An original framework to foster critical analysis in the classics

Introduction

My first-year Latin students exchange a quick glance with each other.

I can feel my intermediate students bristle with mounting indignation.

Puzzled looks at first. Then, as the students dig deeper into the meaning of cinaedus, there is a mixture of shock, embarrassment, offense.

Seventeen years ago, as a rookie Latin teacher, I would notice these subtle exchanges among my students and ignore them in order to “keep the class moving along.” As the years passed, I ventured timorously to address these moments, giving them only a cursory acknowledgment before, again, moving on: Yes, there were definite problematics associated with the enslavement of conquered people by the Romans; yes, sexism existed in the ancient world; yes, Romans would use colorful language to insult an opponent, sometimes by attacking his masculinity.

Needless to say, this superficial approach was doing a great disservice to my students and their study of the classical world. But how would I begin addressing important issues such as slavery, sexism, and homophobia with them in a way that would maintain a safe learning space in our classroom? How would I encourage my students to engage in a deep, meaningful analysis of these texts in a way that wouldn’t sugarcoat their study of the classical world and all its complexity?

ARCS-L² Framework

Instead of throwing students into the deep end and expecting them to analyze — with little to no guidance — an ancient text that potentially touches on sensitive topics, I needed first to set them up for success.

After much trial and error, fumbling, and feedback, what I now call the “ARCS-L² framework” was born. This model can be adapted, depending on the students’ age and stage. For younger students just starting on their journey of discovering the classical world, the framework encourages them to develop an understanding of the text and then look beyond its surface, in order to identify ancient perspectives that can at times be problematic. As students engage more deeply with the framework, it guides them to reflect on how these perspectives were often influenced by a host of underlying cultural and historical contexts (political, economic, religious, social, geographical, and more), and how different scholars now interpret these perspectives. Ultimately, we all share similar goals for our students: that as they read ancient texts, they can enjoy the beauty of the language and think critically about them; that as they seek to understand the perspectives of a world different from theirs, they still feel connected to it through our shared humanity.

Applications, Scaffolding and Differentiation

While students practice each component of the ARCS-L² framework at every level of their classical studies, it presents diverse opportunities for scaffolding and differentiation. The following sections will provide suggested classroom activities that use the ARCS-L² framework for students at different levels of confidence and competence.

Beginners:

Beginning Latin students, still getting a feel for how the language works, focus mainly on ASCERTAINING the action and establishing preliminary CONNECTIONS to different contexts about the classical world. Take, for instance, the story about Caecilius purchasing the ancilla Melissa. Much of the analysis at this level can be guided by the instructor to help students build an understanding of the classical world.

Opportunities for differentiation:

LINK to LANGUAGE:
For students ready for a challenge, invite them to practice proper citation of textual evidence by including specific Latin keywords or phrases to support their answers in English.

SUPPORT with research and scholarship:
Want to go beyond simply Googling answers to the questions about cultural and historical context? Help students lay the groundwork for all-important research skills by practicing proper citation of the research sources they consulted, writing bibliographies in a certain citation style (e.g., MLA 8), and evaluating the credibility of their research sources.

Intermediates:

Intermediate Latin students, now more adept at reading Latin and armed with an understanding of the classical world, are ready to go beyond the surface and examine the interplay between text and culture. Reading a handful of heavily annotated lines in Latin from Ovid’s Ars Amatoria alongside a longer English excerpt from the same section, the instructor can guide the start of the analysis. The nature of the framework then naturally allows students to take the analysis in their own direction.

Opportunities for differentiation:

CONNECT to contexts + SUPPORT with research and scholarship
Encourage those who want to dig deeper to research Augustus’s social, moral, and religious reforms. How might the content of Ovid’s Ars Amatoria have clashed with the social and moral reforms Augustus was enacting at the time?

LINK to LIFE
For students who may struggle with extrapolating more abstract themes and motifs at this stage, offer them the option to begin their analysis by linking the reading to their personal or modern life experiences. How might Ovid’s advice to women resemble or differ from what modern media suggests women should do with regard to their appearances?

Seniors:

By the time classics students enter their senior year, they will have practiced the ARCS-L² framework’s various components and begun to internalize the criteria that make up an in-depth analysis. They are now ready to move beyond analysis and into deeper critical engagement. Take, for instance, a study of Catullus’s poem 29, addressed to Caesar.

Opportunities for differentiation:

With the full framework at their disposal, students find that they can contribute productively to a seminar discussion.

Have a shy student who doesn’t yet feel comfortable speaking up in class? Ask them to track the various ARCS-L² components being covered in class, then assign them to share their thoughts after the fact by writing or recording their own reflections on the text and what they heard in class.

Have a student who is struggling to keep up with the fast-paced discussions and analyses? Ask them to prepare a specific component ahead of time and give them a heads-up that you’d like them to kick off the discussion with their point. Then assign them to track the various ARCS-L² components of the conversation that their contribution generated.

Have a high-flyer who can do it all? Challenge them not to prepare for the discussion ahead of time and, instead, focus on listening to others’ contributions: what specific ARCS-L² components can they identify in their peers’ contributions? How can they build on what they’re hearing? Which ARCS-L² components are missing from the discussion that they can help fill in?

Conclusion: ARCS-L² and Beyond

For my students, the ARCS-L² framework has allowed them to free up the mental energy expended on “guessing what’s in the teacher’s head” and, instead, to channel their analytical mind toward a critical reading not only of the texts, but also of the modern interpretations of these texts.

Seventeen years after I began teaching Latin, I am still discovering the myriad perspectives that inform a given text. But now I don’t have to do it alone. As our students in Canada grapple with many of the same complex issues faced by students elsewhere — oppression, colonization, and hate — it is even more important to arm them with the tools they need to become savvy consumers of media. Be it a story about the purchase of an enslaved woman, an archly pointed poem attacking Caesar’s masculinity, or the Jesuits’ accounts of 17th-century missions targeting Indigenous North Americans, students will have practiced a framework for critical analysis that fosters an awareness of what lies beyond the surface of the text. Equipped with this set of critical thinking skills, our students will stand ready to tackle the onslaught of modern media — in all its complexities — and engage meaningfully with perspectives old and new.

Diana Pai has taught Latin and classical studies at St. Clement’s School in Toronto, Canada since 2004. She earned her Honours B.A. from the University of Toronto and is a recipient of the Grace Irwin Award for teaching classics. Diana is passionate about encouraging students to explore the myriad ways in which Latin and classics connect to the modern world. She believes that classical studies in all their facets — wondrous, inspirational, philosophical and, at times, problematic — offer us an opportunity to ground ourselves in the lessons of the past and connect them to all we share.

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