Posts about learning

A Brief Life of St. Columban

“The missionary labours of the Irish were not confined to Great Britain, but extended far and wide through the west of Europe. In the sixth and seventh centuries, Irish monasteries were founded in Austrasia and Burgundy, Italy, Switzerland, Bavaria; they were established among Frisians, Saxons, Alemanni. And as centres of Latin education as well as […]

On Self-Education

As part of our program, members at the Lyceum Institute are encouraged to suggest rich topics for our weekly Philosophical Happy Hour.  One member writes: What is the value of self-education?  By this I mean education that one engages in, (either through books or courses) without the aid of a teacher.  I think there is […]

On Education and Its Institutions

The contemporary controversy concerning education centers around the institutions tasked with providing it.  We ask ourselves what curricula should be implemented, what teaching methods are most effective, and how governmental agencies can assist in the growth of educational institutions—we debate the morality of teachers and their influence, the rights to speech and questioning, the difficulty […]

Podcast – How Does One Know?

I recently joined John Johnson and Larissa Bianco over at the Albertus Magnus Institute to talk about all things (or, at least, a lot of things) related to knowledge and the specifically human difference in how that knowledge unfolds in our experience. Be sure to check out the AMI website, especially the two summer courses […]

Catherine Project – Commonplace

Our friends at the Catherine Project have launched a new journal, Commonplace! As they describe it: We look forward to reading the first issue, already published!

Trivium: The Art of Logic 2023

On 1 May 2023, we will begin our second Trivium course of the year: The Art of Logic. Our first discussion session will take place on 8 May 2023 at 6:00pm ET. This course is open to all enrolled Lyceum Institute members; having taken Grammar is not a prerequisite. If you would like to sign-up and take […]

Marshall McLuhan on the History of the Trivium

…the history of the trivium is largely a history of the rivalry among them for ascendancy.  Ancient grammar was at odds with the dialectics of Plato and, especially, of Aristotle, as the art of interpreting phenomena.  As the method of patristic theology, grammar enjoyed uninterrupted ascendancy until the revival of dialectics by Gerbert, Roscellinus, and […]

Trivium: Rhetoric

Beginning the week of June 6, all Lyceum Institute members will have access to a 10-week course in the Art of Rhetoric. Discussion sessions will be held twice per week: Mondays at 6:00–6:45pm and Thursdays at 12:00–12:45pm (subject to change). Each week there will be an assigned reading, relevant practice, and brief lecture. Discussion sessions […]

IO2S Deely – Augustine: Instituting the Given Sign

The Latin Age of philosophy was one of the most productive, systematic, and insightful times of intellectual inquiry in human history—despite the oft-given reductive and willfully-ignorant treatment that labels all between the fall of Rome and the rise of the Renaissance as the “Dark Ages”—for which the first major figure was Augustine of Hippo. Most […]

Winter Seminars – Reminder

Still time to sign up for 2022 Winter Seminars! Discussions start soon, readings already posted.

Beyond the University

Beyond the University exists because the modern university, even where it succeeds, has become inadequate to the true tasks of education.  Education is not the transmission of information or preparation for employment, but the formation of good intellectual habits.  These aims no longer fit comfortably within institutions ordered primarily toward efficiency, expansion, and measurable outcomes.  The Lyceum Institute was founded to provide a genuinely different institutional form—one ordered toward education as an integral part of life rather than as a credentialing process.

The Lyceum cultivates enduring intellectual habits of inquiry, order, and memory through rigorous seminars, focused studies of the Trivium, classical languages, guided reading, and sustained inquisitive conversation.  By supporting the Lyceum Institute, you help sustain an independent public institution devoted to education ordered toward truth, continuity, and long-term intellectual formation.  Your gift ensures that this alternative remains available—not only for today’s students, but for generations to come.

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