Calvert Homeschool Curricula Anti-Catholic?

[belchers1]

I am currently homeschooling two of my children using Calvert Homeschool, which was provided tuition-free, through the public school system. My children are in 4th and 1st grade. It has been brought to my attention that there may anti-Catholic teachings in some of the Social Studies material for 7th grade. Does anyone have any reference to this?

Has anyone else had any concerns with Calvert being anti-Catholic?

Thanks!

 

[teenphilo1]

They’re everywhere. They’re in our textbooks in our Catholic High School. The best thing you can do is be aware of them before your child reads them and be ready to point our the fallacies. (always present. always)

 

[yellowbird]

Several years ago I homeschooled my children (K, 3rd, 6th) for one year using Calvert materials. I don’t recall anything anti-Catholic, and I was in RCIA at the time so I think I would have noticed. I really liked Calvert.

Previous poster is right - coming across anti- Catholic stuff is so much a part of our lives…how great that you’ll be aware if it happens and able to discuss it with your child. Who knows, maybe you’ll have an apologetic in the making?

So great that your public school foots the bill?! How does that work? I recall paying a small fortune!

 

[SonCatcher]

Is that when they cover the Reformation, Inquisition or Crusades? Most secular curricula follow the Protestant view regarding those subjects (they tend to dig at the latter two mainly because they can be easily spun against the Church while minimizing the appearance of bias).

We use a charter homeschool system that allows us to use textbooks that we acquired on our own while directing school funds to activities like art/music lessons and karate (aka p.e.). Will yours allow you to do similar? (providing you actually have means to purchase your own books, that is)

 

[belchers1]

I do agree with teenphilo1 in stating that these teachings are, unfortunately, everywhere. I do often wonder though, if going with an actual Catholic program would help to reduce the likelihood of coming across such material. Still, like yellowbird said, it could be an opportunity for apologetics!

SonCatcher, I’m not exactly sure what specific topic was being discussed. I will be seeing my friend tomorrow and she will show me exactly what it was that is concerning. Your charter school sounds wonderful! As far as I know, something like that is not available in our local area.

yellowbird, my children are technically public school students “in the system”, but there is no brick and mortar school. Instead, they have weekly contact with their “teacher” via the internet with computers provided by the virtual academy. I am referred to as the “learning guide”, but I still consider myself their teacher as I do all the teaching! Here is a link to the local virtual academy we use.

 

[gus]

Is that when they cover the Reformation, Inquisition or Crusades? Most secular curricula follow the Protestant view regarding those subjects (they tend to dig at the latter two mainly because they can be easily spun against the Church while minimizing the appearance of bias).

We use a charter homeschool system that allows us to use textbooks that we acquired on our own while directing school funds to activities like art/music lessons and karate (aka p.e.). Will yours allow you to do similar? (providing you actually have means to purchase your own books, that is)

In the 50’s The Crusades were given a very positive spin in the Anglo Centric U.S. piblic school I went to. It was even hard to find a connection between the Church and the Crusades. Unless you looked closely you might think it was a spontaneous event.Richard Cour De Leone was a huge hero. The Crusaders were viewed positivly with the exception of the Knights Templar.Rememember Ivanhoe.
English history was revised in the 60’s 180 Degrees.

 

[catholicmamajoy]

I do agree with teenphilo1 in stating that these teachings are, unfortunately, everywhere. I do often wonder though, if going with an actual Catholic program would help to reduce the likelihood of coming across such material. Still, like yellowbird said, it could be an opportunity for apologetics!

SonCatcher, I’m not exactly sure what specific topic was being discussed. I will be seeing my friend tomorrow and she will show me exactly what it was that is concerning. Your charter school sounds wonderful! As far as I know, something like that is not available in our local area.

yellowbird, my children are technically public school students “in the system”, but there is no brick and mortar school. Instead, they have weekly contact with their “teacher” via the internet with computers provided by the virtual academy. I am referred to as the “learning guide”, but I still consider myself their teacher as I do all the teaching! Here is a link to the local virtual academy we use.

As a veteran homeschooling mom (my oldest is in college), I will say that if you have found a program that works for your children, stick with it! Sure, there are many great Catholic homeschool programs, but just because they are Catholic doesn’t guarantee that it will be a good fit for your child(ren) and for you, as their primary teacher. If you find something you find contrary to the Faith (often found in Protestant material) or even something that is questionable to the Faith (usually the late Middle Ages and Renaissance sections in secular homeschool history books), use that as an opportunity for an apologetics lesson.

 

[belchers1]

I have an update to what was questionable in my friend’s 7th grader’s textbook.

It reads:

“Historians prefer primary sources, because the people who observed or took part in events usually tell a more accurate story. Historians carefully check the accuracy of every source to make sure they get a true view of the past. In some cases, careful study of historical evidence leads to changes in our view of the past. For example, a document known as Donation of Constantine gave the Roman Catholic popes power over Italy and western Europe. The document was supposedly written during Constantine’s reign (c. A. D. 274-337). In 1440, Italian historian Lorenzo Valla analyzed the text to prove that it was a forgery, written hundreds of years after Constantine’s death!”

We fact checked this information on Catholic Encyclopedia and found that the Donation of Constantine was in fact, a forgery.

That’s a relief. I will proceed with caution.

 

[SonCatcher]

I have an update to what was questionable in my friend’s 7th grader’s textbook.

It reads:

“Historians prefer primary sources, because the people who observed or took part in events usually tell a more accurate story. Historians carefully check the accuracy of every source to make sure they get a true view of the past. In some cases, careful study of historical evidence leads to changes in our view of the past. For example, a document known as Donation of Constantine gave the Roman Catholic popes power over Italy and western Europe. The document was supposedly written during Constantine’s reign (c. A. D. 274-337). In 1440, Italian historian Lorenzo Valla analyzed the text to prove that it was a forgery, written hundreds of years after Constantine’s death!”

We fact checked this information on Catholic Encyclopedia and found that the Donation of Constantine was in fact, a forgery.

That’s a relief. I will proceed with caution.

It is a fact that there have been abuses in the past. Learning from past mistakes, we can avoid them and focus more effort on conforming the world to God’s will.

I’m glad it was a “non-issue”.

 

[manualman]

You have to look at the big picture and should incorporate this into your lessons. We speak English and live in a country fundamentally influenced in its founding values by English culture. Our history books are mostly by English speaking authors, who (human nature) read more in old English texts than in other languages. Since the late 1500’s, English culture has been incredibly hostile to catholicism. This builds a bias into the entire culture that some scholars call the “Black Legend.” Black Legend versions of history white wash protestant behavior and demonize that of Spaniards, especially.

Want a gut check? Based on your own education, who conducted the more civilized exploration of the New World, Spain or England? Spain gave us the genocidal conquistadors, gold diggers, slave traders and corrupt colonial exploitation, right? England established peaceful colonies devoted to religious liberty and had Thanksgiving with their peaceful Indian neighbors, right? That’s why today North America is almost entirely populated with people with obvious Native American features / genes while South America has almost no trace of its original indigenous population… OOPS! Got that backwards, didn’t we? Don’t see many pale faces south of the equator in this hemisphere, do we? Facts on the ground today suggest that the English were the genocidal xenophobes bent on conquest and domination while the Spanish respected the dignity of the local people enough to intermarry and produce a hybrid culture and civilization. Strange, but that’s whay MY eyeballs report when I visit South America. Our biased history gets it almost entirely backwards because the English speakers wrote our history books. Human nature prefers that the OTHER guy is the bad guy and that we’re the good guys. Teach your kids to learn and resist that tendency and you’ll be the best history teacher they’ll ever have.

And btw, that includes not whitewashing mistakes by catholics in history too. We all really DO need our Savior.

 

[belchers1]

You have to look at the big picture and should incorporate this into your lessons. We speak English and live in a country fundamentally influenced in its founding values by English culture. Our history books are mostly by English speaking authors, who (human nature) read more in old English texts than in other languages. Since the late 1500’s, English culture has been incredibly hostile to catholicism. This builds a bias into the entire culture that some scholars call the “Black Legend.” Black Legend versions of history white wash protestant behavior and demonize that of Spaniards, especially.

Want a gut check? Based on your own education, who conducted the more civilized exploration of the New World, Spain or England? Spain gave us the genocidal conquistadors, gold diggers, slave traders and corrupt colonial exploitation, right? England established peaceful colonies devoted to religious liberty and had Thanksgiving with their peaceful Indian neighbors, right? That’s why today North America is almost entirely populated with people with obvious Native American features / genes while South America has almost no trace of its original indigenous population… OOPS! Got that backwards, didn’t we? Don’t see many pale faces south of the equator in this hemisphere, do we? Facts on the ground today suggest that the English were the genocidal xenophobes bent on conquest and domination while the Spanish respected the dignity of the local people enough to intermarry and produce a hybrid culture and civilization. Strange, but that’s whay MY eyeballs report when I visit South America. Our biased history gets it almost entirely backwards because the English speakers wrote our history books. Human nature prefers that the OTHER guy is the bad guy and that we’re the good guys. Teach your kids to learn and resist that tendency and you’ll be the best history teacher they’ll ever have.

And btw, that includes not whitewashing mistakes by catholics in history too. We all really DO need our Savior.

Wow! Thank you for your insight! Great thoughts.

 

[yellowbird]

You have to look at the big picture and should incorporate this into your lessons. We speak English and live in a country fundamentally influenced in its founding values by English culture. Our history books are mostly by English speaking authors, who (human nature) read more in old English texts than in other languages. Since the late 1500’s, English culture has been incredibly hostile to catholicism. This builds a bias into the entire culture that some scholars call the “Black Legend.” Black Legend versions of history white wash protestant behavior and demonize that of Spaniards, especially.

Want a gut check? Based on your own education, who conducted the more civilized exploration of the New World, Spain or England? Spain gave us the genocidal conquistadors, gold diggers, slave traders and corrupt colonial exploitation, right? England established peaceful colonies devoted to religious liberty and had Thanksgiving with their peaceful Indian neighbors, right? That’s why today North America is almost entirely populated with people with obvious Native American features / genes while South America has almost no trace of its original indigenous population… OOPS! Got that backwards, didn’t we? Don’t see many pale faces south of the equator in this hemisphere, do we? Facts on the ground today suggest that the English were the genocidal xenophobes bent on conquest and domination while the Spanish respected the dignity of the local people enough to intermarry and produce a hybrid culture and civilization. Strange, but that’s whay MY eyeballs report when I visit South America. Our biased history gets it almost entirely backwards because the English speakers wrote our history books. Human nature prefers that the OTHER guy is the bad guy and that we’re the good guys. Teach your kids to learn and resist that tendency and you’ll be the best history teacher they’ll ever have.

And btw, that includes not whitewashing mistakes by catholics in history too. We all really DO need our Savior.

This.

 

[Elizabeth502]

I have taught homeschool curriculum to homeschooling families, and I have included Calvert among those choices, given that families have had the option to select their own materials. I have not perceived it to be anti-Catholic.