Essays on Educational ReformersQuick, Robert Hebert
History
Essays on Educational Reformers
Quick, Robert Hebert
Education -- History; Educators
twenty-four hours was the following: Eight hours for sleep, eight for
food and amusement, and, for the children of the rich, six hours of
school-work, and two of manual labour. In the case of the children of
the poor, he would have the division of the last eight hours inverted,
and would give for school-work two, and for manual labour six. The
development of the body was specially cared for in the Philanthropinum.
Gymnastics were now first introduced into modern schools; and the boys
were taken long expeditions on foot—the commencement, I believe, of a
practice now common throughout Germany.
§ 18. As I have already said, Basedow proved a very unfit person to be
at the head of the model Institution. Many of his friends agreed with
Herder, that he was not fit to have calves entrusted to him, much less
children. He soon resigned his post; and was succeeded by Campe, who had
been one of the visitors at the public examination. Campe did not remain
long at the Philanthropinum; but left it to set up a school, on like
principles, at Hamburg. His fame now rests on his writings for the young;
one of which—“Robinson Crusoe the Younger”—is still a general favourite.
Other distinguished men became connected with the Philanthropin—among
them Salzmann, and Matthison the poet—and the number of pupils rose
to over fifty; gathered we are told, from all parts of Europe between
Riga and Lisbon. But this number is by no means a fair measure of the
interest, nay, enthusiasm, which the experiment excited. We find Pastor
Oberlin raising money on his wife’s earrings to send a donation. We find
the philosopher Kant prophesying that quite another race of men would
grow up, now that education according to Nature had been introduced.
§ 19. These hopes were disappointed. Kant confesses as much in the
following passage in his treatise “On Pædagogy”:—
“One fancies, indeed, that experiments in education would not be
necessary; and that we might judge by the understanding whether any plan
would turn out well or ill. But this is a great mistake. Experience shows
that often in our experiments we get quite opposite results from what we
had anticipated. We see, too, that since experiments are necessary, it is
not in the power of one generation to form a complete plan of education.
The only experimental school which, to some extent, made a beginning in
clearing the road, was the Institute at Dessau. This praise at least must
be allowed it, notwithstanding the many faults which could be brought up
against it—faults which are sure to show themselves when we come to the
results of our experiments, and which merely prove that fresh experiments
are necessary. It was the only School in which the teachers had liberty
to work according to their own methods and schemes, and where they were
in free communication both among themselves and with all learned men
throughout Germany.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account