Scriptio continua…sounds like a magic spell. You can picture the scene, a bespectacled young wizard, distinct lightning bolt scar marking his forehead, bravely extends an arm and, pointing his gnarled wand screams…scriptio continua! Well…no, Harry doesn’t have a hand in this. It’s not a spell. It’s a way of writing.
In ancient Greek and Roman democracies debating was all the go. Eloquent and persuasive speech was prioritised. What you said was more important than what you wrote. Not surprisingly then, when viewing the writings of Cicero (renown Roman, statesman, orator, lawyer, and scholar) you would likely see scriptio continua, and it looked something like this:
NEQVEPORROQVISQVAMESTQVIDOLOREMIPSVMQVIADOLORSITAMETCONSECTETVRADIPISCIVELIT
The Romans weren’t big on spaces and punctuation and apparently, they weren’t big on lower case letters either. In Rome it was unheard of, for anyone to be able to understand a written text on first reading. Eventually they realised that without some form of punctuation, without a space, pause or stop here and there, reading, interpreting and learning were rendered remarkably difficult tasks. Imagine preparing to read a speech or studying for an exam, let alone presenting a multi-modal media report! With a bit of ingenuity though, using a punctus or dot, to indicate spacing, it became easier to access some form of understanding.
NEQVE·PORRO·QVISQVAM·EST·QVI·DOLOREM·IPSVM·QVIA·DOLOR·SIT·AMET·CONSECTETVR·ADIPISCI·VELIT
Still none the wiser? Thanks to modern punctuation, which didn’t appear until the 1560’s (well done Venetian printers - Aldus Manutius and his grandson) the sentence transforms into…
Neque porro quisquam est qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit…
“My Latin is a bit rusty” you might say and understandably so. Ultimately, we can translate Cicero’s musing to…
“Nobody likes pain for its own sake, or looks for it and wants to have it, just because it is pain…”
Not sure what Cicero’s context was, but wise words indeed.
The course of any one term here at Eddies can look a bit like scriptio continua - so much happening and seemingly all occurring one after another with no space in between. The cycle of learning and assessment runs into a calendar inclusive of abundant cocurricular activities, which runs into numerous College events, and after school jobs, and social lives, and life in general. Not to make too fine a point of it, terms often seem like a never-ending continuous stream of scripted capital letter happenings.
St Edmund’s Term 2 scriptio continua is –
Time for a little punctuation. Let’s add a few spaces and some pauses to take a breath and make meaning of all that happens here on The Hill.
This term has been busy with learning and lessons, study, Mums and Chums, Year 12 Formal, AIC Rugby, AIC Football, Leadership Days, Camps, Debating, Retreats, AIC Chess, Musical Practice, Performing Arts Night, Internal Assessment, Exams and Assignments.
These opportunities are what make Eddies special. They build our relationships and skills. They enhance our community and they prepare our students to be independent. And with that we add a full stop to Term 2 and Semester 1. I look forward to our young men coming back refreshed and ready for an equally busy, but no less productive Term 3 and Semester 2.
Staff Conference
Next week College Staff will participate in the annual Staff Conference. The theme this year is Links to the Future - Curriculum, Pathways, Transferable Skills. Expert presenters from Price Waterhouse and KPMG as well as the Australian Council for Educational Research will ensure a fruitful and productive week. Added to this, there will be a wealth of information sharing with homegrown Eddies experts presenting to colleagues and peers.
This conference is a chance to satisfy our need for continuous improvement in learning and teaching practices. As well, we further strengthen the Eddies Team with our staff teaching and learning from each other in a collegial cooperative environment.
