Page 17 - All About History - Issue 12-14

Education

The Age of
AZTECS BAN RECESS Enlightenment arrives

MEXICO 1490 ENGLAND 1600
Today, modern knowledge is derived
The Aztec civilisation of Mexico had a very robust and through the scientific method, promoted
strict education system that put many others to shame and established in Europe in the Age of
from the 14th to the 16th century. They had three Enlightenment. The Enlightenment was a
movement by academics and intellectuals
different types of schools, with one just for girls dedicated to challenge existing ideas grounded in
to teaching religion and childcare, one for the sons of faith and tradition and replace them with
commoners dedicated to combat training and one elite knowledge derived from reason and logic.
school for sons of the aristocracy. This last school was The Age of Enlightenment rewrote not just
called the Calmecac and was located at the heart of the what knowledge we possessed but also how
we determined and taught it.
Aztec capital city Tenochtitlan. It taught law, writing,
School children and teachers at the
medicine, engineering and oratory. Rhydlewis Primary School in Wales, 1890
Teachers get unionised
ENGLAND 1870
The first-ever official and nationwide body designed to safeguard
the teaching profession was the National Union of Teachers, the
body being set up at King’s College London, UK, on 25 June 1870.
It was created to represent every school teacher in England and
Wales, which up to that point had either no representation, or
only representation at a local level, with no real protection against
government acts as a result. Since the NUT’s formation, countless
other organisations just like it have been established worldwide,
The Aztec city of The Age of Enlightenment saw reason and logic fighting for issues such as fair pay and a healthy work-life balance
Tenochitlan promoted over tradition and religious dogma for their members.

O Renaissance man rebels O America’s temples of O Melvil Dewey organises O Waldorf educates O Primary and O The computer
Finally, after centuries of knowledge The now-famous Dewey An independent secondary are gets personal
education and religion Starting with the Decimal System is invented alternative split With IBM’s
being fundamentally University of by American Melvil Dewey. education In England and introduction of
intertwined, the Harvard in 1636 The system goes movement, Wales the Education its Model 5150
Renaissance sees the CE, American on to be the the Waldorf Act splits education personal computer,
church’s dogmatic colonists lose no Harvard was most widely education, is The founder of in two, with primary home schooling
authority weakened and time in establishing a founded in 1636 used library established by a new form education taken up and education
avenues of learning open comprehensive higher- classification Austrian philosopher of education to 11 and secondary takes a massive
up more to the average education system, with a host system in the Rudolf Steiner. More than education from 11 leap forward in the
person. 1300 CE of universities built across the world. Melvil 1,023 Waldorf schools exist onward. 1944 CE early 1980s.
country. 1636 CE 1876 CE Dewey today. 1919 CE 1981 CE

1300 1500 1700 1800 1900 1950 2000 2014

O The pencil is invented O Japan kick-starts education O America adopts the O Fisher acts O Apprenticeships O Academies are ratified
For centuries since its design by At the beginning of the blackboard decisively become zeitgeist British Secretary of State
two Italian engineers, the simple Tokugawa shogunate in 1600 Despite slate boards and chalk The Fisher Education In a bid to diversify for Education Michael
wood-encased pencil has CE, few common Japanese being in use since the 11th Act, drawn up by England’s education Gove introduces the
been a key tool in schools people are literate. The century, it is only in 1801 in West English historian system, apprenticeship Academies Act 2010, a
worldwide. The first pencil shogunate enforces the building Point, New York, Herbert Fisher, makes schemes allow governmental bill that
with an eraser attached of temple schools, so by the that blackboards secondary school individuals to gain a allows publicly funded
to the end is invented in period’s end in 1867, over half are installed education in Britain basic education while schools to diverge from
1858 CE. 1560 CE of the male population has an in US schools. compulsory up to the learning a trade. the national curriculum.
education. 1700 CE 1801 CE age of 14. 1918 CE 1960 CE 2011 CE

There is such a Knowledge is
thing as free lunch networked
ENGLAND 1944 USA 1980
Starting from 1944 in England With the invention of the internet in the latter
and then 1946 in the US, meals for half of the 20th century, the world’s massive
school children – or at least those banks of knowledge could be digitised and
from the poorest backgrounds – accessed remotely from anywhere around the
became free. This ended centuries globe. This revolutionised the dissemination
of disparity in what pupils of information and knowledge like never
consumed at schools and kick- before, with schools and universities
started a revolution that spread transformed by computers and their ability to
throughout the globe. Soon other access the ultimate library, the internet. Today
European countries such as Finland this ability to learn through the internet has
started to serve free lunches to taken on an entire new dimension, with
students and in places like France the invention of smartphones and tablets
by the 1970s meals were large and allowing people to access information Tim Berners-Lee is credited with
multi-course affairs. American school children anytime and anywhere. inventing the internet © Getty; Alamy; Thinkstock
eating a free school lunch

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