We get asked often whether Layers of Learning is a Christian curriculum. The short answer is no. Most people interpret that to mean we are a secular curriculum. But both positions, Christian and secular, are particular worldviews, each with a definite set of agendas and a set of beliefs that color the way the information is presented.
At Layers of Learning we strive to be neutral because we believe deeply in the right and responsibility for parents to guide children’s belief systems and not curriculum or schools.
Watch as Michelle explains the worldview presented in the Layers of Learning Curriculum and the reasons we decided to do it this way.
Neutral Isn’t Wishy Washy
It’s not easy to be neutral. Everybody has a distinct way of looking at the world based on our experiences, upbringing, and beliefs. All of us think that our way is the right way, the Truth, if you will. It is tempting to want to spread that truth and who is more susceptible than young unformed minds?
We strive for neutrality by using neutral language to discuss topics, especially when those topics are controversial. We also focus on fostering discussions rather than telling you what to think. And finally we purposely seek out books and videos for our Library Lists and playlists that themselves take a neutral tone, or we add two opposing voices to the selections. But most of all,, the curriculum is written to the mentor, not the child, leaving the mentor free to include or leave out anything they wish and select the sources they wish.
The Discussion Model
One of the lost arts in modern education is the open discussion. Perhaps mostly because of the testing model, education has become nothing more than a series of read and regurgitate exercises. It is so bad that students have inadvertently been taught that any deviance from an authoritative source (textbooks and teachers) is wrong and bad, that discussions are threatening, and that a disagreement about ideas is a personal attack on the individual and on the very fabric of society.
We prefer a world where ideas are welcomed, where individuals are taught to question rather than comply, and where people can have disagreements and remain friends. So we put many questions in the Layers of Learning curriculum that we never answer.
Mentor Guided
We trust the parents and teachers who use Layers of Learning to care for and love the children who they are guiding into maturity. You know them. We don’t.
We believe that you can do a better job guiding their morals and worldview than we could ever hope. We are not threated by the fact that your worldview is probably different from ours.
We want you to use your discretion when choosing activities, topics, books, and videos for your children.
Our goal in creating this curriculum was to give you a frame so you could spend your time teaching your kids instead of inventing everything from scratch. We assemble the ideas, you execute the performance.
The Layers of Learning official worldview is that you’re in charge.
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