I am currently writing a paper on this topic in Mr. Ganze's class. I thought it would be great to see how other people would feel about the start of my essay.


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