Education is dead, long live education!

When I began a course on the history of education a few years ago, I was struck by the continuity of several themes that I had previously regarded as “progressive”. Concepts like ‘not forcing children to learn’ and ‘mixed age groups’ seemed like cutting-edge ideas to me, born out of contemporary educational research; but the roots of these notions reached back much further than I had anticipated.

One such revelation came as a bit of gut punch about three weeks into the course—the lecturer told us that the ancient philosopher Plato thought young children should learn through play because they absorb knowledge more effectively when they’re engaged in interesting activities. “Come again, Plato?” I asked in my head. Here was evidence that the essence of play-based education had been a topic of consideration 2,000 years ago.

Moving through history, we witnessed significant shifts in education as it responded to changes in society. Take, for instance, the Renaissance era: a renewed emphasis on the humanities and individualism meant a transition from rote memorization to critical thinking. The Industrial Revolution ushered in compulsory education that reflected the need for a skilled workforce (though referring to education nowadays as “the industrial model” is wrong for so many reasons).

As we continued our journey, it became clear that what was popular in one century was not necessarily in vogue in the next. However, amid the ever-changing educational landscape, certain principles endured, like the emphasis on acquiring knowledge and building character—even if educators couldn’t agree on what knowledge students should learn at what age, and what sort of people they should grow up to be.

As with play-based learning, could an individual approach be an aspect of the perfect ideal of education? Is that why certain themes keep coming up time and time again?

A recurring phrase resonated in my mind throughout my studies: “Education is dead, long live education!” Much like how the proclamation, ‘The king is dead, long live the king!’ suggests the continuity of sovereignty despite changing rulers, perhaps the same holds true for education… Methods of delivery change with time, but educational ideals, like meeting the learner where they are, persist beyond fleeting trends.