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Weekly Wits: 5/24/13
by Cartoon Editor
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Category: Education
Get Government out of Student-Debt Business
by Dr. Shawn Ritenour
As millions of students and their parents are preparing for life after commencement, they’re also preparing to deal with massive student loans. Increasingly, people are concerned about the student debt situation brewing on college campuses. The present state of student debt is not a pretty picture. According to a report published by the New York [...]
Is it the Book or is it Me?
by Jennifer Fitz
Forget diet secrets and extreme makeovers. Struggling homeschool moms have a more pressing question on the mind: Will a new curriculum solve my problems? Maybe I’ve been using the wrong book. Maybe, like the catalog promises, my kids really can learn the state capitals, speak fluent Spanish, and master organic chemistry, all for just $189.95. [...]
This is Our Time
by Patti Maguire Armstrong
Graduation from college is a transition from working towards a goal to accomplishing it. Some are ready to save the world while others simply want to make their mark in it, but either way, it is the threshold of new possibilities. Inevitably however, within any group of graduates, time brings surprises both good and bad. [...]
Is It Really About Catholic Identity?
by Marlon De La Torre
Imagine a Bishop exercising his rightful authority to assure authentic Catholic teaching and practice in Catholic Schools. If this proposition sounds reasonable, then you will find Bishop Vasa of the Diocese of Santa Rosa, CA to be a reasonable man. He had requested/required that all Catholic School teachers to publicly affirm Catholic Church teaching and [...]
The Christian Alphabet Book
by Patrice Fagnant-MacArthur
In 1999, Tracy Sands was inspired while listening to Christian music at a church event. With only a pen and the program she received at the door to work with, she began sketching quickly. The urge to create was so strong she “felt as though she would pop if she didn’t get the ideas out [...]
Hearing God’s Voice: A Guide to Prayer and Discernment
by Mary C. Tillotson
Last year, I helped teach high school students at my parish’s faith formation program in St. Ignace, Michigan. We took the students to exposition, and afterward, one of them asked me how to tell when she is hearing God’s voice. This is an edited version of the letter I wrote her. Dear M., I’m glad [...]
Discounting Parents’ Rights
by Ken Connor
For people of faith in America, the Obama administration’s birth control mandate represents an unprecedented assault on religious conscience. It seems that the President and his surrogates have little appreciation for the role that faith plays in the lives of many Americans, and even less respect for the Constitution’s protection of religious liberty. As if [...]
All The Days of My Life: A Chastity Tale
by Sarah Babbs
Imagine my surprise when a friend who works with the parish youth group asked me to give a chastity talk to the middle and high school aged girls. “Who, me?” I said, raising an eyebrow suspiciously. I thought, Why not someone who has actually lived chastely her whole life? Me? I did it all wrong. [...]
Homeschooling and Struggling with Self-Discipline
by Jennifer Fitz
Having been duly warned about the dangers of praying for patience, just before Lent I did something nearly as foolish: I prayed for self-discipline. Because I haven’t got much of it. Some people do, and if that’s you, please understand that we goof-offs and layabouts aren’t really trying to ruin your life, or our own, [...]
The Patience of the Teacher
by Stephanie Gulya
As a teacher, one of the most frustrating parts of my job is when I have spent time and energy planning and explaining an assignment or topic only to discover that my students have been left bewildered and overwhelmed by my presentation. Some times it feels as though I honestly could not make the topic [...]
Homeschooling vs. Traditional School
by Patrice Fagnant-MacArthur
There is an old adage in homeschooling that says not to make any life-altering educational decisions in February. This time of year is the homeschooler’s valley of tears. A little more than halfway through the school year, stuck in the house most of the time, feeling painfully inadequate to the task at hand, it is [...]
Alliance for Catholic Education – Service through Teaching
by Lisa Hendey
Today, I’m happy to feature the fantastic “ACE” program at the University of Notre Dame. The Alliance for Catholic Education is a true model for service in Christ to others. In this part of our feature, we share a recent conversation with Amy Wyskochil, Director of Operations for ACE, as we cover a basic introduction [...]
Eliminating Feminist Teacher Bias Erases Boys’ Falling Grades
by Hilary White
Has the Sexual Revolution, and the feminist ideology that drives it, pushed men out of universities by undermining boys in school as early as kindergarten? Some writers are beginning to connect the dots between the shift over the last few decades in educational practices from fact-based grading to evaluation based on “non-cognitive” and “emotional skills” [...]
The Law of Life Summit 2013
by John Audino
It is that time of year again! The March for Life in Washington D.C. is right around the corner and as public struggle against legalized abortion in America turns 40 years old, it is time to take note of how the event has grown up. Though the principles for such a large annual gathering in [...]
The Pewsitter’s Guide to Parish Renewal
by Heidi Hess Saxton
Recently on Facebook, I came across a rather heated discussion about Vacation Bible School (VBS), summertime faith formation programs hosted by many parishes across the United States. These parishes are taking a cue from other Christian communities by offering this kind of special outreach – and at times are even using programs produced by evangelical [...]
Reconciliation: The Wisdom Of 7-Year Olds
by Terry McDermott
On the last Saturday before Christmas break, I introduced the belief of a forgiving God to my First Communion class. The lesson was based on a re-telling of The Prodigal Son. As usual, the class, the full complement of twenty-one this particular Saturday, participated eagerly in the discussion. The students had many questions: what if [...]
Homeschool Review and Resolutions
by Jennifer Fitz
It’s December already, and that means the dreaded J-word is just around the corner: January. For those who are new to homeschooling, January is the Month of Homeschooling Doom. A month or two of holiday craziness, followed by cold, dark, bleak weather, and a curriculum that had all the new and shiny worn off by [...]
Civic Illiteracy Won the White House for Obama
by Marybeth Hicks
It was only 7:15 last Tuesday evening when my daughter, who works in conservative journalism, texted me to say the election was lost. For a painful four hours, I watched the results confirm her early analysis. When it was clear the president would be re-elected and Republican challenger Mitt Romney had lost, I took an [...]
Obama’s HHS ‘Grooming’ Children for Sex
by J. Matt Barber
(Warning: The following contains disturbing information of a sexual nature.) My strength is as the strength of ten, because my heart is pure. ~ Alfred Lord Tennyson My dear friend and colleague Dr. Judith Reisman, a visiting law professor at Liberty University School of Law, recently guest lectured during “Sexual Behavior and the Law,” a [...]
The Sistine Chapel: A Liturgical Classroom
by Kathy Schiffer
On October 31, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI observed the 500th anniversary of the Sistine Chapel by offering a prayer—celebrating Vespers beneath Michelangelo’s famed frescoes of biblical stories including, most famously, the Creation of Adam. The Holy Father called the chapel a “liturgical classroom,” explaining that “It is as if during the liturgical action, the entire [...]
LSU Grabs Tiger by Tail in Altering ‘Posse’ Picture
by Marybeth Hicks
You would think that, with Louisiana State University’s 7-1 overall record and 3-1 Southeastern Conference record, fans of the No. 6-ranked college football team would focus all their attention on the upcoming game against No. 1-ranked Alabama. Face it, this will be a big game. But seriously, folks. An interesting issue has risen out of [...]
Beware the Benign
by Genevieve Kineke
Most of the country has heard of the decision by one public school system in Rhode Island to amend its policy towards “gendered” activities for its students. Cranston hosts the typical middle school events — father-daughter dances and mother-son sports outings — which facilitate family and community bonding. Such light-hearted group activities provide memories and [...]
