May 1, 2011

The Jesuit educational model of Prussia



quantumshift.tv) What country does North America's education system come from?

"And now we come to the great man himself, a man history reports as being instrumental in the creation of America's public education system. Horace Man was the American educator who served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, part of the American Congress.
Horace Man was the key reformer of the education system at the time. In 1837, he became the head of the newly created Board of Education in Massachusetts where he began the work that would eventually earn him the title as "The Father of American Public Education".
After reading through the educational models of different countries, Man finally hears about a particularly successful style that had been developed in Prussia, which is now modern-day Germany.
The Prussian system had shown to be such a successful to government's purposes that, accompanied by few other educators, Horace Man travels to Germany to investigate. Upon their return to the U.S., they lobbied heavily to have the Prussian model adopted. [...] Around this time, the Canadian superintendent of schools, Egerton Ryerson, travelled to Prussia in search of a new model of education."

Now, what do we know about that time, the Prussian King Frederick the Great, and "our holy fathers" of the Jesuit Knight Order?
By the way, "I have never let schooling interfere with my education" is such a typical swaggering Huck Finn type of statement ... "Swaggering yet vulnerable, like a cross between Huck Finn and Holden Caulfield ..."


comments)

Jtfreelander on 12/04'09: "I feel it was sinister because the Prussian model was for the use of the state and the state doesn't respond to market signals. Therefore, it doesn't serve the people it serves itself.
It seeks to have people march lockstep with its diktats. It produces weapons of mass instruction. Education not molested by the state would have to produce more critical thinkers."


Rcallicott on 12/03'09: "The Prussian model of education had some very practical applications and is more centered to creating a literate work force necessary to a market economy. I use the word "literate" loosely, since this model is not known to produce great thinkers in as much as it produces good engineers, accountants and other specialists through the university level. You get the picture. I don't think it was a diabolical conspiracy from the onset, but in the wrong hands (Department of Education) it can be used to propagandize the general population, thus the spike in home schooling as a moral education was just as important.
The Edinburgh model of education on the other hand has produced most of the great thinkers in the western world. If there is any doubt, read Arthur Herman's "How the Scots Invented the Modern World". The contributions to western civilization by the Scottish educated under this model are extraordinary. It is a shame that more of our Universities do not replica this exemplary form of education. FYI: The Scottish Kirk first required mass education to ensure its citizenry could read the Holy Bible and as a result Scotland enjoyed the highest literacy rates in Europe in the 1600s. In 1696 the Scottish Parliament passed the "Act for Setting Schools" which solidified the necessity for educating every citizen by providing teachers in every parish.
While the Prussian model fails to create the critical thinkers necessary to a free society, it can provide a decent level of literacy. The problem I have with public schools is the Department of Education.
In my opinion, that one act by former President Jimmy Carter put too much power in the hands of people we don't know, don't trust and don't vote for. In retrospect, since the department's inception it has ruined the public educational system in America. At least most high school graduates can read and read for themselves if they so wish, just don't expect critical thinkers from those indoctrinated in public schools."

Cookie on 07/17'09: "One of the many reasons we homeschool our child. Schools teach children what to think not how to think. Critical thinking is considered blasphemy in brick and mortar schools. Borg mentality, you must assimilate. Way before video on the internet there was a like article written on this very subject.
I found it interesting then and I find it just as interesting now."

Rakib101 on 04/08'08: "History is good ... nice video!"
Zona on 03/26'08: "History was my worst subject!"
Nadinebrown on 03/24'08: "Good video – a bit controversial, but you're eliciting a reaction which is always good."

Yessir on 01/13'08: "To be perfectly honest, I really enjoyed this video, but I found the conclusion extremely sudden. You basically just list off factoids, some statistics, and bam, you have a potentially derogatory conclusion that I felt was a little "out of thin air". I felt like the facts were primarily historical and you didn't really link them to any modern facts, nor show the evolution from one to the other – you just kind of put it out there.
I understand that you are leaving the viewer with an open-ended statement to instill thought rather than shove a definitive answer down their throats, and I really respect that. However, I just get the impression that you had fully decided on your underlying thoughts on the matter before doing the research and thus your quick conclusion might not make as much sense to the learning viewer as the educated film-creator.

Nazd said on 01/07'08: "Well, it seems like I'm not the only one who reacted with a bit of shock and feeling incredibly disturbed ... I've had the opportunity to share the video with flatmates, and I've noticed similar responses from them as well. Definitely needs to be expanded upon, with greater historical emphasis [...] Lots of people were wondering how the other 'great power' fits into the equation, while this was all happening (UK)."

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