Catholic school
A school operated by or affiliated with the Catholic Church that provides education within a Catholic religious tradition.
Catholic Church: The Christian church led by the pope and organized through dioceses, religious orders, and local communities. Its parishes, dioceses, and religious orders establish or support many Catholic schools.
Catholic elementary school: A Catholic school providing primary education, generally for children in the early school years. It introduces academic learning and Catholic formation at primary level.
Catechism: A structured summary of Christian doctrine used for instruction, often in question-and-answer form. Catechisms provided a common framework for teaching Catholic belief in schools.
Public school: A school funded and administered by government, generally open to students without religious affiliation requirements. Public schools are state institutions, unlike schools grounded in Catholic religious identity.
Religious education: Teaching and learning about religious beliefs, practices, texts, and traditions. Catholic schooling makes religious education part of an institution's broader educational mission.
Catechesis: Religious instruction that develops understanding of Christian belief and practice. It is a central form of religious formation in Catholic schooling.
Catholic high school: A Catholic school providing secondary education to adolescents. It combines secondary curricula with religious instruction and community life.
Council of Trent: A Catholic ecumenical council held between 1545 and 1563 that addressed doctrine and church reform. Its reforms strengthened catechetical instruction and clergy education.
Secular education: Education organized without religious instruction or a religious institutional commitment. Its approach to religion differs from Catholic schools' explicit religious formation.
School choice: Policies that let families select among schools, sometimes using public funding for private education. Catholic schools are central participants in debates over public support for private-school choice.