible-saturated view of the different subjects, or areas of knowledge, is what we call Christ-centered education.
Classical Education
The question of how to achieve a Christ-centered education is no small inquiry. We believe that the most effective way to create both an academically rigorous and Christ-centered school is through the method known as the classical approach to education. Essentially, the classical approach emphasizes the need for students to enter into the "great conversation" through a thorough knowledge of literature, history, and logic. Great stress is put upon the need to become thinkers and learners. The classical approach divides learning into three stages which coincide roughly with the three stages of development through which children pass. These three stages of learning are commonly called the Trivium, which means "three-fold way," and are categorized into grammar, logic, and rhetoric.
In addition to the Trivium, classical education insists that students become a part of what has been called "the great conversation." This means that students will be immersed in Western culture, its history, development, and its great literary works. Classical education lays great emphasis on not merely filling minds with information, but training minds so that students learn how to learn; they learn how to think.
Grammar
In the first stage, grammar is emphasized. By grammar, we do not mean simple English grammar or even language grammar in general. We mean the basic facts of each subject. For instance in Mathematics, grammar would include multiplication and division tables. The grammar of history comprises names, places, and dates. Every subject has its own grammar, and this grammar is mastered in the first stage, which basically covers first through fifth grade. During this stage, we take advantage of a young child's innate capacity to memorize and retain information.
Logic
In the second stage, logic is the focus. "The student in this stage learns the importance of defining terms accurately. They learn the key components of a well-structured argument. They learn how to organize thoughts, to avoid the use of fallacies, and to detect the name fallacies present in the arguments of others." (Tom Spencer, The Classical Model: Trivium 101," in Repairing the Ruins: the Classical and Christian Challenge to Modern Education, [Moscow, ID: Canon, 1996] 92). In other words, they move beyond the facts to asking questions about the facts and arrive at correct answers. No longer is it sufficient to tell a child that George Washington led the armies of the colonies in their fight against Britain. Now they must be allowed to question whether or not the colonialists' response to British rule was right in the first place. They must be allowed to ask, "Why did the Holy Spirit strike down Ananias and Saphira? Wasn't that an overreaction?" They must be shown how to arrive at correct conclusions to such questions. The questions are not to be ignored; they are to be answered. Moreover, the students learn how to analyze reality and arrive at answers that are logical and coherent themselves. This stage lasts from about the sixth grade to the eighth grade.
Rhetoric
The third stage is rhetoric. During these high school years, students are formulating their own worldviews and are largely concerned with how they come across. "In the study of rhetoric, the student learns how to express what he thinks. The substance is settled; the question now concerns how best to present that substance. It is not enough to believe what is correct; the truth must be presented in manner worthy of that truth." (Douglas Wilson, Recovering the Lost Tools of Learning, [Wheaton: Crossway, 1991] 95). The students study the best in literature, the arts, history, theology, science, and philosophy, refining their ability to articulate their knowledge and learning how to share and defend their faith.
As students progress, they will move from knowing the numerous facts ("grammar") of each subject to being able to think clearly and truthfully about these facts and the different questions that arise from them. Finally, they will become equipped to communicate these facts and truths to others by "formulating their own creative written and oral expressions." While students will finish having acquired as much, if not more, information than those being taught via other methods, they will also have learned how to learn. We aim to create Christ-centered learners and thinkers, not simply people who have finished the required coursework.
