EDUCATORS OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY
=Literature.=--_Church_, Bacon; _Macaulay_, Essays; _Spofford_, Library
of Historical Characters; _Lord_, Beacon Lights; _Montagu_, Life of
Bacon; _Barnard_, English Pedagogy; _Quick_, Educational Reformers;
_Williams_, History of Modern Education; _Laurie_, Life and Works of
Comenius; _Comenius_, Orbis Pictus; _Barnard_, Journal of Education;
_Milton_, Tractate on Education; _Pattison_, Milton; _Fowler_, Locke;
_Leitch_, Practical Educationists; _Gill_, Systems of Education;
_Schwegler_, History of Philosophy; _Courtney_, John Locke; _Vogel_,
Geschichte der Paedagogik; _Compayre_, History of Pedagogy; _Fenelon_,
Education of Girls; _Azarias_, Philosophy of Literature; _Monroe_,
Comenius.
BACON[86] (1561-1626)
But little is known of the early years of Francis Bacon, but it is
probable that he was well trained, as his father was a man of good
education, and the boy was able to enter Cambridge when only a little
over twelve years of age. His father was for many years Lord Keeper of
the Seals, and this brought Francis in contact with court life, where
his precocity made him a favorite with the queen. He thus early acquired
that taste for the court, by which he climbed to the height of his
ambition only to fall therefrom in ignominious defeat.
He remained at Cambridge only about three years. Lord Macaulay sums up
the result of Bacon's university experience in the following words:
"Bacon departed, carrying with him a profound contempt for the course of
study pursued there, a fixed conviction that the system of academic
education in England was radically vicious, a just scorn for the trifles
on which the followers of Aristotle had wasted their powers, and no
great reverence for Aristotle himself."[87]
Some think that thus early, while not yet fifteen years of age, Bacon
began to formulate that inductive system which made him a great
benefactor of the human race. There seems to be but little proof of
this; and, if it be so, he laid it aside until near the close of his
life, and devoted himself to politics. After leaving Cambridge, he went
abroad with the English ambassador at Paris, with whom he served until
the death of his father compelled his return to England. Unexpectedly
finding that his patrimony was gone, he began a career at the bar, and
rose step by step, amid many discouragements, until he reached the
height of his ambition, the Lord High Chancellorship of the realm. In
reaching this position he resorted to many of the tricks of the
politician, and sacrificed his best friends to further his selfish
interests. Concerning his actions toward his benefactor, Essex, Macaulay
says, "This friend, so loved, so trusted, bore a principal part in
ruining the earl's fortunes, in shedding his blood, and in blackening
his memory. But let us be just to Bacon. We believe that, to the last,
he had no wish to injure Essex. Nay, we believe that he sincerely wished
to serve Essex, as long as he could serve Essex without injuring
himself."[88] Such seeming mitigation of Bacon's ingratitude serves only
to bring the Lord Chancellor's cowardice more completely to light.
This lack of principle and greed for office, together with the luxurious
tastes which kept Bacon constantly in debt, made him susceptible to
corruption. Accordingly he accepted bribes; and, when exposed, his
degradation from the highest office under the crown was most complete
and humiliating. He was summoned before the bar of Parliament; and,
finding the evidence against him complete, he admitted his guilt and
pleaded for clemency. These are the words of his confession, "Upon
advised consideration of the charges, descending into my own conscience
and calling upon my memory to account so far as I am able, I do plainly
and ingenuously confess that I am guilty of corruption, and do renounce
all defense."
He was found guilty and condemned to imprisonment in the Tower during
the pleasure of the king, and to a fine of L40,000; he was forbidden
ever to sit in Parliament or come within the verge of the court, and was
forever debarred from holding office. He never paid the fine, was
released from the Tower after two days, was permitted to visit the
court, and was summoned to the meetings of Parliament.[89] He never,
however, took any part in public affairs. The king granted him a pension
upon which he lived the remainder of his days. Thus disappeared from
public life one of England's greatest statesmen, whose political career
ended in disgrace. But during the remaining six years of his life, he
wrote his principal works, which made him famous for all time, and which
mark a new era in education as well as in the world's progress.
In 1620 his greatest work, the "Novum Organum," was published. In this
appears his _Inductive Method_, a great educational discovery, which has
been of inestimable value to mankind. It revolutionized science, and
suggested the application of the forces of nature to the wants of man,
thus opening to man's enterprise an illimitable field for research. In
the three centuries since Bacon's discovery, science has made vast
strides, and yet is only at the threshold of its possible development.
The watchwords of the inductive method--experiment, investigate,
verify--have led to the establishment of laboratories, to the founding
of experimenting stations, and to the study of Nature herself. As
Macaulay puts it, "Two words form the key of the Baconian doctrine,
Utility and Progress." Again he says, "The philosophy of Plato began in
words and ended in words.... The philosophy of Bacon began in
observation and ended in arts."[90]
Macaulay depreciates the work of Bacon, and shows that he was not the
original inventor of the inductive method, "which," he says with truth,
"has been practiced ever since the beginning of the world by every human
being."[91] Nor was he the "first person who correctly analyzed that
method and explained its uses," as Aristotle had done so long before.
But these facts do not detract from the glory of Bacon any more than the
discovery of America by the Norsemen five hundred years before the time
of Columbus detracts from his glory. The same process of reasoning would
take all credit from every philosopher that has ever lived, for with
equal truth it may be said that every mental process "has been practiced
ever since the beginning of the world by every human being."
Bacon's teachings resemble those of Montaigne, though Bacon's work was
far more important and complete than that of his French contemporary.
His pedagogy may be summed up in these pregnant words from his own pen:
"A judicious blending and interchange between the easier and more
difficult branches of learning, adapted to the individual capabilities
and to the future occupation of pupils, will profit both the mental and
bodily powers, and make instruction acceptable."
We find in Bacon, then, the beginning of a new era in education. It
remained for Comenius, Locke, Rousseau, Pestalozzi, and their compeers
to apply to specific educational systems the great truth contained in
the inductive method; and to scientists and investigators of all kinds
has been intrusted the mission of furthering, through this method, the
marvelous scientific development which has almost re-created the world.
RATKE[92] (1571-1635)
Perhaps the first to urge the reforms which constitute the basis of
educational theory was Ratke, a German, born in the province of
Holstein. He originated a scheme by which he promised to teach any
language, ancient or modern, in six months. He traveled throughout
Europe, endeavoring to sell his discovery to princes and men of
learning. Purchasers had to agree strictly to maintain the secret.
Professor Williams speaks of this conduct as follows: "These were the
acts of a charlatan peddling some secret quack nostrum."[93] Mr. Quick
says, "He would also found a school in which all arts and sciences
should be rapidly learned and advanced; he would introduce, and
peacefully maintain throughout the continent, a uniform speech, a
uniform government, and, more wonderful still, a uniform religion. From
these modest proposals we should naturally infer that the promiser was
nothing but a quack of more than usual impudence; but the position which
the name of Ratich holds in the history of education is sufficient proof
that this is by no means a complete statement of the matter."[94]
Many thinkers fully believed that the schools were in bondage to the
classic studies, that they did not prepare for life, and that science,
which had begun to show signs of awakening, should have a place in
education. The extravagant theories of Ratke, therefore, attracted
attention. Opportunity was given him to put his theories into practice,
first at Augsburg, then at Koethen, and finally at Magdeburg. In each
instance he utterly failed, more from want of tact in dealing with
men,--with those in authority, as well as with his teachers and
pupils,--than from lack of soundness in theory. Of course much of his
theory was worthless, especially that referring to the mastery of a
language in six months, and that proposing uniformity in speech,
government, and religion.
Ratke's method of teaching a language was not original with him, being
similar to, though not so effective as, that advocated by Roger Ascham,
more than a hundred years before (see p. 191), and suggested first by
Pliny, fifteen centuries earlier. Ratke required the pupil to go over
the same matter many times, to learn the grammar in connection with
translation, and finally to translate back into the original. He
proposed to follow the same course with all languages, and have all
grammars constructed on the same plan.
The work which Ratke began was more successfully carried out by others
who followed him, and thus fruit has been borne to these new and radical
ideas.
Quick sums up Ratke's pedagogy in a few words, as follows:[95]--
1. Everything after the order and course of nature.
2. One thing at a time.
3. One thing again and again repeated.
4. Nothing shall be learned by heart.
5. Uniformity in all things.
6. Knowledge of the thing itself must be given before that which refers
to the thing.
7. Everything by experiment and analysis.
8. Everything without coercion;[2] that is, by gentle means, and not by
the use of the rod.
Others have worked out these principles until they have become
thoroughly incorporated into every system of modern pedagogy.
COMENIUS[96] (1592-1670)
By far the greatest educator of the seventeenth century, and one of the
greatest in educational history, was Johann Amos Comenius. He was born
in Moravia, and belonged to the Protestant body known as the Moravian
Brethren. His early education was neglected, a fact that was not without
its compensation, for, not beginning the study of Latin until sixteen
years of age, he was mature enough to appreciate the defects in the
prevalent method of instruction. One of his most valuable services to
education grew out of his attempt to remedy the defects thus discovered.
Of the schools he attended, he says, "They are the terror of boys, and
the slaughterhouses of minds,--places where a hatred of books and
literature is contracted, where ten or more years are spent in learning
what might be acquired in one, where what ought to be poured in gently
is violently forced in, and beaten in, where what ought to be put
clearly and perspicuously is presented in a confused and intricate way,
as if it were a collection of puzzles,--places where minds are fed on
words."[97]
In speaking of his own experience at school, he says, "I was continually
full of thoughts for the finding out of some means whereby more might be
inflamed with the love of learning, and whereby learning itself might be
made more compendious, both in the matter of charge and cost, and of
labor belonging thereto, that so the youth might be brought by a more
easy method unto some notable proficiency in learning."[98]
The life of Comenius, which extended over nearly eighty years, was full
of vicissitudes and trials. Briefly told, it is as follows: He was left
an orphan at an early age, had poor educational advantages in childhood,
began the study of Latin at sixteen, and completed his studies at
Heidelberg at twenty-two, having previously studied at Herborn. After
leaving the university, he was teacher of the Moravian School at Prerau
for two years, and then having been ordained to the ministry, became
pastor of Fulnek. Here he remained for a number of years, living a happy
and useful life. In the meantime, the Thirty Years' War had broken out,
the battle of Prague had been lost by the Protestants, and the town of
Fulnek sacked. Comenius lost everything he possessed, and this
misfortune was soon followed by the death of his wife and child. After
hiding in the mountains for some time, he was banished from his native
land, together with all the other Protestants. This took place in 1627,
when Comenius was thirty-five years old. Though he often longed to
return to his fatherland, he was never permitted to do so.
He settled in Poland, and began by the study of the works of Ratke,
Bacon, and other writers to prepare himself for the great task of
educational reform. Of this experience he writes, "After many workings
and tossings of my thoughts, by reducing everything to the immovable
laws of nature, I lighted upon my 'Didactica Magna,' which shows the art
of readily and solidly teaching all men all things."
He visited England, Sweden, and Hungary in the interests of education,
and was invited to France, but did not accept the invitation. While
living at Leszno, Poland, for a second time his house was sacked and all
his property destroyed. Among other things, his work on Pansophia, and
his Latin-Bohemian dictionary, on which he had labored for forty years,
were burned. He closed his days at Amsterdam, Holland. In addition to
the great honors bestowed upon him by the various countries that sought
his advice on educational matters, he was made the chief bishop and head
of the Moravian Brethren. Raumer forcibly sums up the life of Comenius
as follows: "Comenius is a grand and venerable figure of sorrow. Though
wandering, persecuted, and homeless, during the terrible and desolating
Thirty Years' War, yet he never despaired, but with enduring courage,
and strong faith, labored unweariedly to prepare youth by a better
education for a happier future. Suspended from the ministry, as he
himself tells us, and an exile, he became an apostle to the Christian
youth; and he labored for them with a zeal and love worthy of the chief
of the apostles."[99]
=Pedagogical Work.=--The great educational works of Comenius are his
"Gate of Tongues Unlocked," the "Great Didactic," and his "Orbis
Pictus." Mr. Quick thinks that the "Great Didactic" contains, in the
best form, the principles he afterward endeavored to work out"[100] in
his other educational writings. "The services of Comenius to pedagogy,"
says Professor Williams, "were of a threefold character, in each of
which his merit was very great. First, he was the true originator of the
principles and methods of the Innovators. Second, he was a great
educational systematist. Third, he was the author of improved
text-books, which were long and widely famous."[101] This is a fair
summing up of the remarkable activity of this man with the exception of
the first point. Montaigne, Ratke, and Bacon had previously taught many
of the fundamental truths which Comenius merely amplified and brought to
practical fruition, and he himself acknowledged the influence of the
last two men upon him. That the whole purpose of the life of Comenius
was far nobler than that of Ratke or Bacon, there remains no room for
doubt. Compayre says, "The character of Comenius equals his
intelligence. Through a thousand obstacles he devoted his long life to
the work of popular instruction. With a generous ardor he consecrated
himself to infancy. He wrote twenty works and taught in twenty cities.
Moreover, he was the first to form a definite conception of what the
elementary studies should be."[102]
Bacon gave the inspiration and Comenius worked the truth into practical
form; Bacon invented a new theory of scientific investigation, Comenius
employed that theory in education; Bacon originated and Comenius
applied. This does not detract from the merit of Comenius any more than
his work detracts from the merit of Rousseau, Pestalozzi, or Horace
Mann, all of whom gathered inspiration from him.
=Summary of the Work of Comenius.=--(1) He was the author of the first
illustrated text-book, the "Orbis Pictus."[103] The cost of
illustrations was for a long time a serious barrier to their general
adoption in schoolbooks; but modern inventions and improvements have
removed this obstacle, and many of the text-books of to-day are as
valuable for their illustrations as for their text. The "Orbis Pictus"
appeared in 1658.
(2) In his "Great Didactic," he presents a scheme for general
organization of the school system which covers the first twenty-four
years of life. It divides this time into four equal periods of six
years, each as follows:--
1. _Infancy_, or the mother school, from birth up to six years of age.
2. _Boyhood_, the vernacular or national school, from six to twelve.
3. _Adolescence_, the _Gymnasium_ or Latin school, from twelve to
eighteen.
4. _Youth_, the university (including travel), from eighteen to
twenty-four.
"The infant school should be found in every house, the vernacular school
in every village and community, the gymnasium in every province, and the
university in every kingdom or large province." This scheme, with
variation of details, forms the basis of present school systems: first,
the period in the home with the mother till six; second, the period of
general education in the common school, from six to twelve or fourteen;
third, the period of preparation for the professional schools, from
twelve or fourteen to eighteen; and fourth, the professional or
university course, from eighteen to twenty-four. The last is usually
divided into a college and a university course.
(3) The educational principles of Comenius were revolutionary as to the
school practices of the time. They have come to be almost universally
accepted at present. We can here state only a few of the most
essential.[104]
1. If we would teach and learn surely, we must follow the order of
Nature.
2. Let everything be presented through the senses.
3. Proceed from the easy to the difficult, from the near to the remote,
from the general to the special, from the known to the unknown.
4. Make learning pleasant by the choice of suitable material, by not
attempting too much, by the use of concrete examples, and by the
selection of that which is of utility.
5. Fix firmly by frequent repetitions and drills.
6. Let all things advance by indissoluble steps, so that everything
taught to-day may give firmness and stability to what was taught
yesterday, and point the way to the work of to-morrow.[105]
7. Let everything that is useless be eliminated from teaching.
8. Learn to do by doing.
9. Each language should be learned separately, have a definite time
assigned to it, be learned by use rather than precept,--that is, the
practice in learning should be with familiar things,--and all tongues
should be learned by one and the same method.
10. The example of well-ordered life of parents, nurses, teachers, and
schoolfellows is very important for children; but precepts and rules of
life must be added to example.
11. As knowledge of God is the highest of all knowledge, the Holy
Scriptures must be the alpha and omega of the Christian schools.
Comenius gives explicit directions as to methods of instruction, class
management, discipline, courses of study, including a discussion of each
branch, and moral and religious teaching. He presents these directions
in the most remarkable and complete series of precepts and principles to
be found in educational literature.[106]
MILTON (1608-1674)
John Milton was "the most notable man who ever kept school or published
a schoolbook." While his fame rests on "Paradise Lost" and other great
literary works, he deserves a place among educators for his "Tractate on
Education," and for his sympathy with educational reform. He anticipated
Herbert Spencer's celebrated definition,--"To prepare us for complete
living is the function which education has to discharge,"--in the
following words: "I call, therefore, a complete and generous education
that which fits a man to perform justly, skillfully, and magnanimously
all the offices, both private and public, of peace and war."
He criticised the schools of his time and sought to make them more
practical. Like the earlier Innovators, and in harmony with the spirit
that was rapidly growing, he thought that too much time was given to the
study of Latin, and urged that science, music, physical culture, and
language as a means of acquiring a knowledge of useful things, should
receive more attention in the schools. Quick says, "A protest against a
purely literary education comes with tremendous force from the student
who sacrificed his sight to his reading, the accomplished scholar whose
Latin works were known throughout Europe, and the author of 'Paradise
Lost.'"[107]
Milton's experience in teaching was confined to a small boarding school,
such as those usually resorted to for educating the sons of the better
classes in England at that time. For pupils he began with two nephews,
to whom were soon added a few other boys. These were sons of Milton's
friends, and some of them came as boarders, others as day students.
Milton seemed to like the work of teaching, and it was during this
period that his "Tractate" was written. He probably taught school in
this way for eight or nine years, and then was appointed to a small
office under the government, which secured his living. The rest of his
life was devoted chiefly to literary work.
=Milton's "Tractate."=--The principal lessons from this educational work
are embodied in the following quotation: "The end then of Learning is to
repair the ruines of our first Parents by regaining to know God aright,
and out of that knowledge to love him, and to imitate him, to be like
him, as we may the nearest by possessing our souls of true virtue, which
being united to the heavenly grace of faith makes up the highest
perfection."[108] This rather cumbersome definition shows how fully
Milton was possessed of the Puritan spirit, which then controlled
England, and which magnified religious zeal.
Milton's scheme of education may be briefly summed up as follows:--
1. The school premises should consist of a spacious house with large
school grounds, intended for about one hundred and thirty students from
twelve to twenty-one years of age, who should receive their complete
secondary and university education in the same school. This scheme, so
unique in Milton's time, is practically carried out in France and the
United States, where the connection between the lower and higher schools
is direct. In England, the land of its inception, and in Germany, there
is no such direct articulation between the lower and the higher schools.
2. The course of study embraces, first, the Latin grammar, arithmetic,
geometry, religion, and Greek authors to be read in translation; second,
Latin authors, geography, natural philosophy; third, Greek,
trigonometry,--intended to prepare for fortification,--architecture,
engineering, and navigation, anatomy, and medicine.
This course is supposed to be completed at about the age of sixteen. The
harder topics now follow, together with the study of those subjects
intended to teach ethical judgment. Milton says, "As they begin to
acquire character, and to reason on the difference between good and
evil, there will be required a constant and sound indoctrinating to set
them right and firm, instructing them more amply in the knowledge of
virtue and the hatred of vice." Then come Greek authors, Holy Writ,
poetry, and "at any odd hour, the Italian tongue," ethics, and politics.
He is consistent with his definition of education,--"that which fits a
man to perform justly, skillfully, and magnanimously all the offices,
both public and private, of peace and war," when he would train men to
be "steadfast pillars of the State." He adds in his course also the
study of law, including Roman edicts and English common law, a knowledge
of Hebrew, and possibly Syrian and Chaldaic.
Nor were physical exercises omitted. Sword exercises, wrestling,
military tactics, riding, etc., were to be daily practiced, each in its
proper time. Finally, the young man, when about twenty-three years of
age, should travel abroad, and thus, when mature enough to comprehend
them, become acquainted with the geography, history, and politics of
other countries. This was to be the final preparation for citizenship
and service of country. Mr. Browning pronounces this a "magnificent and
comprehensive scheme." The most serious criticism of it is, that it
marks out much more than the average young man can accomplish.
LOCKE[109] (1632-1704)
John Locke was the son of a Puritan gentleman who took active part in
the wars for religious freedom fought during the latter part of the
seventeenth century. Without doubt the stirring scenes enacted and the
great moral movements which occupied England had a great influence upon
Locke's life. He was carefully trained at home until he was about
fourteen years old, when he entered Westminster School, a Puritan
institution, where he remained for six years. He then entered Oxford,
and in due time took his bachelor's and master's degrees. In 1660, when
twenty-eight years old, he was made tutor of Christ Church, Oxford,
where he lectured on Greek, rhetoric, and philosophy. He interested
himself in theology, but never took orders; and he also studied medicine
and for a time practiced it. His own health was precarious, he having
suffered, from chronic consumption nearly all his life. Nevertheless, he
accomplished a tremendous amount of work. The friendship of the Earl of
Shaftesbury gave Locke some political prestige. He lived in the family
of that nobleman for many years, and was the tutor of his son and
grandson.
Locke's great work, on which his fame securely rests, is the "Essay
concerning Human Understanding," which stamps him as the greatest of
English philosophers. This appeared in 1690. His most important
educational work is entitled "Some Thoughts concerning Education."
Compayre says, "From psychology to pedagogy the transition is easy, and
Locke had to make no great effort to become an authority on education
after having been an accomplished philosopher." Further, the same author
says concerning the essential principles discussed in "Thoughts
concerning Education," "These are: 1, in physical education, the
hardening process; 2, in intellectual education, practical utility; 3,
in moral education, the principle of honor, set up as a rule for the
free self-government of man."
In Locke, for the first time, we find a careful set of rules as to the
food, sleep, physical exercise, and clothing of children. While modern
science rejects some of these, most of them are regarded as sound in
practice. Plenty of outdoor exercise, clothing loose and not too warm,
plain food with but little meat or sugar, proper hours of sleep, and
beds not too soft, early retiring and rising, and cold baths, are means
prescribed to harden the body and prepare it to resist the attacks of
disease. "_A sound mind in a sound body_" is the celebrated aphorism
which sums up Locke's educational theory.
As to moral education, Locke declares, "That which a gentleman ought to
desire for his son, besides the fortune which he leaves him, is, 1,
virtue; 2, prudence; 3, good manners; 4, instruction." In his course of
study the idea of utility prevails. After reading, writing, drawing,
geography, and the mother tongue are mastered, Locke, like Montaigne,
would teach the language of nearest neighbors, and then Latin. Even the
Latin tongue should be learned through use, rather than by rules of
grammar and by memorizing the works of classic authors.
While his system of education was planned for sons of gentlemen, Locke
urged the establishment of "working schools" for children of the
laboring classes. This was in line with his utilitarian ideas, as the
intent was not so much intellectual training, as the formation of steady
habits and the preparation for success in industrial pursuits. Locke's
plan was for a sort of manual training school, the first appearance of
such a project in history.
Locke did not believe in universal education, nor in the public school.
Only gentlemen were provided for in his formal scheme, and herein he
followed the path marked out by Alfred the Great eight hundred years
before, which England has not completely forsaken to this day. Since he
had done all his teaching as a private tutor in the family of a
gentleman, one can easily understand his advocacy of that form of
instruction for the favored few. Locke's teachings in this respect are
gradually losing their hold even in England, the most conservative of
all countries in educational matters, and the latest great nation to
accept the principle of universal education. During the last quarter of
a century England has been earnestly seeking to give every child,
whether of gentle or of humble birth, rich or poor, what his birthright
demands,--a good common school education.
The influence of Locke upon education, then, has been very great.
Williams remarks that "he inspired Rousseau with nearly every valuable
thought which appears in the brilliant pages of his 'Emile.' He seems
himself to have derived some of his most characteristic ideas from
Montaigne, and possibly also from Rabelais."[110] Although Locke
differed from other educational reformers in many respects, though he
was somewhat narrow in his conception of education, owing to his
environment, he opposed the dry formalism that characterized the
educational practice of his time, and sought to emancipate man both
intellectually and physically.
FENELON (1651-1715)
Fenelon was born of noble parents in the province of Perigord, France.
During his early years his father attended very carefully to his
education, and later his uncle, the Marquis de Fenelon, became his
guardian. Though delicate in health, the boy showed remarkable aptness
in learning. At the age of twelve he entered the college of Cahors, and
thence went to the university of Paris. He was destined by his parents
for the Church, for which, by natural temperament and pious zeal, he was
well fitted. He preached at fifteen with marked success, and took up a
theological course at St. Sulpice. At the age of twenty-four he was
ordained priest. He desired to enter the missionary field, first in
Canada, and later in Greece, but had to abandon this purpose on account
of ill health.
Saint-Simon, in his "Memoires," describes Fenelon as a man of striking
appearance, and says, "His manner altogether corresponded to his
appearance; his perfect ease was infectious to others, and his
conversation was stamped with the grace and good taste which are
acquired by habitual intercourse with the best society and the great
world."
For ten years Fenelon was at the head of the convent of the _New
Catholics_, an institution which sought to reclaim Protestant young
women to Catholicism. In this position, as well as in all his lifework,
though himself an ardent Catholic, Fenelon's course was so temperate and
just that he won the warmest admiration even of Protestants, who did not
accept his faith. Among his friends were the Duke and Duchess of
Beauvilliers, who had eight daughters and several sons. At their
suggestion, and for the purpose of helping them in educating their
daughters, he wrote his first and most important educational work, "The
Education of Girls." Compayre pronounces this "the first classical work
of French pedagogy." He further speaks of this book as "a work of
gentleness and goodness, of a complaisant and amiable grace, which is
pervaded by a spirit of progress."[111] It appeared in 1687.
In 1689, when thirty-eight years of age, Fenelon was chosen preceptor of
the grandson of Louis XIV., the young Duke of Burgundy. In this position
his remarkable powers as a teacher were brought to light, and he applied
the theories which he had promulgated. The young duke, who was eight
years of age, was of a passionate nature, hard to control, and yet,
withal, of warm-hearted impulses. It is said that "he would break the
clocks which summoned him to unwelcome duty, and fly into the wildest
rage with the rain which hindered some pleasure." The "Telemachus"[112]
of Fenelon, perhaps his greatest literary work, was composed at this
time, as were also his "Dialogues of the Dead" and his "Fables." The
inspiration of all these works was found in the charge committed to
him--that of properly instructing his royal pupil. Fenelon thus created
the material through which he interested the boy and taught him the
intended lessons. The "Telemachus" was designed for the moral and
political instruction of the prince; through his "Dialogues of the Dead"
he taught history; and his "Fables" were composed for the purpose of
teaching the moral and intellectual lessons which he wished to impart to
his illustrious, but headstrong, pupil. Fenelon's success with the
prince was phenomenal, as the passionate boy became affectionate,
docile, and obedient.
The success of the experiment, however, was never put to the final test,
as the duke died before coming to the throne. There seems to be no doubt
that the cure was permanent, and it is not believed that, like Nero, he
would have relapsed into his former viciousness and cruelty.
One naturally compares Fenelon with Seneca. To both were committed
children, heirs apparent to thrones,--willful, cruel, disobedient, and
hard to control. In Seneca's pupil the seeds of cruelty remained, to
germinate into the awful tyrant; in Fenelon's the evil seemed to be
permanently eradicated, and the result was a prince with generous
impulses and noble intentions. And this result was largely owing to the
difference in the teachers,--Fenelon, the gentle, but firm, patient,
painstaking conscientious man; Seneca, the more brilliant, but
vacillating and timeserving sycophant.
=Fenelon's Pedagogy.=--1. There must be systematic care of the body.
Therefore regular meals and plain food, plenty of sleep, exercise, etc.,
are essential.
2. All instruction must be made pleasant and interesting. Play is to be
utilized in teaching. In this he anticipated Froebel.
3. Let punishments be as light as possible. Encourage children to be
open and truthful, and do not prevent confession by making punishments
too frequent or too severe. Punishment should be administered privately,
as a rule, and publicly only when all other means have failed.
4. Present the thing before its name,--the idea before the word. Study
things, investigate. Employ curiosity. In this he was a disciple of
Bacon and Comenius, and a prophet to Pestalozzi.
5. Allow nothing to be committed to memory that is not understood.
6. Girls, also, must share the benefits of education. Especial attention
should be given to teaching them modesty, gentleness, piety, household
economy, the duties of their station in life, and those of motherhood.
7. Morality should be taught early and by means of fables, stories, and
concrete examples.
8. Proceed from the near at hand to the remote, from the known to the
unknown. Thus in language, after the mother tongue, teach other living
languages, and then the classics. The latter are to be learned by
conversation about common objects, and by application of the rules of
grammar in connection therewith. In geography and history one's own
environment and country should be learned first, then other countries.
9. Example is of great importance to all periods of life, but especially
to childhood. This Fenelon practically illustrated by his own life and
by the concrete cases which he used. Voltaire says of Fenelon, "His wit
was overflowing with beauty, his heart with goodness."
LA SALLE AND THE BROTHERS OF THE CHRISTIAN SCHOOLS[113]
In 1681, La Salle, a devoted priest of the Catholic Church, organized
the _Brothers of the Christian Schools_.
The idea primarily was to awaken interest in elementary education. He
perfected the work already done by Peter Faurier, Charles Demia, and
others. The method of instruction, up to this time, had been largely
individual. The pupils were called up to the teacher, one by one, or at
most two by two, and, after the lesson had been heard, they were sent
back to their seats to study. La Salle conceived the idea of grading
together pupils of the same advancement, and teaching them
simultaneously,--a practice now employed in primary schools everywhere.
It is known as the _Simultaneous Method_. Brother Azarias says of this
method, "Because we all of us have been trained according to this
method, and see it practiced in nearly all of our public and many of our
private schools throughout the land, and have ceased to find it a
subject of wonder, we may be inclined to undervalue its importance. Not
so was it regarded in the days of La Salle. Then a Brothers' School was
looked upon with admiration. Strangers were shown it as a curiosity
worth visiting."
La Salle laid down many explicit rules concerning punishment, methods of
teaching, and school organization in a book called "The Conduct of
Schools." While modern criticism would condemn many of these rules, we
think, with Compayre, that "whatever the distance which separates these
gloomy schools from our modern ideal,--from the pleasant, active,
animated school, such as we conceive it to-day,--there is none the less
obligation to do justice to La Salle, to pardon him for practices which
were those of his time, and to admire him for the good qualities that
were peculiarly his own."[114]
He established the first normal school in history at Rheims in 1684,
thirteen years before Francke organized his teachers' class at Halle,
and fifty years before Hecker founded the first Prussian normal school
at Stettin. La Salle magnified the teacher's office, and urgently
demanded professional training for instructors of the young. Brother
Azarias forcibly sums up La Salle's great work in this respect as
follows: "He is the benefactor of the modern schoolmaster. He it was who
raised primary teaching out of the ruts of never ending routine, carried
on in the midst of time-honored noise and confusion, and, in giving it
principles and a method, made of it a science. He hedged in the dignity
of the schoolmaster. He was the first to assert the exclusive right of
the master to devote his whole time to his school work."[115]
Education, therefore, owes to La Salle three important
contributions,--(1) the Simultaneous Method of Instruction, whereby a
number of children of the same advancement are taught together; (2) the
first Normal School, established at Rheims, France, in 1684; and (3) a
dignifying of the teacher's profession by setting apart trained persons
who should give all their time to the work of teaching.
=Rollin (1661-1741).=--This great teacher, connected for many years with
the University of Paris, and deposed therefrom in connection with the
Jansenists to whom he adhered, was not merely a university lecturer, but
also an author of educational works and a student of general education.
His most important educational work is his "Treatise on Studies." Rollin
anticipated modern practice by seeking to make learning pleasant and
discipline humane. He would use the rod only as a last resort--a theory
quite contrary to the practice of that time. Too much freedom, he
thought, would have a tendency to make children impudent; too frequent
appeal to fear breaks the spirit; praise arouses and encourages the
child, but too much of it makes him vain. Therefore the teacher must
avoid both extremes. While he would have girls know the four ground
rules of arithmetic, that is about all they should have except domestic
training. Rollin had no connection with elementary schools and but
little contact with children; therefore his precepts do not always have
the sound basis that experience furnishes. Nevertheless, he exerted a
salutary influence upon the education of his time.
=Summary of the Educational Progress of the Seventeenth Century.=--1.
School systems were established and compulsory attendance made efficient
in Weimar in 1619, in Gotha in 1642, and in many other cities, showing a
growing recognition of the principle of universal education and the duty
of the State to assume the responsibility for its attainment.
2. A school of educators, known as the "Innovators," laid emphasis on
_sense-realism_,--the study of things, the contact with nature, the
education that is of practical use.
3. Bacon laid the foundation of all future scientific research by his
_inductive method_. This increased the riches of the world beyond
calculation, taught how investigation is to be made, laid the foundation
of modern science, and gave direction to all later education.
4. Ratke, though erratic and vulgar, instituted wholesome reforms in the
teaching of languages, and promulgated theories which, under later
reformers, bore rich fruitage.
5. Comenius, one of the greatest educators of all time, produced the
first illustrated text-book, planned a general organization for schools
in several countries, which is the basis of present systems, and
proclaimed theories which are now universally accepted as the guide of
modern pedagogical practice.
6. Milton, though primarily a literary man, lent the weight of his
genius and his great name to school reform. He marked out a course of
study which contemplates a unity of purpose from the elementary school
to the university.
7. The great English philosopher, Locke, also found time to devote to
education. His principle, "_A sound mind in a sound body_," directed
attention to physical education.
8. In the noble French priest, Fenelon, we find an example of theory
practically applied. He gives, also, for the first time, a place in
pedagogy to the education of girls.
9. In general, we find that the seventeenth century laid stress upon the
principle of utility, gave great impulse to science, called attention to
the care of the body, decreased the influence of classic studies,
brushed away the fabric which superstition and conservatism had woven,
produced some of the greatest educators that have ever lived, and laid
the foundations on which modern education is built.
FOOTNOTES:
[86] For special reference see Macaulay's "Essays," Vols. II and III.
[87] "Essays," Vol. III, p. 354.
[88] _Ibid._, Vol. III, p. 368.
[89] For a full description of his trial consult Macaulay's "Essays."
Also his biographer, Montagu, whose judgment of Bacon is much milder
than Macaulay's.
[90] "Essays," Vol. III, p. 459.
[91] _Ibid._, Vol. III, p. 470.
[92] Also Rateke, Radtke, and Ratich. Paulsen pronounces the last "an
abominable mutilation of Latinization."
[93] "History of Modern Education," p. 141.
[94] Quick, "Educational Reformers," p. 51.
[95] "Educational Reformers," p. 53.
[96] Especial attention is called to Laurie's "Life of Comenius," and
Monroe's "Comenius." For other works, see Appendix of Bardeen's edition
of Laurie's "Comenius."
[97] Laurie, "Life of Comenius," p. 14.
[98] Preface to the "Prodromus."
[99] Raumer, "Geschichte der Paedagogik."
[100] "Educational Reformers," p. 73.
[101] "History of Modern Education," p. 151.
[102] "History of Pedagogy," p. 122.
[103] See "Orbis Pictus," edited and published by C. W. Bardeen,
Syracuse, N.Y.
[104] Laurie's "Life and Works of Comenius," p. 77.
[105] _Ibid._, p. 105.
[106] For full discussion of the pedagogical principles of Comenius, see
Professor Laurie's great work.
[107] "Educational Reformers," p. 59.
[108] "Tractate," p. 3.
[109] See Fowler's "Locke." Also Quick, Compayre, and Williams.
[110] "History of Modern Education," p. 181.
[111] "History of Pedagogy," p. 165.
[112] "Schoolmaster in Comedy and Satire," pp. 73-100.
[113] Especial reference is made to Brother Azarias, "Essays
Educational."
[114] "History of Pedagogy," p. 276.
[115] "Essays Educational," p. 238.