Home School Heartbeat Radio Program

Latin language study is on the increase as it rides the wave of classical education's resurgence. Join Michael Farris and Dr. David Noe as they discuss teaching Latin on today's Home School Heartbeat.

Mike Farris:
My guest today is Dr. David Noe; he's an Assistant Professor of Classics at Patrick Henry College. David, welcome to the program.


Dr. David Noe:
Thanks, Mike, for this opportunity. I appreciate it.


Mike:
David, why do you think it's important for students to study Latin? I mean, after all, don't most people think of it as a dead language?

Dr. Noe:
Well, in one sense, of course, that's true. You know the old saying, "It killed the Romans and now it's killing me"? Hardly anybody today uses Latin for conversation. But in another sense Latin is very much alive. It's hard to conceive of the modern world without the language and culture of the Romans. Latin was important to the Founders and their work in establishing this country and as they looked to biblical principles and to the history of Greece and Rome in terms of how to govern a free people.


Some of the immediate benefits for studying Latin: it will help increase your SAT scores—that's a pretty well-documented fact—beyond what you could get from studying modern foreign languages. Latin is a very powerful and flexible language and it gives to students a great clarity of expression and a tremendous power to their argumentation. Finally, the classical authors—they really make you love liberty and hate despotism, and who could argue with that?


Mike:
David, thanks so much for your dedicated efforts to promote these good ideas through the study of Latin. I'm Mike Farris.