In Dorothy Sayers’ famous essay titled the Lost Tools of Learning, she observed in 1947 that while many subjects were taught in the schools of that day, they “fail lamentably on the whole in teaching them (pupils) how to think:they learn everything except the art of learning.”In reflecting upon earlier ages, when children matured much younger and were taught to think much more critically, she focused on the education processes of the Middle Ages.She concluded that the methods used in those times had many advantages.The first major portion of the mediaeval syllabus was called the Trivium, and she proposed a somewhat modernized Trivium as a solution to the educational deficiencies she had identified.The Trivium covers the education of children up through the high school years in today’s terms.It is foundational to the curriculum and teaching methods applied at Providence Hall.Miss Sayers full essay may be accessed by clicking here.
