In Classics at Primary School: A Tool for Social Justice, Evelien Bracke provides readers with an honest examination of the complicated role that classics has had in the early education of students throughout the United States and Europe. Bracke argues that a classical education can and should be used as a tool for social justice, provided that classics is willing to incorporate the interests of traditionally excluded voices into the field. Classics at Primary School serves as a handbook for classics teachers who are willing to redefine classics and consider how they can create a more inclusive classroom environment.
Classics at Primary School begins with a concise survey of social inequity and education. The reader is made aware of the pervasiveness of social inequity and also of its systemic nature. Bracke, considerate of the multidisciplinary nature of her book, does not assume that all readers are familiar with the intricacies of systemic inequality and education. She takes the time to provide sufficient sociological and historical background so that primary school teachers and sociologists alike are equipped to understand and consider her argument at hand.
The argument itself, in a few words, is that classics has functioned as a societal gatekeeper for most if not all of modern history. Classics, regardless of the original intention of the field, has served as a way to differentiate the elite from the rest. While our natural instinct may be to try to dispel the role of classics as a gatekeeper in the public eye, Bracke believes that we must, by a twist of fate, embrace such a role. Classics, as much as it can be used to gatekeep, can be used as a gateway for those subject to inequity. By learning classical languages, students of a lower economic status can prove not only to society that they are just as knowledgeable as those of a higher socio-economic status but also to themselves.
Bracke does not take her argument in favor of supporting classics as a potential gateway lightly. For classics to be used as a tool for equity and not oppression, those who are taught must feel included. While a detailed description of a redefined classics is beyond the scope of the book, it is unclear whether such a shift in focus would cause classics to lose its unique role as a gateway for social justice. If classics does incorporate more voices, will it still be respected in the same way among the elite? If classics places less emphasis on Latin and Greek, will its reputation as difficult still stand? Bracke, without a doubt, provides a convincing argument in favor of redefining classics, but she does not explore the effect that redefining classics could have on the societal reputation of classics.
After providing the historical basis as to why classics can be used as a tool for social justice, Bracke turns to her own teaching experiences with the Young Heroes—Ancient Greek project, a program that brings ancient Greek to primary school students growing up in deprived circumstances. While on the surface the purpose of the project is to expose students to ancient Greek, the main focus of the Young Heroes project is to increase student confidence and self-esteem. Bracke demonstrates the effectiveness of the program in this regard through a series of surveys and interviews. Students who participated in the Young Heroes project reported being able to deal with “something difficult.” The results of the Young Heroes project, much to Bracke’s delight, demonstrate that classics can be used as a tool for social justice.
Moving forward, Bracke gives readers six practical steps for transformative learning through classics at primary school. The six steps range from planning with “backwards design,” the practice of planning a course by beginning with the final goal or assessment, to incorporating courageous conversations. Although the steps listed to promote social justice are by no means revolutionary, and similar advice can be found in a plethora of books on teaching, Bracke shows how socially conscious pedagogy can be integrated into a classical studies curriculum. The examples that Bracke provides for transformative curriculum building are much-needed contributions to the field. Classics at Primary School compiles many of the best approaches to inclusive classroom teaching and makes them applicable for the classics teacher.
It cannot be emphasized enough how useful the examples and reflection activities are for primary and secondary school teachers of Latin and ancient Greek, the intended audience for this book. Classics at Primary School reminds classics teachers, who can easily feel isolated at their own primary or secondary schools, that they are not alone. There are other teachers who are grappling with social inequity in education and who are creating resources for teaching classics with social justice in mind. The bibliographies themselves, included at the end of each chapter, are a blessing for all teachers wishing to dig deeper into refining their own pedagogy.
Classics at Primary School, conscious of the political nature of social justice, ends with steps for educators to promote community engagement with classics. Bracke guides readers on how to engage with local discourse about the languages that ought to be taught to children. The advice given, realistic and practical, further solidifies Classics at Primary School as a helpful tool for promoting social justice. The book considers all the resources needed for a socially conscious classics teacher from classroom materials to political talking points. Classics at Primary School is a book written by a classroom educator for classroom educators.
Evelien Bracke is not afraid to show that she is human, and that even after a decade of teaching there is still room to grow. Classics at Primary School: A Tool for Social Justice succeeds in more ways than one. The book exposes readers to the very real connection between classics and social justice and also provides teachers the necessary tools to reflect on their own pedagogy. The book is a must read for both novice and experienced teachers who wish to take steps towards a more inclusive classical education.