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The Geneva School provides an education—extraordinary in our day—based on a historical approach most famously summarized during the middle ages in the system of instruction called the trivium. The pedigree of this approach can be traced from the days of Plato and Aristotle right through to the middle of the last century, some of whose greatest thinkers and leaders were among the last to embody its potential (men like Einstein and Churchill, not to mention Dorothy Sayers). At that time, this proven approach began to fall into neglect–not because of any deficiency, or because it was less suited to modern endeavors, but in the face of a determined but widespread ignorance that arose out of materialism, secularism and pragmatism. A Geneva education is designed to recover the disciplines and provide the benefits of this proven historical approach in a modern, Christian context.
The Latin term trivium refers to an overlapping, three-phase approach to educating children that reflects both developmental progression and learning styles: the grammar phase (grades pre-K through 6) emphasizes the content and mechanics of each discipline; the dialectic (or logic) phase (grades 7 and 8) focuses on equipping students to reason about, debate, and relate the elements of what they are being taught; the rhetoric phase (grades 9 through 12) seeks to provide students with the tools required to communicate what they know effectively and persuasively.
This distinctive classical approach to education is the basis for the school's entire academic program. It is our belief that students who persevere at The Geneva School will have the knowledge (grammar), thinking ability (dialectic) and communication skills (rhetoric) required to excel in any discipline or vocation.
Hear Academic Dean Michael Eatmon briefly outline the components of the classical approach to education (mp3, 6MB)
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