THE EXAMINED LIFE

Launched in 1999, The Examined Life is a professional program for teachers designed to strengthen Greek Studies in Boston-area schools. The 26.2 Foundation works closely with the program organizers to identify and sponsor outstanding educators in Massachusetts’ MetroWest region, notably in the towns of Ashland and Hopkinton.

The program’s goals include professional scholarship, development of curriculum materials, and community outreach on the history, culture and accomplishments of ancient and modern Greece. Taking as its theme the Socratic call to the examined life, it asks participants to explore what it means to be human as seen through the lens of Greek antiquity. The study program arose from the recognition that Greece’s central importance in the public-school curriculum is being challenged and marginalized within the growing amalgam of recommended and required subjects.

The Examined Life supports 20 area teachers and administrators selected each year, who meet regularly with outside scholars in a series of seminars, workshops and ongoing discussions of ways to integrate knowledge and teaching. It also includes a study tour of Greece.