Parents have the natural right to make the best choice for the education of their children. The Church imposes upon parents the obligation of providing a Catholic education for their children, and pastors provide schools as the principal apostolate of the Church for the handing on of the Catholic faith. That means that, if a child does not attend a Catholic school, home must work closely with the parish to make sure that formation is imparted. The religious education program in the parish is one way to do that but RE does not exhaust everything needed to impart the faith. Even going to a Catholic school is not enough, especially if the family misses Mass on Sunday, does not pray in the home and parents don’t give good example of regular confession and learning their faith.
As you are looking to make the decision for schools, there are some questions I think you should ask yourself:
- Am I basing my decision on what helps me in my vocation to raise my children in the faith or on other factors?
- Are Catholic identity and academic excellence the first things I am looking for in a school for my children or am I privileging secondary characteristics like extracurricular activities, practical considerations or a comfortable lifestyle?
- Am I strong enough to ensure that my children receive everything they possibly can to grow in their faith, or do I need help in that regard?
- Do I want my children to go to heaven, or Harvard? What is ultimately the goal of how I want my children to be educated?
- How am I going to protect my children’s innocence and virtue as long as I can, while also equipping them to be able to handle a world hostile to our faith?
- What am I not seeing, and am I being naïve, about what is going on in schools today, and the use of technology and social media by my children?
There are also some questions I think you need to ask school administrators and teachers, no matter what the school:
- Do you believe that there is such a thing as objective truth and moral norms? How does the experience of the school approach truth and ethics questions?
- How many Catholics are in the student body? The faculty and staff? Are the Catholics actively practicing their faith or not? Do you have people who have left the Catholic religion or lead lives at variance with the Gospel who are forming young people?
- What tools for academic aptitude, achievement and growth are used to measure what is going on in the classroom? How does the data compare with competing schools? What is the point of education for you as a teacher/administrator?
- Is there a respect for the Western intellectual tradition as well as a respect for authentic multicultural diversity, or is the curriculum designed to challenge the Judeo-Christian intellectual foundation of my own culture?
- How is language used in the school? Is language weaponized to further agendas that are not compatible with my values as a Christian?
- Is the Catholic religion respected, tolerated, or denigrated in subtle or obvious ways?
- What is taught in the classroom about sex, marriage and family life? How are questions of gender identity and sexual orientation handled by teachers and administrators?
- Do you see the parents as the primary educators of their children and the school as a secondary role in that mission, or do you see your school or the state as the primary educator?
- Is there full transparency and consistent and complete communication about what is going on in the classroom?
- How are technology and social media used in the classroom and what are the policies regarding their use outside of the classroom when they affect my child?
Written by Fr Christopher Smith