Emile Rousseau's Radical Theory on Education - Coursework Example

Key ideas on education in Rousseau’s “Emile” Introduction: Rousseau detailed his ideas on education in his book d “Emile” which deals with the growth of a young boy named Emile. The aim of education, according to Rousseau is to teach children how to live rather than merely imparting an academic education. One of the salient features of Rousseau’s ideas on education is the belief that children benefit the most from growing up within a natural rural environment rather than being brought up in congested cities. He divided education into three phases (a) the first stage which lasts up to the age of 12, when complex learning and abstract thought are not possible for a child and they merely live like animals (b) the second stage from ages 10 to 15 which is the beginning of reason and (c) the age after 15 when the child grows into an adult. Rousseau believed that during the process of education a child learnt how to develop his social consciousness to live within a community. Key ideas of Rousseau’s educational philosophy: Rousseau believed that man is born as a natural savage, wherein he is inclined to follow his natural instincts and live just like an animal. Therefore, he must be taught how to be a good citizen and this may be achieved by teaching him how to develop his social consciousness. He believed that this could best be achieved in a natural setting like the outdoors since growing up in urban areas and congested cities was anathema to a child’s growth. He believed that since man’s natural instincts as a savage led him in the direction of selfishness - thinking only about himself and the immediate gratification of his own desires, it was vital that education be geared towards teaching young children how to overcome those natural impulses to be selfish to live within a social framework and think of others. Living in the cities however is not conducive towards the achievement of these goals. Within a materialistic framework, a child only learns how to be more selfish and this is not helpful in a social sense, to build a community. Another salient feature of Rousseau’s ideas one education as elucidated in “Emile” is the fact that children are different from adults. This was different from the salient belief of the day, wherein children were viewed as miniature adults. Rousseau viewed children as innocent and slow to mature, clay that could be molded appropriately to make them good citizens. However, he was also a great believer in maintaining the self esteem of children. He was not in favor of social repression and did not advocate the suppression of individual freedoms in order to achieve the greater goal of communal harmony. Rather he was of the opinion that education should be so geared that it is able to maintain the self esteem of the child while also imparting to him a social consciousness so that he/she can become a good citizen. Rousseau is identified as the first “developmentalist” because he was the first to advocate that children developed in stages and that education had to be tailored accordingly to fit every stage. He divided the developmental phase into five different stages, as follows: (a) From birth to infancy: This period covers the first two years of a child’s life. This is the stage wherein the child must learn to distinguish between wants and needs and the difference between power and liberty. The major thrust of this period is for a child to learn a basic level of self sufficiency, which is aided through the appropriate responses of the adult. Rousseau was of the opinion that during this stage, it was important to allow the child to be completely free and to develop as naturally as possible, without imposing and parental requirements or conflicting messages. “The only habit the child should be allowed to acquire is to contract none” (Emile, Book I:23) (b) The ages of 2 to 12: Rousseau characterized this as the completely natural phase. According to him, this stage of education can only comprise the development of physical faculties. The mind is not yet ready to work and therefore the kind of education that exercises the mind should be negative or nil (Cranston 1983). The primary thrust of this phase is for the child to learn not to want things which are not strictly necessary. He also learns this lesson from nature, when his actions produce a negative impact from it. Thus the child is merely geared towards learning to distinguish what is really important and what he really needs. Rousseau did not favor imposition of adult authority during this stage. He advocated that the child be left completely free to develop naturally and it is this kind of education that his character Emile receives, learning lessons without conflicting parental authority. “The mind should be left undisturbed till its faculties have developed” ( Boyd, 1956: 41). (c ) The age of 12-15 – pre-adolescence : Rousseau characterized Emile during this stage as a “noble savage” (Cranston 1983). During this stage there is rapid physical development which escalates to a level where needs are met and energy is available to be directed towards mental activities. “The urge for activity now takes a mental form; there is greater capacity for sustained attention.” (Boyd 1956: 69). But the only book Emile is allowed to read during this stage is “Robinson Crusoe” because it emphasis the message that Rousseau believed to be very important – learning how to live in harmony with nature. The major focus of the education at this stage is to teach Emile to become self sufficient like Robinson Crusoe and learn how to love himself without needing approval from others. This was why Rousseau opposed an urban upbringing, because he believed it loaded a child down with things that he did not really need, making him want things that were not strictly necessary for him to have. Rousseau believed that wanting material goods was a corrupting influence, as also the desire to attain the approval of others. (d) The age of puberty: 15 to 20: It was only at this stage that Rousseau believed that Emile’s mental and reasoning faculties were developed sufficiently to enable him to cope with the complex issues raised by religion and morality (Grimsley 1973). Rousseau advocated this as the stage to slowly introduce the adolescent into the pressures of society and teach him how to adjust within it and how to develop his own morality concepts. “There is to be a gradual entry into community life” (Boyd 1956: 95). (e) Ages of 20 to 25 – Adulthood: This was the stage where it is proper for a boy like Emile who has now grown up, to enter society and find himself a partner. With all the lessons he has received on sustaining himself and maintaining his self esteem without the approval of others, with all the teaching that has been imparted to him on how he should not want for the things that he does not really need, Rousseau believed that Emile would be able to cope well in society. This is the stage where his prior education would have taught him how to resist corrupting influences and he would be ready to enter society and make a useful contribution to it, learning to adjust his will to the common will which will be conditioned by the common beliefs in what is good for society. Rousseau’s ideas on education are significant because for the first time, they a child’s growth and development into stages. At each stage what the child can learn and will best imbibe will be conditioned by what faculties he possesses. Therefore there will be no waste of resources nor the position of burdening a child with educational concepts that are beyond his capabilities. Rather what is taught will depend upon what he is ready to receive at a given time. Rousseau articulated his beliefs on the natural inclinations of man as follows: “We are born capable of sensation and from birth are affected in diverse ways by the objects around us. As soon as we become conscious of our sensations, we are inclined to seek or avoid the objects which produce them . . . These inclinations (to seek or avoid) extend and strength the growth of sensibility and intelligence, but under the pressure of habit they are changed to some extent with our opinions. The inclinations before this change are what I call our nature. In my view everything ought to be in conformity with these original inclinations.” (Emile, 1911, p 7; Boyd 1956, p 13) Thus by applying the concepts above, it is clear that Rousseau intended that education should be tailored to a person’s nature. Therefore education cannot be imparted on a mass consumption basis, rather it has to be geared towards satisfaction of the faculties that a child possesses. Although a certain age framework has been identified, not all children fall into the appropriate slots at the appropriate ages, therefore education must be imparted on an individualized basis. Further more, Rousseau also believe that education should be different for men and for women. For example, Sophie is Emile’s ideal mate. At a young age, physical training is imparted to introduce grace, to prevent idleness, she is also taught reading, writing and drawing. But after she is 10, her education is geared towards religion, reason and learning how to please others. Rousseau’s ideas on “natural” education were not necessarily to exclude adults from the educational process, rather Rousseau believed that adult mediation was desirable but only if adult expectations and controls did not interfere with the natural development of the child. The adult’s role was meant to enhance a child’s learning and teach him how not to want what he does not need. Rousseau’s views were controversial during his day because he conceived of man as a natural savage, i.e, that he is naturally good by nature (Melzer 1990). This view was sharply in contrast with the prevailing religious doctrine of the day which tended to believe in the concept of man as a sinful creature who had to redeemed through the blood of Jesus Christ. However this dependence was not the focus of Rousseau’s thought, in all his writings he has focused on the intrinsic goodness of man and his independence which are vital to aid in proper development and in the development of a social consciousness. Rousseau’s ideas on democracy also arose in conflict with the prevailing ideas of the day wherein the supremacy of the church was established. The authority of the church was supreme and irrevocable and people in Rousseau’s day were groaning under the yoke of suppression and repression meted out by the Catholic Church. Rousseau, through his liberal ideas was therefore one of the foremost rationalists who were responsible for the development of man’s reason and his inclination towards independent thought, free from the indoctrination of the Church. Rousseau was one of the few men in Paris who were the founders of the Enlightenment movement that was sweeping across Europe, rising in direct challenge to the authority of the church (Hampson 1990). The Enlightenment focused on man’s reason and scientific thinking, as opposed to the religious indoctrination which was the prevailing order of the day. It was through the exercise of reason that man could begin to question the authority and tyranny of the church and view religious beliefs against the measure of reason. Therefore the Enlightenment Movement, of which Rousseau was one of the twelve important Frenchmen characterized as the founders of the Enlightenment movement, was an overwhelming movement in favor of reason and scientific thinking. Rousseau’s system of education was therefore set against religious beliefs that man was a sinful creature. Rather it fostered a child’s belief in the natural goodness of man and taught him how to be self sufficient and independent, learning how to survive the approval of anybody else or be dependant upon others. Rousseau’s ideas of democracy were all linked to his conception of man as a free individual being, a natural savage endowed with the gift of reason which could be developed at the appropriate stage (Cranston, 1983). Therefore Rousseau visualized democracy as being a system of Government whereby there was no question of one individual or body imposing upon another,. Rather Government comprised the development of a uniform set of laws that would be developed by independent thinkers and men who were free and self sufficient, who would formulate rules and regulations on the basis of voluntary participation and a consensual verdict on what was good for the community as a whole (Miller 1984). This was in conflict with established systems of Government whereby power was appropriated into the hands of a few, Rousseau visualized power as being a consensual holding of power. However, Rousseau’s views on the education of women was well in accord with the beliefs about women of his day, since the female sex was considered to be the weaker sex that needed to be protected by the stronger one, therefore the focus of their education was to be geared towards playing a supporting role. Relevance in today’s society: Rousseau’s theories are especially relevant in today’s society, since his conception that the ills of society will be fostered in a child raised in urban areas, is proving to be true. Most children today are raised within urban areas, where education is imparted in a structured setting rather than the natural environment Rousseau favored. Crime rates are exploding and children are being influenced by bad older elements into immoral practices and a life of crime. Moreover, children are being pressed into learning complex concepts at a younger age which, according to Rousseau, are only possible after the age of twelve when children develop reason. As a result, there is tremendous pressure upon a child to achieve academic results in order to be competitive in society and the expectations of parents and teachers weigh heavily upon children. The concept of democracy as Rousseau saw it – a set of laws and rules derived by common consensus – is not materializing in its right format because children are not being educated properly and are not able to fully exercise their rights as moral persons, since their mental, emotional and moral development is not proceeding in the normal manner which Rousseau envisaged. Although it may not be feasible to leave children completely wild until they are twelve and negate parental and teacher influence to the degree that Rousseau deems it favorable, nevertheless, Rousseau’s ideas can be applied more widely in the modern system of education in order to make the system more productive. In particular, Rousseau’s ideas on educating children through their interaction with nature during the younger years would be a valuable course of action for educators to follow. References: * Boyd, W.  (1956) Émile for Today. The Émile of Jean Jacques Rousseau selected, translated and interpreted by William Boyd, London: Heinemann. * Cranston, M. (1983) Jean-Jacques, (1991) The Noble Savage, (1997) The Solitary Self. Jean-Jacques Rousseau in exile and adversity. Chicago: University of Chicago Press * Grimsley, R. (1973) The Philosophy of Rousseau. Oxford: Oxford University Press. * Hampson, N. (1990) The Enlightenment, London: Penguin. * Melzer, A.M. (1990) The Natural Goodness of Man: On the System of Rousseaus Thought, Chicago: University of Chicago Press. * Miller, J. (1984) Rousseau: Dreamer of Democracy. London: Yale University Press * Rousseau, Jean Jacques. (1762) Émile, London: Dent (1911 edn.) Read More