Education in Ancient China - Literature review Example

Ancient education in China and its influence on the class structure (Name) (Institution) (Course) (Instructor’s Name) Date of submission The relationship between education and social elements has been discussed far and wide. While education has been instrumental in understanding natural phenomena which had significant place in religion and culture, civilisation keen on preserving their culture tend to hold strong to their social structure. Silver (1980) says that even modern political parties have within their manifestos education policies targeted at improving the welfare of the people and the social conditions. This should be expected in ancient civilization where education was a factor in social conditions. This paper discusses the place of education in ancient China and the role it played in changing the class structure in a society that had rigid social classes. Chinese social structure of has a very long history that has undergone various changes over different dynasties and incorporated various teachings from great Chinese scholars (Parker 2006). Confucius was one of the scholars who had major influence on the Chinese social structure that determined how people related and how information and informal education flowed among the people. Confucius emphasised on five basic relationships; father to son, elder brother to younger brother; husband to wife; friend to friend and ruler to subject. Between the Qin and Qing dynasties, the government divided the people into four classes from the highest status to the lowest as follows; landlord, peasants, craftsmen and merchants. Due to the level of separation between the social classes, education and information was relatively different. Informal education China therefore was taught in a way to protect the social classes and the cultural heritage of the people. Ornstein and Levine (2007) write that the Chinese people being ethnocentric sought to develop an education system that glorified and protected their culture. This was until the third century BCE when China experience political, social and cultural upheaval. During this period educational controversies emerged which focused on conserving or changing culture. Three competing controversies emerged –Legalism, Taoism and Confucianism- which all proposed different paths for education (Ornstein and Levine 2007; Challen 2004). Confucianism was the most important philosophy when it comes to education in ancient China. Confucius proposed upward social mobility through education which gave so much hope for the people in the lower statuses who were oftentimes oppressed. Before the birth of Confucius in 551 BC and in his early years, education was only reserved for the royals and the nobles. Access to education was controlled by the warlords. Although there was only one ruling family, the warlords whom each controlled a feudal state had the last word in governance. They therefore sought to extend their superiority among the people by denying them education (Social studies school service 2003). Confucius theorised that to deliver the mind one has to be educated. He therefore enrolled to work for a noble in order to gain access to education which he did. Upon completion, he volunteered to educate any willing person. Confucius taught the need to develop solid character by teaching students according to their abilities. He strengthened the belief that people had different talents and learning capabilities. This was important in the development of different subjects which entailed separating students according to their learning capabilities. This belief was categorical in developing the five Confucian classics namely: the book of poetry, the book of history, the book of rites the book of changes and the springs and autumn annals. A sixth book, the book of music was completely lost hence only five remained. Emperors Wu (156-87 BCE) of the former Han Dynasty took over the throne, he espies Confucianism as the orthodox state ideology and the five classics became the official learning and the standard for selecting civil servants. Two more classics were added to make them seven. The advancement in education did have a social impact from the very beginning. Yao (2000) writes that Confucius was the originator of this social change given that he made education available to the ordinary people other than the nobles as it were then. This alone marked the beginning of a change in the prevailing social structure that oppressed the poor. Some scholars viewed he social changes brought about by education as a threat to the status quo which was detrimental to society while others glorified the influence of education. Silver (1980) notes that even in modern times, education involves numerous social dimensions. He notes that ancient and modern governments have used educational policies to bring about social changes. This implies that the findings of Confucius on the role and direction of education attracted political scrutiny in order to assess the effect of his new education on the society and the ruling class. Increased information and enlightening of the society through education resulted in alarming changes in the social dimensions of the Chinese people. The elite described the phase as a period of eminent collapse and chaos of the social system (Yao). During the Spring and Autumn and the warring states period, various scholars and leaders in the ruling class made various proposals on education policies. There were three main groups with divergent views. The first group proposed the abolition of all social conventions and institutions to restore social order. This group saw the writing of the Dao De Jing, a book from several authors who proposed a return to the primitive way of life and abandon the changes tat had been primarily caused by increased access to education by the masses. Yao (2000) cites one of the passages in the Dao De Jing that says “abandon sageliness and discard wisdom; then the people will benefit a hundred fold. Abandon humanness (ren) and discard righteousness (yi), then the people return to filial piety (xiao) and fraternal love (ti) (p.68). Simply said, this group called for a return to a quasi-anarchist society that had existed earlier. The second group comprised of pessimists who had given up the hope of saving the world from the chaos and destruction being witnessed then. The elites in this group advocated for complete withdrawal from the world or a kind of apathy that was contrary to any positive intervention. The third group comprised of those who wanted to change the world among them Confucius. This third group was to later produce three different schools of thought namely; Confucianism, Maoism and Legalism. Confucianism proposed a humanistic approach into soling all life’s problem. Confucius believed that restoration of cultural values and practices would be eminent in restoring order in the society. As such, education was to be provided in a way that upheld culture and other values (Yao 2000). This is seen with his arts-based five classics earlier mentioned. The second school of though headed by a former student of Confucius Mo Di or Mozi used a contradicting approach to that of his teacher. This school of thought proposed that music and culture were useless in restoring order in the society and held that improving the people’s material welfare through a utilitarian approach would restore order. Maoists advocated for a Shamanistic approach that sought divine intervention in addressing social problems. The Maoists taught their followers to make offerings to Heaven (tian) and to faithfully carry the Mandate or Will of Heaven (tianming). The Maosist had also different teachings in regards to attaining peace and harmony as they emphasized on utilitarian love and universal equality while the Confucianism called for need for a strong personal character and extension of the family love (Yao 2000). The third school of thought that was critical in shaping the education and social state in ancient China was the school of Legalism (fa jia). This school of thought asserted that the only way to save the Chinese society from destruction was to govern the world and the people by a set of laws and restrain it with a defined criminal code. Same way as the Maoism, legalism gained prominence by rejecting the Confucian education. One of the leading scholars of Legalism, Shang Yang openly challenged Confucianism and said that “eminent en all change their occupations to apply themselves to the study of the ‘book of poetry’ and the ‘book of history’ and to follow improper standards.…When the people are given to such teachings, it is certain that such a country will be dismembered” (Yao 2000, p.70). This school of thought proved very popular wit the ruling class and the government. The school of thought reached the height of its prominence and even overshadowed other school of thoughts at the end of the Warring States period as it helped First Emperor of the Qin Dynasty unify the people of China. This marked the beginning of government recognition of the role of education in the society. The dynasty is also famous for actively pursuing legalism. One of the major laws that the dynasty enacted and upheld especially during the reign of Shang Yang was need for basic education for persons in the civil service. This was carried out through the Imperial examination (keju). The examinations comprised two parts, the wushu and the arts exam. The arts exam assessed recruits on study of books, laws, calligraphy etc while the wushu exam was basically for recruiting military officers. This law was upheld and as a result created some form of equality in the Chinese society (Yao 2000). Under previous governments, persons from the poor families did not have access to such positions as corruption, nepotism and the existing social classes provided a discriminating criterion for government positions. The keju examinations on the other hand provided a level playing field for people of all classes to access employment and bring honour to their poor families (China Travel guide 2010). However, the exams were not very effective as access to education was not universal. Again, in certain cases, excellence in education was disregarded when a high profile person would recommend another relatively inferior person in education over the relatively superior one. Nonetheless, such cases were rare. The various dynasties that took over a unified China also stressed on the importance of education in ensuring government efficiency. The Tang Dynasty adopted the personnel selection system and modified to included examination on classical books, mathematics, calligraphy and law among others. The examination of classical books involved recruits filling out blanks left from a particular page of a book or they were require to explain specific lines in a particular text. This kind of education was therefore directed towards memorizing readings rather than reasoning. Those who attained the highest marks in the imperial exams were legible court officials (China Travel guide 2010). During the Han dynasty, ancient China celebrated some of the greatest contributions in education. Chief among them was the compilation of the “Book of the Mountains and Seas” which comprised of geography, natural philosophy, popular myths and animal and plant matters. This book further strengthened the Confucian approach to education which basically leaned towards arts and the development of talents. At this time also, Sima Qian, one of the greatest historians wrote the famous Records of the Historian (Shiji). Although Confucian has emphasized on history as a form of art and the return to the old ways, there had been no proper record of Chinese history. Therefore, the publishing of this book once again set the path for China t reclaim some of the cultural practices that had been lost in the passing of culture and history through word of mouth (Yao 2000). Each dynasty in ancient China had its view on education which resulted in a mixed influence of education of the social landscape in the country. The Spring and Autumn period (770BC - 476BC) for instance witnessed monumental changes under the influence of Confucius. During this time, the government used education as a tool to suppress the people by limiting access to education. Confucius on the other hand advocated for education for all in order to allow people to discover their talents and improve on their productivity towards nation building. To achieve this, Confucius devoted his efforts to education people in private capacity and in privet schools. This saw a new dimension in the social scene where those people who could afford enrolled their children in private schools where they were welcome. Government schools had then been only a reserve for the noble families (James 2005). Other dynasties such as Qin dynasty and the Han dynasty were more concerned with streamlining the social structure in China through various legislations. For example, Emperor Qin adopted the teachings of Confucius in family relations countrywide ((Challen, 2004).). According to Confucius and Pan Chao who was the only female historian at this time, women were required to be submissive to their husbands. In fact women were considered to be less intelligent and weak. This implied that education which was highly recommended by Confucius was largely available to men only. Women were left behind to cater for their children and husbands and perform domestic chores (Yao 2000). The teachings of Confucius and pan Chao rhymed in defining the role of women in society. On one hand, Confucius relied on past history restore the Chinese culture and way of life while Pan Chao as historian highlighted the way of life among the people of China. Thy therefore both agreed in defining the role of women in the society. As a woman, Pan Chao was more active in a manner that literally sought to suppress her fellow women. She drafted a guideline contain the four major roles/values of women namely; womanly virtue, womanly words womanly bearing and womanly work. She argued that a woman did not require pretty face or a perfect form to be a woman, but her womanliness would be judged upon these four characteristics (Breyer 1998; Yao 2000). Nonetheless, Pan Chao was to later advocate for the education of women in order to strengthen their relations with men by helping them understand their role in the society. Increased education for women was instrumental in breaking down the patriarchal family system that was largely replicated in government. Breyer (1998) says that men were absolute rulers in their families something that was practiced in government. Through education, women understood their role in the society to be more than that of taking care of their families and weaving. They learned that they could actively participate in government as civil employees or in other positions. This in the long run changed the social structure that afforded women social mobility and the eventual weakening of the class structure. Simply said, changes in the role of family members engineered some changes in the class structure and governance (James 2005) Far from the role of women in the society, education and the examination system to gain access to civil service positions changed the social structure extensively. As earlier aforementioned, the four social classes recognise by the ancient governments placed peasant farmers higher than merchants in the social order. With better structured government and increased importance of education, merchants were able to send their children to school with ease than the farmers. This implied that merchant families had more of their children working in government wherever they could pass the recruitment exams. As a result, the merchants were slowly overtaking the farmers in terms of importance in governance as they were attaining more influence (Challen, 2004). Education has played a vital role in many civilizations a round the world china included. With education, comes a change in the manner of thinking among the scholars and the people. Governments on the other hand have to e responsive to the changes in terms of providing employment to the educated and also facilitating learning through construction of schools or teacher training colleges. In China specifically, the government encouraged education through the imperial examinations that encouraged people to learn and gain employment in the government. To the masses, education was the vehicle for social status improvement. Government employees were regarded with much respect among the people. This implied that education was given a lot of attention as a means for social mobility. The social structure in China was basically formed by the government in order to protect the agricultural based economy from a downfall. By placing peasants above craftsmen and merchants, this implies that many individuals would venture into agriculture to obtain a higher social status and hence improve the productivity of the country as a whole. However, this structure was gradually reformed by the popularisation of education for the masses by Confucius. In response, governments appreciated education by offering civil service positions to learners by offering recruitment examinations. Nonetheless, education was heavily culture oriented hence the influence on the class structure was strong but relatively minimal as compared to other civilizations such as in Europe. References Breyer, Michelle, Ancient China Thematic Unit. New York: Teacher Created Resources, 1998. Print Challen, Paul. Life in ancient China. New York: Crabtree Publishing Company, 2004. Print China Travel Guide. Ancient Education in China. 7/11/10. 2010 http://www.travelchinaguide.com/intro/education/ancient2.htm. Web James, Williams, History of ancient education. New York: Anmol Publications PVT. LTD., 2005. Print Ornstein, Allan and Levine, Daniel, Foundations of Education 10th ed. New York: Cengage Learning, 2007. Print Parker, E. Ancient China simplified, Chicago: Echo Library, 2006. Print Silver, H. Education and the social condition. London: Taylor & Francis 1980. Print Social studies school service, Ancient china. London: Social Studies, 2003. Print Yao, Xinzhong An introduction to Confucianism. London: Cambridge University Press, 2000. Print Read More

Confucius taught the need to develop solid character by teaching students according to their abilities. He strengthened the belief that people had different talents and learning capabilities. This was important in the development of different subjects which entailed separating students according to their learning capabilities. This belief was categorical in developing the five Confucian classics namely: the book of poetry, the book of history, the book of rites the book of changes and the springs and autumn annals.

A sixth book, the book of music was completely lost hence only five remained. Emperors Wu (156-87 BCE) of the former Han Dynasty took over the throne, he espies Confucianism as the orthodox state ideology and the five classics became the official learning and the standard for selecting civil servants. Two more classics were added to make them seven. The advancement in education did have a social impact from the very beginning. Yao (2000) writes that Confucius was the originator of this social change given that he made education available to the ordinary people other than the nobles as it were then.

This alone marked the beginning of a change in the prevailing social structure that oppressed the poor. Some scholars viewed he social changes brought about by education as a threat to the status quo which was detrimental to society while others glorified the influence of education. Silver (1980) notes that even in modern times, education involves numerous social dimensions. He notes that ancient and modern governments have used educational policies to bring about social changes. This implies that the findings of Confucius on the role and direction of education attracted political scrutiny in order to assess the effect of his new education on the society and the ruling class.

Increased information and enlightening of the society through education resulted in alarming changes in the social dimensions of the Chinese people. The elite described the phase as a period of eminent collapse and chaos of the social system (Yao). During the Spring and Autumn and the warring states period, various scholars and leaders in the ruling class made various proposals on education policies. There were three main groups with divergent views. The first group proposed the abolition of all social conventions and institutions to restore social order.

This group saw the writing of the Dao De Jing, a book from several authors who proposed a return to the primitive way of life and abandon the changes tat had been primarily caused by increased access to education by the masses. Yao (2000) cites one of the passages in the Dao De Jing that says “abandon sageliness and discard wisdom; then the people will benefit a hundred fold. Abandon humanness (ren) and discard righteousness (yi), then the people return to filial piety (xiao) and fraternal love (ti) (p.68). Simply said, this group called for a return to a quasi-anarchist society that had existed earlier.

The second group comprised of pessimists who had given up the hope of saving the world from the chaos and destruction being witnessed then. The elites in this group advocated for complete withdrawal from the world or a kind of apathy that was contrary to any positive intervention. The third group comprised of those who wanted to change the world among them Confucius. This third group was to later produce three different schools of thought namely; Confucianism, Maoism and Legalism. Confucianism proposed a humanistic approach into soling all life’s problem.

Confucius believed that restoration of cultural values and practices would be eminent in restoring order in the society. As such, education was to be provided in a way that upheld culture and other values (Yao 2000). This is seen with his arts-based five classics earlier mentioned. The second school of though headed by a former student of Confucius Mo Di or Mozi used a contradicting approach to that of his teacher. This school of thought proposed that music and culture were useless in restoring order in the society and held that improving the people’s material welfare through a utilitarian approach would restore order.

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