Reflection #17

Many of the aspects implemented in early colonial education in New England differ from the things we see in our education system today. First off the role of religion has had a complete different impact in our education. The puritans also sometimes called pilgrims escaped New England for religious freedom. They were a strong group of religious followers that believed god  planned the true way to live. They lived by the bible as their code of life and implemented it in the lives of their children. Bible readings were a strong part of the education system and children were forced to read it daily. God was the only way to righteousness. It was found necessary for the young to become “pure” and educated in these religious subjects so that they could purify the future and correct all social living. Drama, Religious music, and poetry were banned from the curriculum. They believed these led to immorality and distraction from the subject of god. All of the poetry and literatures read and created by students had to reflect god. All of this is very different today. Just stating the fact that it is illegal to discuss religion in public schools today. Nonetheless can teachers state their opinion or religious beliefs to students or try to change their views in any way. Another major difference in todays education system is teacher preparation. In colonial times, most teachers received no formal education. Many teachers had not finished a secondary school and some were just servants paying their way to America with some on the side teaching jobs. Some teachers received some college level education but most teachers did not pass the elementary level. It was a benefit to have some knowledge of the subject being taught but not necessary. Teaching was not viewed as a career, just simply as a job to get by. Many teachers were teenagers that taught for a while or if not they were people with bad records of drinking and stealing. In todays education system we all know none of these are qualifications. Teaching is a career that is taken very seriously. Teachers must have at least a bachelors in education and they must have full blown out knowledge in the subject that is being taught. The attendance in the classes of Colonial schools was much higher that schools today. Classes had about sixty students. Today, a class of sixty students would be absolute chaos. Boys also had priorities when it came to education. They were favored and were considered more important in the education system. Classes were divided based of gender. The education system has definitely transformed a lot from the colonial times to today. 

Reflection #16

Rhetoric was created by Aristotle. It is a form of persuasion through talking. This Rhetoric lead to the creation of declamation classes for students. These speech classes assigned students topics in which they had to discuss and give a speech for in front of their class. There were three types of teachers in the school system. They had the litterator which taught reading writing and arithmetic. There was also the grammaticus which taught secondary level students to memorize and recite words aloud. Teachers made sure that the students pronounced every word correctly. Then there was the rhetor whom taught students to make speeches on a specific subject. They also made students participate in debates, this was called declamatio. These speeches and debates were split amongst two types. There was the quaestiones theme, which was basically just general themes and the causae themes that had to do with specific people or situation. Teachers made students place themselves in different situations as if looking through someone else's perspective and they were to give a speech or debate arguing their side. Rhetoric began to grow, but however it with growing in it’s style and form not the content of how important the matter being recited was. Declamatio became very popular in rome. It began to influence schools greatly and even adults. Everyone fell in love with the art of debate. It influenced literature in schools and oratory. Controversia was also sparked by declamatio. Controversia was the arguing of a topic in front of an imaginary jury. This also was divided in three sections; the sententiae, the divisio, and colores. The sententia was the argument that was being fought. The divisio was the legal statements of what is being fought. The colores are motives or explanations about what is being fought. Students performed debates in front of teachers and parents. Rhetoric became a big part of the education system. It became it’s own individual subject. Controversia exhibitions were given as shows for parents in which the students argued amongst each other an imaginary case. 

Reflection #15

Education in Ancient Rome was very important, especially to rich people. Usually only the rich were formally educated. They had private tutors and went to schools. However, schools were mainly for boys only. Girls were educated differently. Rich girls were allowed to receive an education at home by being taught how to become a good wife and how to run a proper home. Their education consisted of music, running a kitchen, and sewing. Boys on the other hand, like I stated before did attend schools and received a full formal education. However, their education was not the most entertaining one. They barely had any subjects to choose from. Education consisted of weekly routines. Waking up at sunrise, working throughout the whole day with a small lunch break, and being back in bed by sunset. They had no weekend breaks. Their education was molded through the use of beatings. If a child got something wrong in their studies they were beaten. That is why children were so focused and determined in their work. Lessons were simply listened to and memorized, seeing as their were no textbooks. Even though education in Ancient Athena was similar, it was still quite different. Similarly only wealthy families could afford education and teachers. However, boys learned for to write and quote famous literatures. They learned how to play one specific musical instrument and they were trained from young to be in the military. The studied for the goal of becoming an effective citizen to Athena. Girls in Athena actually also learned how to read, write and do some arithmetic. The teaching were divided amongst three groups; arithmetic, music and dancing, and sports. Children had paidagogos, which was basically just a slave that accompanied the child during the day. The early stages of the child's education was basics (reading, writing, arithmetic, music). The second stage consisted of the introduction of sports into the curriculum. Schooling ended when the child turned 18 and they were then placed into military training. However some greeks continued their education after childhood. Some teenagers had mentorships with an older greek. They listened to their mentors and assisted them in any way possible. They spent a lot of time with them. Roman and Athenian education are very similar, however Athenian education seems to have had better and bigger opportunities for children. They seem to have had a more open curriculum and the opportunity for students to learn until an older age.

Reflection #14

	Aristotle created “The great chain of being”, which was basically an organization of all living things from greatest to highest. He believed that every natural thing derived from one another in a linking pattern. This leading to the highest level which would be us humans since we have the greatest thinking and logical abilities. His purpose was to compare all living things to one another. He believed that every link had a meaning and there was no empty links in between the chain. Aristotle also came up with the four causes. The four causes explains that there can be many causes to one thing, and we can categorize something even though it can have many various complete opposite causes. The first and second causes are the classificatory causes. It is the description of what kind of form the species or thing your analyzing is. This can refer to material matters. Causes three and four were the dynamic causes. It is a deeper analyzation of how things function and why they function. The way we treat a specific matter is through knowledge, and the only way of having knowledge is by having a full understanding of something is by knowing why it is the way it is, also known as understanding the cause. That is why these four causes are so crucial to the development of western education. The four causes helps students full understand the subject they are studying by having them analyze situations. Aristotle wanted students to grasp the cause of how and why things are the way they are. This plays a huge role in science for example. When conducting an experiment and mixing several chemicals it is important that one understands what chemicals cause certain reactions. In his theory of the unmoved mover, Aristotle classified humans as a substance. He believed that in order for something to last forever, it was never created nor can it be destroyed. It is something that has always and will always exist. In order for something to be a “substance” it is dependent of anything else and can stand on it’s own. He believed that everything that moves was set into motion by something else. Even though Aristotles theories are somewhat confusing, they do apply a lot to education.

Reflection #13

Plato was a famous philosopher that created many ideas about life. He created idealism along with Aristotle. It stated that ideas were the only true reality. Truth and righteousness, goodness and beauty are the basic standards of life. He believed that the world we live in is nothing but a mere copy of and intellectual and perfect “ideal” world. He believed that there are two worlds. One one that was the spiritual and mental world. It was the eternal, permanent, and regular world. Then, there was the world of appearance. The world that is derived from our senses of hearing, touching, seeing, smelling and tasting. It is a world that is unstable and imperfect. He believed there was too much focus in this sensory world. He wanted this world to be overshadowed with truth. He believed everything had universal truths and it is important for everyone to discover the truth in all things. He wanted people to reject matter and material things and accept truth to move into goodness. He also believed that all humans are born with knowledge, however it is lost when we are placed in our material body. However we have a whole lifetime to gain back all of these truths and knowledge. The place of an educator was to help all of these people regain all of their knowledge, and that is where education plays in. He wanted all of his students to have the kind of education where truth and good were the main points. He believed that everyone should have an equal opportunity in education. Girls and boys should both have the advantage of seeking truths and wisdom. However, if some showed a lack in critical and abstract thinking, there would be other methods and paths to take. He believed they should pursue careers that would focus on the practical realities of life. He also created platonic forms which are abstract entities that exist apart from the sensible world. He believed that all objects are imperfect and imitate a form. Information we gain about an object is unimportant, however genuine knowledge is reliable and valuable. He believed that things that change are unreal. Like in our education system, if 2+2=4, it is always going to equal to four. If one day we walk into class and our teacher tells us 2+2=5, we become confused and therefore it is not real. Overall plato believed that only truths were what lead to knowledge. He believed that everyone was born with a blank mind ready to grow and be filled with truths and goodness.

Reflection #12

The launch of the Sputnik satellite had a great impact on America. It was during the time of the cold war where there was a lot of political conflict and military tension amongst the United States and the USSR. This launch of the Satellite was a definite low blow for Americans. American’s have always been used to being the ones with big technological advances. America began to panic. They were afraid of being attacked and they felt vulnerable to the Soviet Union.  They did not want to be “behind” the Russians. Without anyone to blame, American put the blame on it’s education system. It became educations fault that America was not able to beat the Soviets into space. Universities were called to build intense  and strict curriculums for it’s students. These curriculums mainly focused on math, science, and foreign languages. America wanted to create scientists and leaders that would outdo the Soviets geniuses. They wanted students to focus one-hundred percent on these subjects and to actually obtain and learn the material instead of just memorizing it. The launching of Sputnik opened many doors into education. Curriculums were now forced to become more rigorous. America did not want American’s to be viewed as dumb or slow in it’s education system. Soon after the launch of Sputnik the National Defense Education Act was passed. It was a billion dollar plan intended to increase and better the education system. College students were able to receive up to a thousand dollars a year for their education. Schools that made loans received government funding. Undergraduate schools such as elementary,middle, and high schools were also modified. Teachers were educated in the subjects of math, science, and foreign languages in order to provide a better understanding to their students. These facilities in schools were expanded and so was the curriculum. Government funding for science facilities was  more available than it had ever been. The goal of these curriculums was to encourage creative thinking rather than repetition and memorization. Bright students were hand picked and placed in advanced classes. They were monitored seeing as they could serve for the United States. This launching of the Sputnik definitely started a revolution in the education system of the United States. It made America open it’s eyes to the possibility of being out done by another country. However,  America woke up and made a difference in it’s curriculums and teaching methods in order to enhance their science department. 

Reflection #11

Many of Socrates ideas have had a great impact in our modern education system. He was a great Greek philosopher that believed that once one realizes they know nothing, they start to gain knowledge. He created the idea of elenchus and the dialectic method, which was basically the use of asking questions in order to gain knowledge. According to Socrates, teachers bring out questions in the mind of a student into the world. He wanted his students to analyze situations and to use critical and logical thinking to make questions to better understand. He believed in discussion rather than lecturing. He wanted students to bring ideas forth and teachers just simply assisted in the process. Socrates also talked a lot about happiness. Unlike our modern view of happiness, Socrates believed that sometimes our happiness can be mistaken. Even though we may think we are happy, we might actually may not be happy. In our modern society that does not make much sense. We usually believe that if we feel happy, we are happy. He believed that knowledge was the gateway and foundation of happiness. This is very true if we look at it in modern day. The more knowledge and experience we have, the more opportunities we are faced with. The more opportunities usually means happiness. For example, if we graduate from a university with a degree, we are now able to get a better job. A better job implies more income for  daily necessities, relieving a lot of stress. Socrates had a huge devotion to morals and ethics. He created a system that was made up of simple human reasoning. Like I stated before, Socrates was a great believer in the use of reasoning and questioning. Socrates teaching methods are used in modern western education today. His discussions were all problem centered. He would make up a question or situation and students had to analyze it based on their experience. He listened to students responses but however, did not give them the answer. The student is to use their critical thinking to reason the question and come up with an answer. The teacher simply leads the way into a proper response by analyzing the students responses. Socrates divided knowledge by two types; ordinary knowledge and definitional knowledge. He was a great devoter of belief through the use of logic.