History of Education, Levi Seeley [short novels in english txt] 📗

known as Luther's friend, Henry the Eighth of England, Francis the First of France, and Charles the Fifth, king of Spain, Naples, Sicily, and Austria, and afterward emperor of Germany. Leo the Tenth was Pope, and he had great influence in temporal affairs. Emperor Charles the Fifth was the most powerful ruler of this period. Though a foreigner in manners, customs, and sympathy, and unacquainted with the German tongue, he became emperor of Germany by bribing the electors who had a voice in selecting the ruler of that nation. It is said that he paid $1,500,000 to these corrupt electors, besides making many promises of future favors. He was treacherous, and never hesitated to break the most solemn pledges when his interests so demanded. Bayard Taylor says of him, "His election was a crime, from the effects of which Germany did not recover for three hundred years."

Intellectual Conditions.—These, then, were the external conditions which existed at the beginning of the sixteenth century. We have seen that the need of reformation was acknowledged on all sides. There were but few good teachers to be found, even in the Church which had so long been the mother of schools. Education was at such a low ebb, and the advantages offered by the schools were so poor, and of such a doubtful character, that but few persons cared to avail themselves of their privileges. Even the universities failed to educate. Luther says, "Is it not pitiable that a boy has been obliged to study twenty years or longer to learn enough bad Latin to become a priest, and read mass?" Again he says, "Such teachers and masters we have been obliged to have everywhere, who have known nothing themselves, and have been able to teach nothing good or useful."

There was need, then, of reform in education as well as in religion, and Luther took the burden of both upon his shoulders. As an educational reformer, he has earned for himself the world's gratitude. It must be admitted that Luther's main purpose was the reformation of the Church, and that his educational work merely grew out of the need of general intelligence as a necessary adjunct to that work. Of the existing conditions, Compayré well says, "With La Salle and the foundation of the Institute of the Brethren of the Christian Schools, the historian of education recognizes the Catholic origin of primary instruction; in the decrees and laws of the French Revolution, its lay and philosophical origin; but it is to the Protestant Reformation,—to Luther in the sixteenth century, and to Comenius in the seventeenth,—that must be ascribed the honor of having first organized schools for the people. In its origin, the primary school is the child of Protestantism, and its cradle was the Reformation."[53]

LUTHER (1483-1546)

Martin Luther was born at Eisleben, Germany, of poor and humble parents. He was brought up under the rigid discipline of the typical German home, in which the rod was not spared. Upon this point he writes, "My parents' severity made me timid; their sternness and the strict life they led me made me afterward go into a monastery and become a monk. They meant well, but they did not understand the art of adjusting their punishments."

When he was fourteen years of age, his parents, then in better circumstances, sent him to Magdeburg to prepare for the university. But the expense being too great, he was withdrawn from this school and sent to Eisenach, where he could live with relatives. Here he sang in the street for alms, and his sweet voice attracted the attention of Ursula Cotta, a wealthy lady, who took him to her own home and gave him an excellent teacher.

When eighteen years of age he entered the university of Erfurt, then a center of humanistic learning. He made marvelous progress in his studies until he took his degree. His father had intended him for the law, but Luther determined to devote himself to the Church, much to his father's disappointment. Accordingly he became an Augustinian monk when twenty-two years of age. Unlike many of his brethren, he kept up his studies while in the monastery, and was called to a professorship in the new university at Wittenberg in 1508, where he found an ample field for his remarkable powers. Two years later, he went as a delegate to the papal court at Rome, where his eyes were opened to the condition of the Church in her holiest sanctuaries. Returning to Wittenberg, he continued his studies and his lectures, and drew about him a great number of students. His lectures and his writings against the practices of the Church became so pronounced that he was summoned before the Diet of Worms and commanded to retract. This he refused to do in the memorable words: "Here I stand; I cannot do otherwise. God help me! Amen." On his return from Worms, fearing for his safety, his friends took him prisoner and confined him in the Wartburg castle at Eisenach. During the nine months of his confinement he translated the Bible into German.[54] Luther took great pains to make the language so pure and plain that it could be understood by the common people, to whom he appealed. He was never ashamed of his humble origin. When he came to be the honored friend and trusted adviser of princes and kings, he was wont to say, "I am a peasant's son; my father, grandfather, and remote ancestors were nothing but veritable peasants."

The language of Luther's translation of the Bible became the standard German, which was to supplant the many dialects.

His great watchword was, "Make the people acquainted with the Word of God." But the Bible was of little use to the masses so long as they could not read. Luther therefore set himself sturdily to the improvement of the schools, which were in a deplorable condition. He urged the principle of parental responsibility for the education of children. "Believe me," said he, "it is far more important that you exercise care in training your children than that you seek indulgences, say many prayers, go much to church, or make many vows." His pedagogy constitutes the foundation of the German common school system of to-day. Luther, then, must be remembered as the greatest educator of his time for two reasons.

1. He gave the German people a language by his translation of the Holy Scriptures.

2. He laid the foundation of the German common school system.

Luther's Pedagogy.—1. Parents are responsible for the education of their children.

2. It is the duty of the State to require regular attendance at school of every child, and the parents must be held accountable for non-attendance.

3. Religion is the foundation of all school instruction.

4. Every child must learn not only the ordinary subjects taught at school, but also the practical duties of life,—boys, a trade; girls, housework.

5. Every clergyman must have pedagogical training and experience in teaching before entering upon a pastorate.[55]

6. The teacher must be trained, and in that training singing is included.

7. Children must be taught according to nature's laws,—the knowledge of the thing must precede its name.

8. Due respect should be shown to the office of teacher, and by example and precept every teacher should be worthy of respect.

9. His course of study included Latin and Greek, history, mathematics, singing, and physical training, besides religion.

10. Every school should have a library.

11. It is the inherent right of every child to be educated, and the State must provide the means to that end.

The principles above stated are fundamental in the German school systems of the present time. Religious instruction, trained teachers, compulsory and universal education, are the central principles of the schools of Germany and of many other nations. Luther could not give his chief attention to education, but with deep insight he saw the necessity of it, and laid the foundations upon which later generations have built a marvelous structure, true to the design of its architect.

MELANCHTHON (1497-1560)

Philipp Melanchthon was the friend, colaborer, and adviser of Luther. Luther was a resolute, energetic, impulsive man; Melanchthon was quiet, reserved, and conciliating. There is no doubt that these two men of such opposite dispositions exerted a salutary influence upon each other,—Luther stimulated and encouraged Melanchthon; Melanchthon checked and restrained Luther. It is certain that each was helpful to the other, and that the great cause of the Reformation, to which they mutually consecrated themselves, was furthered by their friendship and union.

Melanchthon had excellent training as a boy, and early showed signs of unusual ability. At fifteen he took his bachelor's degree at Heidelberg University, and when only eighteen years of age Erasmus said of him, "What hopes may we not conceive of Philipp Melanchthon, though as yet very young, almost a boy, but equally to be admired for his proficiency in both languages! What quickness of invention! What purity of diction! What vastness of memory! What variety of reading! What modesty and gracefulness of behavior! And what a princely mind!"

After completing his course at Heidelberg, he went to Tübingen, where his studies were directed by Reuchlin, who was his kinsman. He gave public lectures at Tübingen on rhetoric and on various classic authors, attracting worldwide attention. In 1518 he was called to the Greek professorship at Wittenberg, where he made the acquaintance of Luther. Bishop Hurst says, "The life of Melanchthon was now so thoroughly identified with that of Luther that it is difficult to separate the two. They lived in the same town of Wittenberg. They were in constant consultation, each doing what he was most able to do, and both working with unwearied zeal for the triumph of the cause to which they gave their life."

His success at Wittenberg was assured from the first. Though youthful in appearance, being but twenty-one years of age, his pure logic, his profound knowledge of philosophy, his familiarity with the Scriptures, his perfect mastery of the classic languages, his fine diction, and his broad knowledge awoke enthusiasm at once. Wittenberg, possessing two such great men as Luther and Melanchthon, became the center of humanistic studies, not less than two thousand students being attracted to its university. Melanchthon was an inspiring teacher; among his pupils were men who afterward became leaders of thought in Germany, and who did much to shape the destiny of Europe.

Perhaps Melanchthon's greatest service to the schools was his publication of text-books, which were very much needed. He wrote a Greek grammar for boys when himself but a boy of sixteen. Grammar he defined as "the science of speaking and writing correctly," a definition that has been scarcely improved upon. Ten years later his Latin grammar was published, after being tested for some years in his classes. For more than one hundred years this was the principal Latin grammar in use, and there were not less than fifty-one editions of it.

He wrote also text-books on logic, rhetoric, and ethics. It will be seen that the trivium—grammar, rhetoric, logic—furnished the foundation of his literary activity, so far as the schools are concerned. He was active also in authorship of theological works, producing the first theological work of the Protestant Church, the "Loci Communes," which Luther placed next to the Bible for theological study.

The interest of Melanchthon for education made him the chief adviser and leader among the school men. His advice was constantly sought in the educational movements of Germany. After visiting the schools of Saxony, he drew up the "Saxony School Plan," which furnished the basis of various similar organizations throughout Germany. There were three fundamental principles in this system.

1. There must not be too many studies in the schools, and Latin should be the only language taught.

2. There must not be too many books