Self-culture : physical, intellectual, moral,- PDF (1880) by James Freeman Clarke

Self-culture: physical, intellectual, moral Excerpt: The Beginnings of Culture, in Childhood. — Natural and Artificial Methods in the Educat...

Self-culture: physical, intellectual, moral

Excerpt:

The Beginnings of Culture, in Childhood. — Natural and Artificial Methods in the Education of Children. 

Education is made up of three grand divisions. First, Instruction, or knowledge communicated to the intellect; second, Training, or exercise of the faculties; third, Development, or education in its special meaning, — the unfolding of the whole nature of man. These three constitute Education in its largest sense. Of all this Education, the school and college contribute a part, but a much larger part comes from other sources.

 Nature educates, life educates, society educates. Outward circumstances, inward experiences, and social influences make up a large part of human culture. But at present, let us see what schools ought to do, what they actually do, and what they might do. A boy begins to go to school, say at seven years of age; and he leaves college, say at twenty-one years. He has then spent fourteen years in the study, and the object of nearly all his study has been to store his mind with knowledge. 

What, then, does he know ? After fourteen years' study, he ought to know a good deal. First, to speak, read, and write his own language well, and to be acquainted with its principal authors. Secondly, as so much time is given to Latin and Greek, he, ought to be able to read easily a Latin or Greek work, at sight. Next, he should know the main facts of Geography and Universal History, and the chief dates of political events, — also such facts in the history of Greece, Eome, France, Italy, England, Spain, Germany, and the United States. He should read easily two or three modern languages. Then, in science, he should know the present condition of Geology

, Chemistry, Natural Philosophy, Astronomy, Botany. He should understand the condition and progress of the useful arts and the fine arts, and some elements of Theology, Medicine, and Law. He ought to know something about Social Science, including Politics and Political Economy. Finally, he ought to know something about his own body and soul, his faculties and powers, the laws of thought and of physical culture. In fourteen years ought there not to be learned at least as much as this?

 James Freeman Clarke (April 4, 1810 – June 8, 1888) was an American theologian and author.

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