What is Classical education and how is it different from other schools?
Is Veritas Academy accredited?
Are the teachers at Veritas Academy certified?
How is a Veritas education helpful to college entrance?
What are the guidelines for transferring to and from other schools?
Why do you teach Latin?
What is your homework policy?
For Elementary
For Secondary
What about sports?
Do you offer after-school care?
What is Classical education and how is it different from other schools?
On the one hand, this question involves a long answer and several recommended readings. The best place to begin the readings is with Dorothy Sayers’ essay, “The Lost Tools of Learning.” Books, booklets, and articles are available at the office and numerous sources are available on the web for detailed information about the growing rediscovery of classical education. Be sure to look at our website (www.veritastxk.com) and at the website for the Association of Classical Christian Schools (www.accsedu.org).
Classical Christian education focuses upon a methodology, usually referred to as the Trivium, and to curriculum choices. The Trivium, which has its roots in Biblical theology and Medieval educational practices, entails viewing learning in three stages. These stages are Grammar, Logic, and Rhetoric. Grammar in this sense is not just language, but it refers to the basic facts and structure of every subject. This reminds us of why elementary school has frequently been called grammar school. Logic in the Trivium is not just a course we teach on thinking skills, but is the connecting of facts and ideas into coherent thought. Rhetoric, which can refer to particular courses we teach on the art of persuasion, is here used to mean the cultivation of thinking, writing, reasoning, and communication skills. All learners use all parts of the Trivium at every level of learning, but elementary children learn primarily in the grammar stage, junior high students in the logic stage, and high school students in the rhetoric stage.
Another aspect of classical Christian education refers to the types of classes we offer. We teach Latin at all grade levels. The academic discipline of learning Latin and the Latin roots of our history, literature, education, and theology convince us – as it did educators for centuries – that this language is basic to understanding Western Civilization and developing intellectual discipline. Classes in logic and rhetoric train our students to think correctly and persuasively. These are supplemented by extensive reading and studying of literature, history, and theology. Mathematics and sciences are also part of the core curriculum needed for academic discipline and success in college and career.
Often, parents of students in classical Christian schools find themselves at first intimidated by what their children are learning and then quite jealous of them. As one publication has noted, “You’ll wish you could go back to school.”
Click here for more explanation of classical education.
Is Veritas Academy accredited?
In the state of Arkansas, private schools are not accredited by the state. As a classical Christian school, we are members of the Association of Classical Christian Schools (ACCS) and have been since 1996. The ACCS is also our accrediting agency and our goal is to soon reach all of the standards required of classical Christian schools. You may access their website here: www.accsedu.org
The ACCS standards call for instruction in logic, rhetoric, Latin, literature, the higher-level mathematics and sciences, history, theology, and the Bible. Classical Christian schools are also committed to teaching all subjects according to the classical method, so we emphasize the grammar, logic, and rhetoric stages of learning at all levels.
Our ultimate accountability is to God, the parents who send their children to our school, and the Veritas School Board, which has declared its commitment to classical and Christian education.
As a Christian school, we are determined to seek only those standards that uphold our philosophy of education, which is centered on the authority of Scripture, God’s creation of the world, and the life, death, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Are the teachers at Veritas Academy certified?
Teacher certification is usually based on standards provided by the public school system. Some of our teachers have certification due to past experience working in public schools or as a result of taking required courses for such certification while in college.
The board and administration consider the spiritual and intellectual attainments of the faculty to be better guides to teaching ability than state certification. We are, however, committed to the certification guidelines of the Association of Classical Christian Schools.
We are involved in the ongoing educational growth of our faculty. Our teachers attend conferences and seminars, take university level classes, conduct independent studies, and in some cases, study abroad (in Italy, for example.) Most of our secondary faculty have college, university, or seminary training at the graduate level.
Attendance of a lecture or sitting in on a class discussion should convince anyone of the intellectual competence of our staff.
How is a Veritas education helpful to college entrance?
Colleges and universities today have been among the first to recognize the general strengths and superiorities of students who are coming out of private, home, and other non-traditional educational settings. Veritas graduates have received scholarships and scholarships offers from a number of universities, including Wheaton College, John Brown University, the University of Dallas, Ouachita Baptist University, Henderson State University, Louisiana Tech University, Southern Arkansas University, and Calvin College.
College entrance requirements center primarily on student proficiency as shown by either the ACT or SAT college entrance exams. Veritas posts times and locations for such exams and strongly encourages high school students to take these tests. Colleges also are interested in the course work students have taken while in high school and the school and community activities of prospective students.
We encourage and provide incentives for students to be involved in volunteer work in the community, in ushering at the Perot Theater, in taking part in Teen Court, and in being active in their own church’s works.
Based on our curriculum requirements and the testimonies of our graduates, Veritas students leave here well prepared for college work. While we do not have courses designated as honors or accelerated courses, we believe that our curriculum requirements meet or excel those generally found in honors or accelerated classes.
What are the guidelines for transferring to and from other schools?
Every case is different. We frequently work with administrators and counselors from other schools on transfer cases. Our course requirements are different from those in public schools, other Christian schools, and home school programs. We seek to be fair and flexible in determining the grade level and accumulated credits and courses of incoming students.
The administration is the final determiner of the grade level of incoming students. We seek to have all records, grades, and background information available. For more information about entrance requirements, go to our Admissions page here.
Why do you teach Latin?
Considering the sheer number of years and amount of quality schools wherein the teaching of Latin was an integral part of any good academic training, the instruction in Latin at Veritas Academy should need no explanation or defense. However, like many traditional particulars of good education lost in the name of “modern” or “progressive” education, Latin’s advantages have been neglected and forgotten by a couple of generations. Latin was regularly taught even in American high schools as late as the 1940s. It was considered necessary to a fundamental understanding of English, the history and writings of Western Civilization, and the understanding of Romance languages.
Veritas Academy teaches Latin, therefore, for two major reasons:
1. Latin is not a “dead language” but rather a language that lives on in almost all major western languages, including English. A training in Latin not only gives the student a better understanding of the roots of English vocabulary, but it also lays the foundation for learning other Latin-based languages such as Spanish, French, or Italian.
2. Learning the grammar of Latin reinforces the student’s understanding of the reasons for, and the use of, the parts of speech being taught in our traditional English class work, e.g. plurals, nouns, verbs, prepositions, direct objects, tenses, etc.
What is your homework policy?
For Elementary:
I. PHILOSOPHY
Veritas Academy may assign some amount of homework to many of its students at any given time. Below are the primary reasons or causes for homework being assigned:
1. Students often need some amount of extra practice in specific, new concepts, skills, or facts. In certain subjects (e.g. math or languages), there is not enough time in a school day to do as much practice as may be necessary for mastery. Therefore, after reasonable in-class time is spent on the material, the teacher may assign homework to allow for the necessary practice. Note: This should be done for an entire class, not on an individual basis. Due dates/times for assignments apply to each student equally (exceptions for illnesses, emergencies, etc. of course may be allowed).
2. Repeated, short periods of practice or study of new information is often a better way to learn than one long period study.
3. Since Veritas Academy recognizes that parental involvement is critical to a child’s education, homework can be used as an opportunity for parents to actively assist their child in his studies. This will also keep the parents informed as to the current topics of study in the class.
4. Homework may also be assigned to students who, having been given adequate time to complete an assignment in class, did not use the time wisely. The homework, in this situation serves a punitive, as well as practical purpose.
II. GUIDELINES FOR ASSIGNING HOMEWORK:
Since homework, by its nature, takes time at home, it is not to be assigned due to the teacher’s poor planning or in place of an assignment which could have been completed in school. The student’s time at home is to be encroached upon for only the best of purposes.
The necessity for doing homework will vary from grade to grade and even from student to student. The guide below should be regarded as maximum times, not as required minimum times, and then only if homework is assigned. In any event of homework normally being assigned, the student’s Assignment Notebook should be used in the elementary grades and a student-owned assignment book should be used in the secondary grades.
| Grade |
Maximum Approximate Time per Weeknight* |
| K |
none |
| 1/2 |
20–40 minutes (infrequently) |
| 3 |
30–45 minutes (as needed) |
| 4/5 |
45 minutes |
| 6 |
45–60 minutes |
* Normally, homework is not to be assigned over weekends, holidays, or vacation periods.
For Secondary:
Homework
The Classical methodology and academic rigor of Veritas Academy entails homework, and sometimes, lots of it. Students should make good use of their time at school, and class time is often available for starting on homework.
The types of homework will usually be as follows:
1. Research projects and written reports.
2. Reading, especially the reading of literature will be done in large measure outside of class. If your children are not reading at night, they are not doing their assignments.
3. Studying for tests, memorization work, and reviewing notes.
4. Written work supplementing the classroom discussions and activities.
Students and parents should expect one to two hours of daily study and reading outside of the normal school day. Veritas students are expected to read lots of books and to study intensely for tests. Students cannot succeed here without reading and studying.
| God has equipped people with different academic gifts and different styles of working. Parents and students must consider the cost in time and sacrifices necessary to make high grades. While some parents and students may determine to strive for making all A’s, others may decide that settling for a lower score is acceptable. Consideration of the student’s abilities and time options must be considered. Some students can score well on tests and retain information with less effort than others. Some students are able to accomplish work with greater speed. Some students are involved in many outside activities—such as church functions, jobs, sports, and music—while others have more time for study. Some students make good use of study time at school, while others waste time. Parents and students need to consider all these factors. |
Benefits of Homework
• Greater success at college level work.
• Material studied in class is reviewed, reinforced, and enriched.
• Reading habits are developed and improved.
Reading challenging books is central to the mission of Veritas Academy.
• Students learn the key lesson of education, which is learning how to learn.
• Students learn to be responsible and budget their time.
What about sports?
Veritas Academy does not currently offer a competitive sports program. Our P.E. courses are designed to teach students the basics of the physicals skills necessary for success on an athletic team, e.g. running, throwing, kicking, catching (in elementary). Our Secondary students will be found playing various sports during their P.E. classes, including volleyball, softball, football (for boys), track and field, and even archery, in addition to basic physical conditioning. Veritas has a future goal of providing a comprehensive athletic program, which will include competitive sports. Currently, however, there are many opportunities for students to participate in community sports activities outside of school.
Do you offer after-school care?
Veritas Academy does not offer after-school care at this time.
