Educating Is Culture Making

In this podcast, Andrew Zwerneman, the head and president of Cana Academy, discusses the importance of cultural formation in education. He advocates for a classical education that teaches students to appreciate the true, the good, and the beautiful, and to develop skills in reading, discussing, and writing. According to Zwerneman, education is a cultural shaping activity, and schools are one of the primary arenas where culture, attitudes, and faith are formed for good. Zwerneman stresses the importance of recognizing and reflecting on the tender things that keep us together as family, church, and community. He also emphasizes the importance of classical education and the humanities in shaping a holistic understanding of culture. Finally, Zwerneman believes that classical education has liberal purposes, which means freedom to think freely and to think in terms of what is true, good, and beautiful. He argues that the ideological forces that are around us want to divide us from one another, and the first thing they do is to divide us from our past and culture.