Written by: Sarah Le
Edited by: Zoha Rizwan
It is understood that education plays a highly important role in our society. It builds the fundamentals of our understanding and leads us to civilization. Historians across the world have found evidence of ancient civilizations through their educational records, either in the forms of symbols, tools or verbal communications. And, despite the fact that education has drastically changed since then, the core value of it remains the same: to provide knowledge for development.
Through this short blog, we hope to provide you as much information regarding the history of education as possible. At the end of the article, you would also find multiple fun facts from many nations and cultures. So, let’s get started!
There had been many debates about how far back in time we should travel in order to determine the earliest form of education in human history. The reason was because the term “education” itself was broad. Were we talking about the school systems? Or Were we thinking of the share of knowledge and literacy? Nevertheless, the earliest sign of civilization through culture and education was claimed to be found in the Middle East, specifically Egypt. The record dated back to the 2050s BCE (Steven Roger Fischer). In ancient Egypt, education was provided for the elite class only, especially the priests. Many considered this as a form of status preservation as only a certain population could either read or write. And because of that, the rate of literacy was estimated to be below 1% (Keith Hopkins).
Beside the Egyptian civilization, education was also developed in Mesopotamia. In Babylon, for example, libraries were distributed throughout the empire. And in these, the earliest books were preserved, known as the “earliest known works of literary fiction” (Pierre Riché). Similar to the Egyptians, Babylonians’ education aimed to train priests and scribes. Children from the upper class were trained through reading, memorizing, orally repeating or manually copying.
For the case in China, the first establishment of the education system was in the Xia Dynasty. Again, literacy was provided for the elites only. However, their scope of studying focused on different aspects. In fact, students from the royal families were taught about “rituals, literature and archery”. Then, following that was the Shang Dynasty where the foundation of modern Chinese characters were established. While education in the Middle East was practical and based solely on religious purposes, Chinese education was more about morality. During the Zhou Dynasty, many philosophies were developed. And nowadays, these philosophies still partially affect the current Chinese society.
Fast forwarding to the Middle Ages period, in Europe, many institutions were established. Most of these centers of education were provided by the Roman Catholic Church. Eventually, books were produced widely across many Western countries, making education more accessible for peasants and working-class populations. Then we have the universities, considered as medieval institutions. These, established during the late 11th and 12th centuries, provided in-depth education for mathematics, arts and law.
How about now? Indeed, there have been significant changes and adaptations within the educational systems across the globe. The percentage of illiteracy and no schooling have decreased drastically for the past few decades, from 36% in 1960 to 25% in 2000 and 14% in 2016. This downward trend is definitely a good sign, however, it seems like the pandemic has turned the trend upside down. Regardless, nowadays, globalization has been the main focus for many students. In fact, many international programs and schools are established in answer to this demand. The International Baccalaureate is an example for this. It has become very well-known as it helps students across the globe seek educational opportunities in foreign countries.
! Now, fun fact time !
In France, lunch breaks are treated as a mandatory curriculum for young kids. During these hours, children are taught the basic table manners and etiquette eating
In Iceland, knitting is part of the curriculum due to the extreme cold weather all year round.
Australia holds the record for having the longest class ever. In 2003, Professor Marie’s Biology class at State High School Laidlaw lasted for 53 hours!
Environmental setting plays an important role in affecting the ability of learning
Green spaces or natural backyards help students learn through discovery
Students can explore and as a result gain benefits from interest areas in classrooms as they promote children’s autonomy and choice making
Lastly, daydreaming boosts brain development!
References:
https://www.teachthought.com/learning/31-facts-about-learning/
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