Important Contributors to Education

Aristotle (384-322 BCE.)

322 BCE

Believed that education should be balanced and well rounded (i.e. inclusion of scientific study, music, play). Learning through habit. Aristotle believed that learning came from the practice of doing and repetition. Believed that the success of a society is tied to the success of education. Aristotle's contributions to early education was a contrast to Socrates and Plato. He viewed education through a more scientific process rather than a philosophical stance).

Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

1274

Thomas Aquinas created a bridge between Aristotle's philosophical elements and the traditions of the Catholic Church. In doing so, Aquinas developed a new style of educational institutions. "Aquinas [also] formalized scholasticism, the logical and philosophical study of the beliefs of the church" (Johnson, pg 31). In an era that relied so heavily on religious institution for education, his contributions lived on through the ages and are still influential in Western Education.

Luther (1483-1546)

1546

Luther was also part of the religious institution. Most known for the first separation of the Roman Catholic Church, Luther also made valuable contributions to education. Luther's beliefs on inclusion were a vital shift for the era. Contrary to the Catholic view on education, Luther believed it to be important for all people to be able to read and interpret the Bible for themselves. Again, his views and implications carried on and influenced who later should receive an education. (Johnson pg 32)

John Locke (1632-1704)

1704

Locke "believed that teachers needed to create a nonthreatening learning environment" (Johnson pg 33). Locke was also arguably a predesessor to Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences, believing in the importance of addressing individual needs and differences.

Rousseau (1712-1778)

1778

Rousseau was a leader in the Emergence of Common Man (Johnson pg 34). One of his major contributions to education was the belief that, not only are children naturally good, but that the education of children should occur in various stages. We see many theories of stages of education and development still today. Rousseau's beliefs stood the test of time and remain a foundation for existing and developing theories on stages of education and development.

Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi (1746-1827)

1827

Swiss educator who established 2 schools for boys. His teaching methods were studied by educators world-wide. Pestalozzian method emphasized love, understanding, and patience for children; compassion for the poor; use of objects and sense perception as the basis for learning. He helped make education available to common people in Europe.
(Johnson et al., 2014, p. 35)
(jhpestalozzi.org)

Horace Mann (1796-1859)

1859

Established common elementary schools in MA as state secretary of education. This spurred a movement of compulsory education laws being passed nation-wide. Mann's work helped bring free, public education to all children in America. Mann also established one of the country's 1st professional journals, The Common School Journal.
(Johnson et al, 2014, p. 38)
(Cremin, 2018, Encyclopedia Britannica)

George B. Emerson (1797-1881)

1881

Emerson opened the country's first high school, the English High School, in Boston in 1821. Curricula included English, math, science and history, and later more subjects were offered. Emerson's high school replaced Latin grammar schools, which he found inadequate, and private schools, which only the wealthy could afford. His high school model is the same one we use today.
(Johnson et al., 2014, p. 39)
(Creed, 1930, Boston Society of Natural History)

Prudence Crandall (1803-1890)

1890

Crandall admitted an African-American girl, Sarah Harris, to her boarding school in Canterbury, Connecticut. White parents withdrew their students, so Crandall recruited other black children. Crandall was jailed and tried before the supreme court in 1834. The case was eventually dropped, and Crandall continued to fight for African-American and women's rights to education.
(Johnson et al., 2014, p. 44)
(New England Historical Society, 2018)

Booker T. Washington (1856-1915)

1915

Washington was born a slave, but after emancipation obtained a college education and began teaching. He believed that education was the most important thing African Americans could do after Reconstruction. In 1880, he founded and directed the Tuskegee Institute, a college for African Americans that still operates today.
(Johnson et al., 2014, p. 44)
(Gaur et al., 2014, Encyclopaedia Britannica)