I suspect most of your peers at other schools probably don’t take Latin.  But, did you know that Latin used to be common in American schools?

In fact, there was a time when getting into college required fluency in Latin (and sometimes Greek as well).  That’s right—you couldn’t even go to college without knowing Latin.

It was a required course in most K-12 schools as well, including even public schools, until about 1962.  But between 1962 and 1976, the number of American students enrolled in Latin dropped by 79%–that means that when a kindergartener started school in 1962, most of the children would have had Latin before graduation; by the time that same kindergartner himself graduated, almost none of the children would have studied Latin.

So, what happened?  Well, like the Presidential Fitness Test, the story is a little complicated.  But also like the fitness test, part of the answer is that schools got rid of Latin because it is just plain hard. 

C. S. Lewis had a different take.  He once said, “Hardly any lawful price would seem to me too high for what I have gained by being made to learn Latin [and Greek].”  Over the coming days, we’ll consider why the difficulty of Latin is not a reason to abandon it; it is one of the best arguments in its favor.  For now, just know that if you find Latin difficult, you’re in good company with C.S. Lewis—and he promises, it is well worth the price.

Have a wonderful day.