Mastery

An ordered education is a mastery education.  The goal of a mastery education is to learn one step at a time or one new thing at a time.  You move on, only after that one step or one new thing is easy or mastered.   Andrew Pudewa, from the Institute for Excellence in Writing, calls this "easy plus one".  Teach only one new thing at a time and practice it over and over again until it is easy.  Then, you add one new thing.  Always keep practicing the learned things that should be "easy" with the one new thing.

There are two Latin principles that also help explain what a mastery education should be.

1. Festina Lente:  Make Haste Slowly:  You make the most progress when you take your time.  If you move too quickly onto the next thing you will have not mastered the first thing.  You get a better outcome if you take your time.  Slow down and master each step.  
2. Multum non Multa:  Much not Many:  Study a few things well instead of many things poorly.  Select the best and dig deeply into those studies.  Yes, survey and overview are important for the big picture, so do that.  But also choose to study a few things deeply so that you can know them well, make more connections, and let them become a part of you.