St. Augustine

Augustine of Hippo (354–430) established himself as a father of the church, a Latin-speaking theologian, and a philosopher. Before and after these titles, Augustine would also be a teacher first of rhetoric then of Christian doctrine. His life journey and works provide insight into an approach to education that was based in theology as much as it was in philosophy. While he relegated the teacher to an auxiliary role, he prioritized the learner’s perspective in education in order to assure their engagement and their ability to push their own knowledge forward. For Augustine, this would have been based in a liberal arts curriculum that could teach the good and guide the student toward eternal truths that explained the mechanisms of the world. Augustine’s insights into the role of the learner and liberal arts education offer a renewed perspective on some of current discourse about teaching, tutoring, and the role of the liberal arts in education.