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Greek and

Roman

EducationA TIME OF POLITICAL EDUCATION

OR EDUCATIONAL POLITICS?

Presented by: Mark P. Villaplaza

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Greek society

Male dominated. Desired unity, logic, harmony,

balance, design, order, andstructure.

Religious –  humanistic –  not basedon supernatural afterlife.

Greek tragedies integrated past,present, and future.

Believed human reason powerfulenough to find meaning ofexistence and nature.

Sought universal truths to live the

good life.

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Athens and Sparta united? Not exactly.

Recognized therelationshipbetween theindividual andthe community.

Polis furnishededucationalaims.

Peloponnesian

War (431-404) -the turningpoint and thedemise of the

polis.

http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~atlas/europe/static/map07.html

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Polis

City-state promoted commonwelfare and security.

Served to integrate everydimension of the citizen’s life. 

Reciprocal relationship betweengood person and good society.

Cultivate virtues rather than

specialized or technical skills. Athens affected by 4th century

commercial growth –  grew moreindependent in private affairs.

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Homeric Epics

The Iliad and The Odyssey.

Embodied wisdom, traditions, beliefs, and values.

Educational purpose - conserve culture, instillidentity based on mythic and historical origins,shape character, and teach morality.

Heroes spoke elegantly and poetically,combined wisdom, action, and glory, performedwarrior arts, and observed religious rituals.

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Pursued Arete - excellence

Homer –  pioneering figure in moral

education. Actions of characters

have consequences that affect not

only them but those that dependon them. Ex: Odysseus

Greek education devoted to epic

poetry –  life’s heroic dimensionsand the ideal of glory.

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AtheniansHumane,

dynamic, andrational(humanistic).

Earthly activities

rather than life

after death.

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Athenian Education

Goal was to produce an ideal well-rounded,liberally educated individual.

Both formal and informal aspects cultivated amany-sided person who was an excellent man

and contributor to general welfare. No attendance mandates.

Minimal regulation that children learn to readand swim.

Greater variety of formal educations patternsthan in Sparta.

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The SpartansCode of Lycurgus –  Spartans

to soldiering.

Who was Lycurgus?

Nobleman who applied to the

oracle at Delphi and was toldgods would support him in hisendeavor. Banished gold andsilver, divided land, and madethe Spartans agree to an oathto follow his laws until hereturned (Ripperton, 2000).

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Spartan Societal Roles

10% of the population were the rulingmilitary elite called the Spartiales.

Perioikoi included the common classwho had economic not political rights

Helots –  slaves.

At birth, babies were taken to Ephorsfor visual assessment, at 7 to military

school for 11 years, at 18, receivedtwo additional years of militarytraining. From age 20-30 were onactive duty.

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Spartan Model

Rejected humanistic education, wanted

practical and military training.

Courage was portrayed by planned and

executed savagery.

Made city-state focus of human life andendeavor.

Collected hero obeyed commands and

followed orders without question.

Loyalty and discipline was the key.

Intellectual content minimized - only

rudiments of reading and writing were

taught.

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Hellenic worldview

Rational inhabitant of a purposefuland orderly universe.

Alternate experience of reality –  Philosophers.

Practical formulation of educational

methodology –  Sophists.

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Greek Education Theory

Greek’s

colonization (800-550 B.C) ---socialchanges --- richessought politicalpower--- Sophists

appeared to satisfythe need.

Sophists(470-

370B.C)

In 4th century B.C.,accelerated rate ofcommercial growth---cultural crisis---Philosophers soughtto reconstruct,

integrate, and ordercultural life.

Socrates (469-399B.C.)

Plato (427-347 B.C.) Aristotle (384-322

B.C.)

Isocrates (436-

338B.C.)

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Who were the Sophists?

Sought education to lead topolitical power and social status.

Concerned with making policy(special interests) rather than

finding truth.

Claimed that they taught virtue

and charged a fee for their

services.

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Educational Agenda of the

Sophists

Acquire intellectual and interpersonalcharacteristics and skills needed forsuccess in a changing society ---

strategies of practical politics

Master the discussion, persuasion, and

argumentation skills that contributed tosocial, political, and legal success---grammar, logic, and rhetoric

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What were the Sophist’s

contributions?

Extended educational opportunities to

more students, contributed to class

mobility, and furthered democratization.

Developed the trivium (logic, grammar,

and rhetoric) of Later Roman and

Medieval education

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Protagoras of Abdera

Highly regarded Sophist teacher.

Believed in changing reality andspecial interests (relativism)

“Known primarily for three claims(1) that man is the measure of allthings (2) that he could make the"worse (or weaker) argumentappear the better (or stronger)"and (3) that one could not tell if thegods existed or not” (Poster, 2006). 

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So what is the difference in

values?

Traditional Values

Courage

Justice

Self-restraint

Sophist Values

Individualism

Subjectivism

Hedonism –  

when behavior ismotivated bythe desire for

pleasure andthe avoidanceof pain (Wikipedia,2006).

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Socrates –  Governed by rationality

Philosophy: the person’s only reason for

being is to experience moral excellence.Sought to discover universal principles oftruth, beauty, and justice.

Epistemology: Believed genuine knowledgeexists and needs to be brought to

consciousness. Education: The goal is to build moral

predispositions. The method is to ask leadingquestions to stimulate students to inquirytruth.

Discussion: Socrates method

is a way of teaching or

learning?

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Plato –  A founder of Idealism

Philosophy: Encouraged searching for theessence of goodness, truth, and beauty.Plato’s theory of ideas. The Republic (3classes).

Epistemology: Knowledge is eternally validand that values are unchanging. Learningis to rediscovery of truth.

Education: “Functionalist” model,

designed to produce competent adults tomeet the needs of the state. Plato’s planprovided education for 3 groups: worker,soldiers, and rulers.

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Aristotle –  A founder of Realism

Philosophy: Human definingquality (soul, mind, or intellect)provides the potential forrationality. Asserted the existenceof an objective order of reality.

Epistemology: Knowledge beginswith external objective - the questof happiness.

Education: Gave education amajor role in developing virtueand excellence. Asserted liberalarts.

Founder of the

Western

 philosophical

realism.

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Isocrates –  Intellect is a priority.

Philosophy:. Critical of the sophists who taughtrhetoric as “practical” gimmicks. Orator has acivic responsibility to be trustworthy.

Epistemology: Didn’t believe people could

discover absolute truths. Knowledge is usefulbecause it improves character and preparesone for life.

Education: Effective and well-organized

educator. Like many modern thinkers, tends toview education as the savior of the world” (Willis,

2006). Believed in importance of educatingvirtuous leaders to be models for citizens.

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Commonalities

The Greek philosophers speculatedabout human nature and hoped to findthe universal patterns (truth) thatgoverned reality.

Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle all believereasoning.

Plato, Aristotle, and Isocrates conceivedof human nature as a duality of the

mental and the physical. All recognized that education is directly

related to both the healthy individualand harmoniously integrated society.

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Differences

Ways in discovering universal truth by theGreek philosophers

Philosophy: While Plato shut his eyes to thesensory word and used his reason, Aristotle

used his senses as well and thought nature isreal world.

Epistemology: For Socrates /Plato, knowing isa matter of recognizing ideas already

lodged in consciousness. For Aristotle,knowledge begins with external objects.

Education on women: (Athens, Sparta,Plato, Aristotle, and Rome)

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Stoics and Epicureans Stoics (Zeno, 340-265BC): What happens to

body is unimportant. Each person is to fulfillpractical social duties and also preserveindependence ---have great significance forRoman culture.

Epicureans (Epicurus, 342-270BC): Onlyobject in life is to secure pleasure and toavoid pain.

Both had roots in the teaching of Socrates.(Gaarder, 1991)

In contrast to Stoics, the Epicureans showedlittle or no interest in politics and thecommunity (Gaarder, 1991)

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The Roman Empire

htt ://www.acs.ucal ar .ca/%7Evanders /index.html

R Ed ti I E l R bli

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Roman Education - In Early Republic 

Function of education is to transmit traditions tothe young.

Values (e.g., duty, self-control, temperance) were

to be exemplified by the parents - especially bythe father.

Purpose was to produce a highly practical man,who knew how to manage his land andsuperintend his slaves.

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Roman Education –  After cultural

change Necessity of governing as an empire --- rely on Greek as

an international language --- Greek culture mastered theRomans.

Political transition--- traditional value is not enough---sophisticated political and managerial competencies arerequired.

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Institutional Patterns of RomanEducation

Influenced by Greek culture and theformal educational system.

Elementary school, Ludus

Secondary education, Grammar school

Higher studies (16-18), Rhetorical school

Church school eventually acquirededucational significance.

Roman Capriccio, Oil on Canvas

 painted by Giovanni Paolo Pannini,1734

http://www.eliki.com/coliseum/

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Roman Conception of Education Orator is the model

of an educatedperson.

Isocrates had animpact on Roman

educational theory.

Well-educated menwho demonstratedinterest in affairs of

the republic wereCicero andQuintilian.

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Cicero –  The compromiser

Combined the best of both –  older Romanpracticality and newer Greek utility or humanism.

Practical ethics and logic.

Should possess grace and wit, be quick to reply,and competent of speaking styles.

Most important subjects were history, law, andphilosophy.

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Quintilian –  The Chair of Latin

Rhetoric Had more of a

systematiceducational theory.

Thought grammarand rhetoric shouldbe taughtseparately.

Speaking andpersonal excellenceare reciprocal.

Learning should beappropriate tolearner’s abilitiesand readiness.

Identified significantstages of human

development. 0-7 impulsive –  immediate

satisfaction of needs and desires.

7-14 learns from sensoryexperience –  forms clear ideasand develops memory.

14-17 reasoning –  liberal arts ingrammaticus.

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Students’ questions after reading 

Developmental

trajectories:•Influence on current

Education

Special issues:

•Woman education•Why, who, and how

Transcontextual Concerns:

•Western and eastern

•Practice in other country

What do we want toknow more?

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One of our concerns

Greeks saw areciprocalrelationship

between thegood personand the goodsociety, placed

a priority oncultivating virtuescommon to allcitizens.

Confucianismsought politicalharmony by

trying to achievethe moralharmony in manhimself, aiming

at the restorationof a rationalizedfeudal order.

What is your opinion?

Discussions of other questions

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References Gaarder, J. (1991). Sophie’s world. New

York: Berkley Books. Gutek, G.L. (2005).. A history of the

western educational experience (2nd ed). Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press.

Lin, Y.T. (1938). The wisdom of Confucius. New York: The Modern Library.

Noddings, N. (2006). Philosophy ofeducation. Westview.

Poster, C. (2006). Protagoras. TheInternet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. http://www.utm.edu/research/iep/p/protagor.htm 

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References

Ripperton, L. (2000). Lycurgus and theSpartan Laws. http://www.mainlesson.com/display.php?author=morris&book=greek&story=lycur 

gus  Vanderspoel, J. (1997). The Roman

empire at its greatest extent. http://www.acs.ucalgary.ca/%7Evandersp/index.html 

Wikipedia. (2006). Hedonism. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedonism 

Willis, W. (2006). Isocrates (436 - 338 B.C.).http://people.morehead-st.edu/fs/w.willis/isocrates.html