In the classical world, even though Pagans and Christians disagreed about the significance of the world they were studying, nevertheless, both shared similar approaches to pedagogy. What has happened to education since the mid-19th century, however, is nothing short of a revolution and not the good sort (e.g., the American Revolution). It is a revolution away from what has always been considered (by pagans and Christians alike) as learning and in favor of the affective or subjective change within the student. Classically, education was considered to have multiple facets but the foundational function of education began with the objective. There was a time when parents were aware that there was a shift afoot in American education and they responded by clamoring for a return to the “three Rs,” reading, writing, and ‘rithmetic.” This was a way of calling schools to return to a more objective approach to education. The American experiment in public education, however, was intended to introduce immigrants into American (then predominantly) Protestant culture. In that sense its intent was always more affective than classical in orientation.

The American public education system was fairly conservative and cautious in its approach until the post-WWII period, when the true nature of the American experiment in education began to become more evident. Today, however, that experiment in affective education has become an openly partisan political, and cultural enterprise. School districts across the USA have been taken captive by critical theories of various kinds (e.g., Critical Race Theory) and the LGBTQ lobby.

As a practical matter, perhaps the most pressing problem is the percentage of sexual criminals wandering the halls of America’s public schools. A recent news report highlighted the fact that at least one public school teacher or teachers’ aide was arrested for a sexual crime against a minor every day from January 1, 2022 to May 13, 2022. Public schools have become a clear and present danger to the physical, psychological, emotional, spiritual, and intellectual well being of America’s children.

Below are some resources on these issues.

1. A Very Brief History Of Schooling For Christians
2. Sayers, “The Lost Tools Of Learning”
3. A Simple Curriculum for Parrots, Perts, and Poets
4. One Arrested Every Day Since January 1, 2022
5. Plagiarism And The Ugly Truth About Education
6. Engel v. Vitale (1962) Forbids Required Prayer In the Public Schools Including Social-Justice Chants To Aztec Gods
7. Why It Is Reasonable Not To Send Your Children To Public School
8. More Reasons To Leave The Public School (Or Antiracism Does Not Mean What You Might Think)
9. Why You Should Get Your Child Out Of Public School
10. Yet Another Reason To Leave Public School
11. Religious Freedom in Public School Classrooms
12. K–12 Schools Are Downstream From The University
13. Do You Know Who Is Influencing Your Classical School?
14. Yes, It is In The Schools
15. Covid Accelerated The Homeschooling Revolution
16. Is There A Sexual Abuse Crisis In Christian Schools?
17. Did Public Education Really Introduce Mass Literacy?
18. Christian School In Oregon Sues Governor Over Unequal Treatment
19. The Coming Attack On Homeschooling And Educational Freedom?
20. Machen: Two Reasons For Christian Schools (1933)
21. Your Tax Dollars At Work: Grooming Elementary Students For The LGBTQ Movement
22. Lewis On Egalitarian Education: Will It Breed A Nation Which Should Survive?
23. Why It Is Important To Be Aware And Deliberate About Your Child’s Education
24. Again, They Are Coming For Your Children Spiritually, Ideologically, And Intellectually
25. Loco Or In Loco Parentis?
26. Is Your Child’s Teacher A Member Of Antifa? Is Your Child Receiving Extra Credit For Attending Antifa Events?
27. They Are Coming For Your Children
28. Machen’s Senate Testimony Against The Proposed Department Of Education (1926)
29. John Dewey’s Plan For Your Children
30. Heidelcast 210: How Christians Should Respond To The Sexual Revolution
31. Sometimes Nebraska Is Just Too Nice (UPDATED)
32. Sometimes Culture Includes Cult
33. Critical Theory Seeks To Suppress Dissent In America
34. Perhaps Academic Standards Have Fallen Since 1941-42?
35. Clear Evidence Of Declining Academic Standards
36. Trust, Community, And Life (UPDATED)
37. All The Children Are Not Above Average
38. Education True and False
39. Trueman On Education And Gulags
40. Another Sign Of The Collapse Of Liberal Education
41. Audio: Machen’s Testimony Against The Department Of Education
42. Another Canary In Another Educational Coal Mine?
43. Is It Education Or Propaganda?
44. The Affective Revolution In Higher Education
45. School Or Re-Education Camp?
46. There Is A Christian Worldview
47. Resources On The Twofold Kingdom
48. Resources On The Nature/Grace And Sacred/Secular Distinctions
49. Liberal Education, Religious Freedom, And Weak Arguments (Updated Again)
50. Resources On Religious Liberty
51. Resources On Critical Theory, Political Correctness, And Free Speech