All Course Seminars

Please Note: All Previous Seminars are available for groups of 7-12 attendees upon request. All previous seminars will be taught by Dr. Mark Tarpley, and the schedule will be arranged to meet the needs of the group in conjunction with Dr. Tarpley’s schedule. Please have a representative of the group email us at hello@forgottenlighthouse.com to request any of the previous seminars. Pricing is available upon request.

UPCOMING NEW SEMINAR: “Math Matters: Why You Should NOT Short-Change Your Students Math Education.”

Search by Category to View Upcoming and Previous Course Seminars.
Note: Upon completion of a seminar, you will receive a course certificate that may be presented to your co-op, school, or church leadership.

Available Upon Group Request

What Does it Mean to be a Human?

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Available Upon Group Request

Sea Voyages, Storytelling, and Children’s Literature

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Available Upon Group Request

Building the Foundations of Christian Paideia

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Available Upon Group Request

The Martyrdom of St. Polycarp and The Study of History from a Christian Perspective

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Available Upon Group Request

Machine Education vs. Christian Paideia: Two Visions of Education

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Available Upon Group Request

Sacred Cosmos vs. Material Universe: The Challenge of Teaching Science for Christian Educators

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Available Upon Group Request

Math Matters: Why You Should NOT Short-Change Your Student’s Math Education

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What Others Have to Say

In his seminar on the patristic text “The Martyrdom of Polycarp,” Dr. Tarpley provides both theory and practice in a powerful presentation of fundamental principles to govern Christian education. He clearly lays out the theory and immediately has the participants apply it to the study of the text with close readings, writing assignments, and discussion which generate for the student deeper insight into the text but also into his own Christian faith. By practicing the principles and tasting the fruits of their application, the student perceives the power of this approach to provide a truly Christian education and is inspired to apply it in his own schooling of children (or adults) whether at home, in the classroom, or in a co-operative. Dr. Tarpley’s approach has potential to end the longstanding Western modern captivity of Orthodox education and empower truly Christian education to flourish for the benefit of individual souls, the Church, and society.

Orthodox Christian PriestFrom Texas

Dr. Tarpley has a message for modern Christian education that everyone needs to hear! He was able to clarify the hunch that many Christian educators have today: There is a big problem with modern education and it is not compatible with a Christian worldview. Dr. Tarpley aptly clarifies and defines this suspicion, giving educators a clear alternative.

Homeschooling Mom and Co-Op LeaderFrom Nebraska

I am thankful I had the opportunity to participate in this seminar with Dr. Tarpley. He provided meaningful questions to us as a way to guide our understanding and knowledge of the Martyrdom of Polycarp. This seminar is distinctively different from other teacher training courses, in that, Dr. Tarpley modeled his instructional focus in an effective way for me to understand how to incorporate this focus into my own teaching as well. He took my previously content-center teaching approach and re-directed my focus to person-centered – on Christ. This is a critically important shift in my lesson development!

Homeschool Mom and Church School CoordinatorFrom Texas

Have you ever walked away from a conversation and found yourself pondering the discussion days later? Dr. Tarpley’s seminar is this type of conversation about Christian paideia. You won’t find neatly packaged answers and tidy resolutions. What you will find is a place to begin asking and engaging with deep, meaningful questions about what it means to educate and form Orthodox Christians. Dr. Tarpley presents not only a sound pedagogical methodology, but also practical tools and advice for parents and educators. I highly recommend this seminar.

Homeschool MomFrom Arizona

I wholeheartedly recommend the Mentorship Program with Dr. Mark Tarpley. With an Orthodox mindset and a thorough knowledge of education, Dr. Mark guides his students in discovering how to dig deep wells of understanding.

Homeschool Mom and Co-Op CoordinatorFrom California

Previous Course Seminars

“Building the Foundations of Christian Paideia“
Seminar Description: Christian paideia centers around who we, how we teach, and what we teach within the context of the sacramental, ascetical, and liturgical life of the Church. Despite the lies of modern, progressive education, every moment of a child’s life is formative, and as such, educational, with the heartbeat of Christian Paideia rooted in the family within the life of the Church. In this seminar, we will be building the foundations of Christian Paideia rooted in the vision of the Church Fathers from the ground up. Important Church Fathers such as St. John Chrysostom and St. Gregory the Theologian up to contemporary Church Fathers such as St. Porphyrios and St. Paisios the Athonite will be studied in this seminar.

“Machine Education vs. Christian Paideia: Two Visions of Education”
Seminar Description: Christian educators, for too long, have compromised with modern, progressive education or what we call Machine education.Some of these compromises are obvious and some are not so obvious, having become deeply embedded in the practice of Christian educators in America. The result is nothing less than the formation of our children to become Machine-like rather than Christ-like. This seminar will model both a traditional pedagogical approach to Christian paideia and, at the same time, cultivate an understanding of just how deep the divide is between Machine education and Christian paideia. We hope you will join us in addressing perhaps the most ignored, yet most important issue among Christian educators today.

“The Martyrdom of St. Polycarp”
Seminar Description: This important Patristic text from the 2nd century provides an account of the martyrdom of St. Polycarp, who was the disciple of St. John the Theologian and one of the great Apostolic Fathers. This text is a wonderful introduction to reading the Church Fathers and learning about the early Christian Church in the Roman Empire. From a pedagogical perspective, participants will begin to think deeply about the foundational building blocks of textual reading as well as how to study history from a Christian perspective. The text is short, but contains numerous important questions to be explored and pedagogy nurtured.