Education of the Middle Ages
131153
Heeseung Hwang
Thesis: Education was one of the major
reasons why the Middle Age is referred to as the Dark Age by many people.
Outline
1.
Setting the boundaries
2.
Type of education
A.
What was education like in the
middle ages?
B.
Institutional Education
a.
Monastery
b.
University
i.
The development of universities
ii.
Subjects dealt in Universities
iii.
How teachers taught students
C.
Family/Factory Education
a.
Mastering Crafts
b.
Education of chivalry
3.
Schools of the Middle Ages
A.
people related to schools
a.
Students
b.
Teachers (professors)
c.
Scholars
d.
Girls
B.
public and private education
4.
References and future direction
1.
Setting the boundaries
I would first
like to set the boundaries of this topic. Although one might feel obvious that the
boundaries are implicitly set as Medieval Europe, it is very easy to jump in
and out of the region due to the nature of education. Therefore, I would like
to limit the scope of this topic by 5th to 15th century
Europe in order to maintain focus on the topic.
2.
Type of education
A.
What was education like in the
middle ages?
When we say
education, people usually think of schools, academies, and institutes. These
kinds of education are commonly called as institutional education, meaning that
you learn from a school like environment. However, if we were to have a correct
understanding of the education during the Middle Ages, we should widen the
definition of education. The process of mastering a craft, preparing to inherit
the vocation of the parents’, learning how to be a knight or behave like a
knight, and so on should all be considered as education of the Middle Ages
since we have to apply the standards of that era.
B.
Institutional Education
a.
Monasteries
Christian monasteries
and nunneries which the main purpose was religious discipline, were also the
center of economic and social activities in the middle ages. They also
undertook the role of schools, so that people who weren’t even monks could come
and study reading and writing. The monastery, cathedral, priory, and abbey were
the most responsible for education until the 12th century. They
taught people how to be responsible Christians. Therefore, medieval education
was greatly influenced by the church. These monks engaged in religious duties
most commonly, but also became teachers, librarians, and scholars who dealt
with various range of subjects that were considered important. The hierarchy
that consists of pope at the top and the bishop at the bottom and other
Catholic Church officials would function as mangers of local church
schools.
Tree gardening,
teaching and learning reading and writing, producing alcohol and cheese, were
easily spotted activities in medieval monasteries. The monasteries across
Europe were all similar regardless of the country they were located in because
they followed the same Christian rules. In
the late Middle Ages, schools began to establish outside the monasteries.
However they were still generally staffed by priests, monks, and nuns who
taught their courses in Latin, the language of the Catholic Church. Unfortunately,
such education was focused on kids of the upper class. The serfs couldn’t
simply afford the luxurious fees for education. Also, the language used by the
monasteries was always Latin. Thus, a number of people weren’t able to
understand a thing from religious services and classes unless they receive
special education on Latin in church schools.
The church
education was far from the words, liberal and secular. They were based on
church doctrine. However, there was some vocational education in the middle
ages. During the late middle ages, the astonishing expansion of trade and
economy stimulated sophisticated levels of vocational education.
b.
Universities
Universities
used to be conventions of faculty members from the most common fields of the
time, theology, medicine and law. Eventually its meaning changed, and was used
to denote the institution of higher learning.
i.
The development of universities
The formation of
very first universities parallels with the ascending authority of teachers in
the Middle Ages. Teachers were able to move freely around different cathedrals
and share ideas with other teachers. Therefore, cathedrals with considerable
reputation attracted numerous students, and they were particularly located in
Paris, Chartres, Bologna, Padua, Salerno, and Cambridge and Oxford which joined
the line after wise. The teachers demanded protection of their professionalism
and intellect. In the end they have formed an organized union together called
universitas, or universities. These guilds wanted academic freedom where they
don’t have to pursue their profession for the sake of religion or politics. The
universities gradually became more distinctive due to the intellectual purity
they pursued.
ii.
Subjects dealt in Universities
The main subjects
the Universities taught were law, philosophy, theology, and medicine. Theology
was the primary subject in medieval universities. Math, Biology, and Physics
were part of Philosophy, and they comprised very small proportion of medieval
education. It was not until the 18th century when science gained
interest. Since the church exercised tremendous authority upon the university
curricula and the appointment of teachers, the importance of Science was also
undermined in this sense. Thankfully, the society became more flexible with comparatively
practical subjects. However, it wasn’t until the modern age when religion and
education became discrete.
iii.
How teachers taught students
Everything the university
was able to offer to their students was in Latin. Meaning that you can’t go to
university unless you could read and write Latin, which was the language used
in almost every documents such as court documents. Although teaching was
considered a secondary work after research and writing, it sometimes proved its
importance on how they financially support the teachers. University professors
used the methods of lecture and disputation when teaching the students. There
were two types of lectures, which were ordinary lectures, and extraordinary
lectures. Ordinary lectures were held in the mornings while extraordinary
lectures were held later in the day for students who wish the classes to be
quick. Most professors were priests who came from the Catholic Church.
C.
Family/Factory Education
There were
several ways that young boys were raised in the middle ages. Most kids
inherited what their predecessors have been doing in the past. For example, if one’s
father is a baker, he was socially expected to be a baker after my father. For
people who wish to try crafts, they would visit a master. Such are also known
as a typical vocational education. Since the 11th century the system
of instructing vocational apprentices developed as guilds began to emerge and
form exclusive cliques.
a.
Mastering Crafts
Mastering crafts
was a widespread method of schooling which involved an indenture, or a
contractual agreement, between the boy and a master craftsman. The master’s
duty was to teach the boy essential skills and knowledge of the craft, as well
as reading and writing. Also, the master must be responsible for the boy’s
moral and religious growth. The boy, on the other hand, was obligated to work
diligently under his master and keep what he has learned from his master to
himself. This enabled guilds to exclusively dominate the market by minimizing
competition and taking the role of high price setters.
b.
Education of chivalry
Chivalrous
education of the knight was another form of secular education in the middle
ages. The overlord would systematically open classes and invite teachers and
instructors from various fields of the time. These people are expected to be
loyal aristocrats who have certain authority in the society. The participants
would learn proper manners and etiquette of a knight, dancing, singing, conversational
skills, and some intellectual matters although its importance was lighter than
social and military training listed above.
3.
schools of the middle ages
A.
people related to schools
Firstly, the students
were the customers of education who had to burden the fees. They even formed
student guilds in order to prevent the abuse of authority in universities and
protects their own rights.
Secondly, there
were teachers who were called by different names such as masters or doctors
respectively in different areas. The influx of professors who used to be
scholars that dedicated their lives to research and writing appreciated the
status and reputation of the occupation. Charlemagne, a renowned French ruler,
was a king who insisted the importance of the teachers’ capacity to read and
write, church build free schools. The professors of universities experienced somewhat
different problems such as having enough students enrolled to their classes,
since they were paid according to the number of students willing to take his
class.
Thirdly, the scholars
were people who dedicate their life to research. Sometimes, they would be employed
and paid as teachers.
Lastly, girls
had discernibly lacking chances of education compared to those of the boys.
Only girls of the wealthy, or the noble class could attend schools.
B.
public and private education
The churches and
the monasteries were not the only education facilities. Outside the
monasteries, especially in Italy, a few public and private schools were
operational. Also there were public support system that required fees and private
tutoring as well. A great example of a public school is Eton, founded by Henry VI in 1440.
4.
References and future direction
è Scholars and priests (Irene M.Frank and David M.Brownstone)
further research: connections with the
thesis
chivalry : show good model
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