Introduction

1. Introduction History of Western Education

2. The Great Civilizations • Along the Nile River in Egypt • Along the Tigris and Euphrates in Mesopotamia [which means between rivers]-Sumerians • Northern India along the Indus River • China along the Yellow River • The fertility of these regions drew people to form villages, town and then cities.

3. The Egyptians • Greek historian Herodotus visited Egypt and called it “the gift of the river.” • Greeks were interested in Egyptian math, astronomy, medicine and the arts. • They also developed a writing form called hieroglyphics meaning “sacred carving.” • Developed early paper from papyrus, a plant that grew in the Nile.

4. The Sumerians • Civilization arose around 3500 BC/BCE. • Also developed a form of writing [cuneiform] that stimulated the growth of schools/at least in cities. • Used clay tablets and a stylus/then baked it. The only history we have of them. • Influenced writing by Assyria, Babylonia-the code of Hammurabi, Gilgamesh epic.

5. The Ancient Greeks • Not the first to deal with education, but one of the first to link it with the society/state. • The colonials were products of the reformation and the renaissance. • Educational systems of today have traits from the ancient Greeks-in theory and in practice.

6. Plato (427-347 BC) • Born into aristocratic family/political power. • Early a student of Socrates. • The mouthpiece of Socrates. • Used dialogues to express his ideas. • Best student-Aristotle.

7. Plato • Grew up during Peloponnesian War-the war between Athens and Sparta [431-404BC] • Soldier, statesman, educator, philosopher. • Time of confusion, turbulence, injustice, and changing values. • Athens loses the war. • Plato loses his beloved teacher Socrates. • Plato blames democracy.

8. Plato’s concern: the good society • How do we come to the good society? –largely through the proper education. • Best described in The Republic/The Laws. • Plato seeks a society where the most talented can be sorted according to ability and where one is best suited to serve the state. • Your loyalty is to the state not family or clan.

9. How he does it using education • Birth to age six-state nurseries. • Age 6-18 formal schooling-math, literature, gymnastics and music. • Age 18-20 military training. • Age 20-30 math and geometry, abstractions. • Age 30-35 intense study of dialectic. • Age 35-50 back the cave-civil servant. • Age 50 the philosopher king-guardians!

10. Characteristics of Guardians • Comprised of women and men. • Chosen on their intellectual and physical characteristics. Ability to reason. • Have no home, family, property-they live in state supported communes. • Seek wisdom-knowledge and virtue. • Devoted to the welfare of the state and thus the people.

11. Plato’s ideal state* • Guardians Reason • gold • Auxilaries Courage • silver • Producers • bronze Sense

12. Aristotle (384-322 BC) • May be most prolific scholar in Western Civilization. • We have perhaps a third of his works. • Delved in biology, logic, ethics, education. • “The perfect thinking scientist.”

13. Classical realism-Aristotle 384-322BC • Born in Stagira, Macedonia, son of a court physician, orphaned and raised in court. • Came to Athens as a teenager. Studied with Plato and spent 20 years with him teaching in the Academy-yet Plato chose his nephew to head the school after his death. Aristotle set up his own school called the Lyceum. • Hired to teach the son of Philip of Macedon who conquered Greece. • Philip’s son Alexander the Great. Around 12.

14. Aristotle’s view of universe • There is design, order and balance to the universe. Relates to the Golden Mean. • We can know it and we must live our lives according to this universal design. • No matter exists without form [idea], but we can reach better idea through a study of the material world. Humanness-acornness. • Everything has a purpose-telos- and man’s purpose is to think. Man is rational animal.

15. Guiding/securing knowledge • Material-what is it made of? How does it come into being? • Formal cause-what is it? • Efficient cause-what or who brought it about? • Formal cause-to what end does it exist-to what purpose? • These concepts are used by Aristotle throughout his works.

16. The educational schemephysis, habitus, logos • Birth to age 7-strong parental role, Greek nurse, careful to exposure, sponges, spectators, play. • Age 7 to 14- more formal, learn basics, poetry, literature, drama, music, drawing, gymnastics. • 14 to 21-more intense study of above-add dancing, culture and civilization. • Age 17 military training-physical/Spartan. • Age 21-legal age for Aristotle. Nurture reason and character. Astronomy, math logic, ethics, music.*

17. The Roman Period (750BC-450AD) • Greatly influenced by Greek thought and culture. • This influenced the approach to education. • Stressed first rhetoric and then more civil service organization. • The fall of Rome did create a period of stagnation according to some. • Generally only the elite were educated.

18. Cicero (106-43BC) • A Roman senator, well-born, wealthy, educated and well-traveled. • Member of the patrician class and elite who controlled the senate and influenced Roman culture. • They were typically opposed to dictatorship as later seen with the Caesars

19. Cicero on education • “About Oratory” work written in 53BC. • A book about how to become an orator. • An important skill for the senate. • Study rhetoric, philosophy, politics, military science. • Linked virtue with political leadership =wisdom, temperance, courage and self control. Need the skill to convince others. • Died in plot to kill Julius Caesar.

20. Quintilian (35-95AD) • A noted Roman orator and legal authority. • Stressed cognition and the moral aspects of education-this took many years of development. • Believed human development took place in stages. • Senate had lost its power about the time of his death. Mouthpiece of the Caesar.

21. Institutes of Oratory (95-93AD) • Birth to age 7-this begins education, select the right nurse and tutors, peers. • Age 7 to 13-the ludus, students taught, reading, writing, calculating, studies in Latin and Greek. • Age 13 grammaticus-language, literature, music, and studies of rhetoric if you can get that far. Rhetorical school follows the grammaticus.

22. The Middle Ages (500-1400AD) • Rise of Christianity and its institutionalization. • More political, economic and social instability/some historians disagree. • Church is the primary formal educator. Education of the masses generally ignored. • Desire to rescue Jerusalem led to the crusades and contact with Islam.

23. St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) • Born into a wealthy family in Italy. • At age 5 sent to the monastery at Montecassino for study. • Age 14 studied at the University of Naples and five years later joined the Dominicans.

24. St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) • Islamic scholars were interested in science, math, logic and medicine and had translated much of Aristotle. • Some in the church thought the pagan philosopher a threat to church doctrine. • Aquinas refused to accept this and rationalized theology with Aristotle. • God creates the universe and he allows us to know it-it helps us know him by studying.

25. De Magistro • Aquinas’ views on education are presented here. • Education has a purpose and that is to serve God and understand his will for us. • Education needs to develop the physical and spiritual, body and soul. Dualism? • His goal is similar to Aristotle’s, it is arete with a Christian twist.

26. The model teacher • Believed the teacher was called, loving, virtuous and committed. • Scholarly organized and well-prepared. The teacher is an authority and most likely in charge. • Recitation and memorization with some explanation.

27. The Renaissance (1350-1500) • A rebirth, revival and renewal of the best from Greece and Rome. Art literature, culture, etc. • Move to an anthropocentric approach. • Economic, social and political forces through a growing middle class. • Some challenge to the church and early birth of the nation state.

28. Erasmus (1466-1536) • Dutch classical scholar who attacked injustice and ignorance of the clergy. • Well-traveled, multilingual, cosmopolitan, interest in secular, religious, humanist. • The Gutenberg Press started in 1450 and stimulated spread of knowledge. Gradual. • “Education of the Christian Prince,” (1516) to challenge Machiavelli’s Prince.

29. Educating the future ruler • Strong emphasis on liberal arts, literature, Greek, Latin, science, vernacular. • Wise ruler pays attention to the education of subjects and is moral. • Should be a man of peace for war is destructive. More sectarian. • Prudent, gentle, humane and well-educated. Not a specialist.

30. Martin Luther • 1517 Martin Luther nails his 95 Theses to the church door in Wittenberg, Germany to challenge the use of indulgences. • Political changes in move to nation state. • Social changes and challenge to theology in regard to faith, works, interpretation. • Economic change in the growing middle class and challenge to taxation from Rome. The case of Henry VIII (1491-1547)

31. Jean Calvin (1509-1564) • Father a middle class craftsman/civil servant. • Calvin well-educated in humanities, law and theology. • Studied Luther at U. of New Orleans. • Church “too rotten to be patched up.” • Education is central.

32. Institutes of the Christian Religion (1536) • Challenged the use of sacrament and ritual in church service. • Developed doctrine of pre-destination. • The elect are chosen by God through his grace and lead virtuous lives/lead society. • In Geneva tried to establish to true city of god-instill in children proper theology and modified the use of the catechism.

33. His ideas on education • His theology fostered the growth of literacy-all needed to read scripture. • This helps govern one’s life, civil order. • The bible is the authority • Favored compulsory education and linked education with economic prosperity. • Ministers need to learn Hebrew, Greek, Latin. The people need the vernacular.

34. Summary of pre-colonial education • The characteristics of esp. • The colonists were people of the Reformation and the Renaissance. • They brought with them what they knew and had experienced in education. • This included varying attitudes about education. Tended to remain elite. • Literacy was an issue/related to religion.