History of Homeschooling

The history of homeschooling and education in general is tightly woven with history itself. From bible times, to Egyptian civilization, to Greek prosperity, to Roman control and domination, civilizations grew and prospered based on their ability to balance surviving with thriving. Let's take a look at the history of homeschooling over the timeline of history.

First formal education

The first formal education can be attributed to the nation of Israel c.1300 BC with adoption of the Torah which means "teaching", "instruction", "scribe", or "law" in Hebrew. The knowledge was recorded, primarily through verbal transmission from one generation to the next with only a few written items in the form of papyrus, stone, or leather.

In other contemporary ancient civilizations such as Egypt, Babylon and later Greece and the Roman Republic the provision of education was restricted to the wealthy elite, or to professional scribal guilds (which were more industrial, business in orientation). Aristotle tutored Alexander the Great ‘at home’ over 2,500 years ago. In fact, until the late 19th century, nearly everyone was ‘homeschooled’.

Medieval times

You had to be a member of the royal family, be born into a wealthy family or very lucky to be given an education in medieval times. It was common for the royal children to be sent to the castle of a trusted lord where they would get the necessary education. The teachers were usually monks who would teach a range of subjects including reading, writing, languages, music and the arts.

Reformation

The reformation played a historical part in education, with the 95 Theses of Martin Luther and the general emphasis of the education of the individual in religious matters rather than just clergy being able to read and interpret the scriptures.

Renaissance

Ahh, the renaissance; the time of balance and order. This period was full of educational strides, the gaining of knowledge, an age in which artistic, social, scientific, and political thought advanced in new directions. The amount of education, i.e. knowledge, increased and was becoming more than reading, writing and arithmetic.

Printing invented

The invention of printing presses drastically changed the way knowledge and education were imparted. No longer did the public rely on the monks to create works of art in the form of very expensive books, available to the wealthy only.

Industrial age

The industrial age in Britian and then Europe in general, changed the way society functioned, lived and thus how they were educated. No longer was the subsistence localized to the home and farm. Now people began to congregate into larger and larger cities and work in the factories. People has less time, knowledge, and skill to teach their children. Many of the children themselves were forced to work rather than attend school or homeschool.

Colonial America

Colonial America was influenced strongly by the European form of education. Teachers were often hired from Europe to come and teach in the colonial schools. Opposition to the cultural and educational dependence of the US upon Europe began as early as 1699. By 1776, with the Revolution, more and more states provided for the public education of its citizens. The movement for religious freedom and the separation of the church and state also came to the forefront.

American expansion

As American expansion stretched its hungry fingers, more and more families had to rely on educating their own children; homeschooling. The importance of formal education also took a back seat when life was back to subsistence levels. Many government grant schools were founded to encourage education, but distance has a way of limiting.

With the establishment of townships, came the sponsorship of local schools where the children of the surrounding area could be taught by one person, thought to be more knowledgeable. Even then, the survival of the family farm took precedence over the formal education.

Among the forces that have had effect on education since 1860 are the prodigious material development of the United States and its swift scientific and industrial growth; remarkable increase in wealth and in population; the accumu lation of huge fortunes which made possible the establishment of philanthropic foundations the like of which the world has never known; the increase in the comfort and ease of life for the workingman as well as for others and the extraordinary absence of pauperism as compared with other countries; immigra tion; changes in rural life and in the character of home life in this country under the industrial and electrical revolutions. These and other changes are not only obvious to those who have been and still are on the scene but have been vividly pointed out by foreign visitors. (See James Bryce, "America Revisited: The Changes of a Quarter-Century," Outlook, Vol. 79 ( March 25 and April 1, 1905), pp. 733-40, 846-55).

Modern Education

The period since the First World War has witnessed the development of the junior high school and the junior college. Even movements for adult educational activities and development have grown.

There are even law suits on requirements that pupils salute the United States flag and other suits that involved the issue of religious instruction in public schools; charges and counter-charges on the American tradition of the separation of church and state and the alleged increase in secularism in American education.

John Holt coined the term ‘unschooling’, an approach that eschews curricula, schedules and any kind of structured method for educating a child. Seeing that children are naturally curious, and observing that public school more often dampens that spirit than encourages it, he advocated eliminating all structure.

Raymond Moore came at the problem from a very different approach. A devout Christian and an ex-missionary, he saw in the public school system an entire philosophy that taught values opposed to his religion. He believed that education involved more than just providing facts. He saw the violence and other negative aspects of public schools and advocated that parents resume responsibility for their child’s education and, in particular, value instruction.

Today, homeschooling and education are readily available to all. With the internet, the huge amounts of knowledge which dominates our lives is no farther than our finger tips. We have but to choose. With that choice and freedom, comes even more responsibility: each person must take responsibility for the education of themselves and their children.

Your own history of homeschooling

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