Classical Composition differs in a number of ways from other writing curricula. A five to six year vertically integrated program, this curriculum teaches students three fundamental sets of skills; how to create or invent arguments and develop them (support or demonstration), the basics of arranging material depending upon purpose, and finally style—both the types and components of style. The curriculum teaches discrete writing skills and subskills that build year upon year using the previous skills until students achieve mastery and are fully prepared to enter either advanced writing courses or courses in Rhetoric.
The curriculum’s success lies in the core skills being broken down into manageable subskills. Over the last ten years we have found that all students are able to master these skills. Whitefield Academy, where I teach, has a 100% qualification rate on the optional essay portion of the college entrance exams (ACT and SAT) verses the national average of 23% or gained college credits with successful completion of the English AP exams. Qualification (min score of 8 on a scale of 1-12) requires a that a cohesive and coherent essay be written within a 30 minute period.
We have found that the curriculum produces creative, innovative writers who can think compositionally, that is they are capable of generating a wide array of arguments and support which then allows them to choose high quality components for their specific writing projects or assignments. Every year graduates report their ability to complete college writing assignments in a fraction of the time it takes their peers. My favorite story was a former student attending a well known private college. A professor gave a writing assignment about half way through the hour and the class began to bicker and argue with the professor that the homework was too much to ask before the next class. The arguments went on for most of the remainder of the class with the final minutes given to the students to get started. Our Whitefield graduate had begun writing as soon as the class had begun arguing. She handed in the completed assignment at the bell!
