Bishop James Conley went back to class today, joining our third period Classic Literature class at Lincoln Pius X High School taught by Mark Hansen and Patrick Callahan, Director of the Newman Institute.
The bishop wanted to observe a Socratic seminar to see first-hand what is happening in our schools. The students were in day two of a the seminar activity, where students form an inner and outer circle, and the inner circle leads a discussion on a part of the book, in this case, ‘The Odyssey’ by Homer. The next day, the two circles swap places, and the inner discussion group can build upon what they heard yesterday, or focus on new parts of the book. On both days, the outer circle group takes notes and has a chance to provide feedback at the end of the discussion time.
As the bell rang, Bishop Conley said “I took delight in everything,” and plans to return.
Here’s why Hansen likes to include the book in the curriculum: “The Odyssey is one of the foundational texts of world literature. It really explores what it means to be a part of humanity. By that I mean the text looks at all the good stuff in humanity, but doesn’t shy away from the bad. It is a great way for students to understand another culture (ancient Greece) but also their own culture. Even though students in Lincoln are separated from ancient Greek culture by thousands of miles and thousands of years, they get a chance to see that there are enduring values and ideas common to all of humanity. We talked about hospitality today, but we’ll also talk about fidelity, wealth, politics, family … all of that is present in the Odyssey.”
