Learn Hardcore Latin: Dum magistra docet, schola quieta manet. - While the teacher teaches, the school remains quiet.

With this temporal meaning, dum is normally followed by the present indicative in Classical Latin, even when English might use a progressive form like is teaching. So:

dum magistra docet = while the teacher is teaching

Latin uses the simple present (docet) where English uses the progressive.

Dum can also take the subjunctive, but then it usually has a different nuance (such as until with a sense of intention or result). That is not the case here; here it is the straightforward temporal while plus present indicative.

What case is magistra, and why is it in that case?

Magistra is in the nominative singular case.

It is the subject of the verb docet. In Latin, the subject of a finite verb is normally in the nominative case. So:

magistra (nominative subject) + docet (verb)
= the teacher teaches

Why is it magistra and not magister?

Magister is the masculine form meaning male teacher or master.
Magistra is the feminine form meaning female teacher or mistress (of a school).

They are both nouns of the same basic word-family, but:

magister = masculine nominative singular
magistra = feminine nominative singular

In this sentence the teacher is presented as female, so Latin uses the feminine form magistra.

Why is the verb docet in the present tense, not a form that means is teaching?

Latin usually does not have a separate progressive tense like English is teaching. The present indicative can cover both:

magistra docet
can mean the teacher teaches or the teacher is teaching, depending on context.

Here, because it is introduced by dum meaning while, English naturally translates it as is teaching, but Latin just uses the ordinary present (docet).

What person and number is docet, and how do we know the subject?

Docet is third person singular present indicative active:

doce- = verb stem teach
-t = ending for he / she / it (third singular) in the present indicative

So docet means he teaches, she teaches, or it teaches.

We know that magistra is the subject because:

it is in the nominative case
it is feminine singular
it matches the third person singular verb docet

Latin does not need a separate subject pronoun (ea, illa, etc.) here; the noun magistra fills that role.

What does schola mean here, and is it the subject or something else?

Schola is also nominative singular feminine and is the subject of the second verb manet.

Depending on context, schola can mean:

a school as an institution
a schoolroom
a class or group of students
sometimes a lecture or lesson

Here, from the grammar alone, it is simply the thing that remains quiet. The exact nuance (building, class, etc.) usually comes from broader context, which this one sentence does not fully specify.

What is the function of quieta, and why does it have that form?

Quieta is an adjective meaning quiet or calm. Here it is a predicate adjective used with manet (remains).

It is in the nominative singular feminine form because it must agree with its subject schola in:

gender: feminine
number: singular
case: nominative

So:

schola quieta manet
= the school remains quiet

You can think of it as parallel to schola est quieta (the school is quiet), but with manet there is a sense of staying or continuing to be quiet.

Why does the sentence use manet instead of est?

Both est and manet could grammatically work, but they are not identical in meaning:

est = is (simply states a condition)
manet = remains, stays, continues to be

So schola est quieta would mean the school is quiet, with no special focus on time or duration.

Schola quieta manet suggests the school keeps or remains quiet over the period while the teacher is teaching, which fits nicely with dum. It emphasizes continuity of the quietness.

Why is there a comma between docet and schola? Does Latin need that?

The comma marks the boundary between two clauses:

Dum magistra docet
schola quieta manet

Classical Latin manuscripts originally had very little punctuation. Modern editors add commas and other marks mainly to help readers.

So the comma is not a strict grammatical requirement in ancient Latin, but it reflects the logical structure: a dependent temporal clause (dum magistra docet) followed by a main clause (schola quieta manet).

Can the word order be changed, and if so, how much flexibility is there?

Latin word order is relatively flexible because the endings show the roles of the words. You could see variants such as:

Dum magistra docet, quieta schola manet.
Dum docet magistra, schola manet quieta.
Schola quieta manet dum magistra docet.

All are grammatically possible. The differences are mostly about emphasis and style:

Words earlier or later in the sentence often get extra emphasis.
Keeping magistra docet and schola quieta manet as clear units makes the sentence easy to follow, as in the original.

Why are there no explicit words for she or it as subjects?

Latin generally omits personal subject pronouns when the verb ending already shows the person and number.

docet already means he/she/it teaches;
manet already means he/she/it remains.

Because magistra and schola are named as subjects, adding pronouns like ea or illa would usually be unnecessary and could sound emphatic or stylistically odd unless you have a reason to highlight them.

So the absence of explicit she or it is completely normal Latin.

Is the pronunciation of schola like English school?

It is related etymologically, but the pronunciation differs depending on the Latin pronunciation tradition:

Classical Latin: schola would be roughly skoh-la
- sch = sk
- o as in law (but shorter)
Ecclesiastical (Church) Latin: often skoh-la as well, though in some languages influenced by Italian, sch before o can still sound like sk.

So it is similar in sound and meaning to English school, but not identical, and in Latin it remains a separate noun with its own grammatical behavior.