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Latin Redux
By MELANIE AVE © St. Petersburg Times, published October 1, 2000 TAMPA PALMS -- With the exuberance of a cheerleader and the evangelical fervor of a minister, Marianna Clarke is preaching an unusual gospel these days: a language that hasn't been spoken in hundreds of years. She is a late-in-life convert to Latin who desperately wants others to see the light. "I just want to spread the good news," says Clarke, a 60-year-old grandmother from Thonotosassa. "Latin is for everybody." Little did Clarke know as she began teaching Latin this August to homeschoolers -- using some unconventional practices -- that her quest was timed perfectly. Once considered part of a basic education, Latin classes receded considerably in the 1960s, when many public schools made the language optional. Enrollment dropped about 80 percent between 1962 and 1976. But now, thanks in part to intense interest among homeschoolers like the ones Clarke teaches, the trend has changed. Latin enrollments are steadily increasing at schools nationwide, according to associations that track registrations. "It's definitely growing," said Alan Blessing, who teaches at Northeast High School in St. Petersburg. Clarke's goal is to tell as many people as she can about the benefits of learning Latin, a subject she considers "a trainer of the mind. "Latin is very structured," she said. "It's like a puzzle." After teaching at various public and private schools, Clarke went out on her own this year to teach both Latin and English composition at four locations around the area to homeschool students in grades K-10. She decided to teach composition as well as Latin, figuring few students would be interested in the ancient language. But after her Latin classes grew to 125 eager students, she had to stop taking new ones. "I think next year, I'll do Latin only," Clarke said. Some Hillsborough and Pinellas schools also are noticing a re-emerging interest in the language, as desks in Latin classrooms are being filled. In Hillsborough, Latin is taught at 14 high schools and one middle school. District officials, however, could not say how many students are enrolled districtwide. In Pinellas, school district officials have seen Latin enrollment increase by 20 students this year to 226 at the five high schools where it's offered. Last year, Blessing had to group all Latin I, II and III students together in one class because of low enrollment. This year, he has a separate Latin I class with 24 students. "People are starting to realize how valuable Latin is, not only for helping with language skills but also cultural background," he said. According to a survey by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, middle and high school Latin enrollments increased about 15 percent between 1990 and 1994, the greatest percentage increase since the 1950s and the highest figure since 1970. "A lot of people are interested in the back to basics, fundamentals," said Greg Daugherty, secretary treasurer of the Classical Association of the Middle West and South, a regional association of Latin and Greek teachers. "Latin is useful in building vocabulary, increasing SAT scores, mastering English. "It has the view of being traditional." Though Latin enrollments are increasing, experts don't believe they will ever be as high as they were prior to the 1960s. But they don't need to be, say some, since educators have realized "Latin isn't for everyone," said Tom Sienkewicz, chairman of the Committee for the Promotion of Latin. "Making it an option was a good thing to do." In Sue Fishalow's classes at Plant High and Wilson Middle schools in Tampa, she has seen an enrollment jump of at least 20 students, a noticeable increase. "I'm not exactly sure why," she said. "I think it's just coming back on its own." Whatever the reason, Clarke would like to play a part in the language's return. From a very early age, Clarke's father drilled it into her head, "Everybody needs to take Latin," she remembers him saying. "I adored my daddy, but Latin wasn't something he ever got to do. I wish he were alive today so I could teach it to him." As a Christian, she wanted to learn Latin even more since it was a language spoken when Jesus Christ walked the Earth. So with the words of her father floating in her head and her husband's encouragement, Clarke waited until her three children were grown before going back to college at age 46. After earning her undergraduate degree about 10 years ago, she realized there was nothing left to do but teach. At first, Clarke went searching for interested homeschool students. She went to a convention of parents who homeschool, wearing a toga and touting the benefits of the language. "Nobody even looked at me," she said. In August, she went to another gathering. This time, "I got lots of inquiries and sign-ups," she said. Someday, she hopes to become an expert in Latin and earn a doctorate. This fall, Clarke is teaching beginning Latin to children at Compton Park in Tampa Palms, Van Dyke United Methodist Church, Vineyard Christian Fellowship and Bell Shoals Baptist Church in Brandon. "I'm crazy wild about what I do," she said. "Even though everyone my age is retiring, I love to work." Several parents said they hope the language will improve their children's logical thinking skills, as well as their reading and writing abilities. They say since about 50 percent of the English language is derived from Latin and many scientific and medical terms are Latin, how can it hurt? Plus, students who take Latin often have higher scores on the SAT. On Mondays, Pat Counts-Williams sends her 11-year-old daughter to Tampa Palms, where the girl will spend 45 minutes a week for a year learning all she can from Clarke. Her goal: a rigorous education for her daughter. "I know Latin is beneficial to her educational experience," she said. "I just thought it would be good for her to learn, and she would have fun learning a language at an earlier age." Jacquie Drinkard drives across town every Monday from Citrus Park to Tampa Palms so her fifth-grade daughter, Chelsea, can learn Latin. Like Counts-Williams, she believes the language will help her daughter's vocabulary. "If she sees a big word, Latin is going to help her in deciding the definition," she said. "I just thought she would be able to tackle big words easier. It's not for her to become fluent in Latin." Already, Drinkard said her daughter has learned a few of the basics. Longa means long, lata means wide and terra means land or country. "That's the real stuff to me," she said. "That helps in the larger world, the bigger picture." During one of Clarke's classes at Compton Park, she led 13 children in grades 4-6 in counting numbers one through 10 in Latin by singing. She's written songs in Latin to popular tunes like This Old Man and She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain. "The children love them," she said. "I love them. And I never get tired of singing them. It helps them remember." In recent weeks, Candace Rydell's kindergartener and second-grader, who go to Van Dyke for homeschool enrichment classes, have been running around the house and riding in the car, joyously singing songs in Latin about numbers, verb endings and the gender of nouns. "At this age, they're like sponges," said Rydell, who lives in Carrollwood, the sound of her singing children echoing in the background. "They soak it all up." Sasha Hampton's mother, Ida Lindsey, said she has become a believer that all children should learn Latin, partly because of Clarke's passion for the subject and partly for the benefits her daughter will receive. "She will not only learn the language, but also history," said Lindsey, who lives in Tampa Palms. "I'm looking at a real broad perspective here. It will assist her for the rest of her life." The 14-year-old Hampton demonstrated something she learned during her first day of Latin. It was a revolution, really, for the aspiring actor. She said she had never really thought much about how words were derived until Clarke's class. She learned that tri means three in Latin, which is the root for such words as tricycle and triangle. "I just thought someone made it up," said Hampton. During one of her classes, Hampton sat quietly at the table listening to Clarke count in Latin. Suddenly, she asked, "Is this like Spanish?" before firing off "uno, dos, tres." "You're exactly right," said Clarke, realizing a light had turned on in the young girl's mind. She explained that many languages, including Spanish, English and Italian, are derived from Latin. "Unus is Latin for one. But uno is Spanish for one. "Very good," said Clarke, a look of satisfaction crossing her face at the successful transmission of her Latin gospel. -- Melanie Ave can be reached at (813) 226-3473 or melanie@sptimes.com.
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