Jean-Jacques Rousseau (28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer of the 18th century. His political philosophy influenced the French Revolution as well as the overall development of modern political, sociological, and educational thought. Rousseau's novel Emile or On Education is a treatise on education. In his book, Emile Rousseau's philosophy of education is not concerned with particular techniques of teaching information and concepts, but rather with developing the pupil's character and moral sense, so that he may learn to practice self-mastery and remain virtuous even in the unnatural and imperfect society in which he will have to live. Here, he used a hypothetical name, “Emile”.
Rousseau’s Philosophy: Naturalism
Naturalism was a negation of the Renaissance. The naturalistic movement was a revolution in educational theory and practice. Rousseau’s philosophy was influenced by three things: the state of time, the extremely varied experience of his life, and his emotional nature. His philosophy was a reaction against the contemporary social and political set-up.
Rousseau’s philosophy is usually termed “Naturalism”. He contended that all the ills and miseries of civilization are due to a departure from a state of Nature. “Everything is good as it comes from the hands of man”, declared Rousseau in the opening sentence of Emile. Return to Nature, therefore, was his method to cure the world of troubles.
Tradition believed that human nature was evil and must be disciplined or changed. Rousseau said that human nature is essentially good and should be allowed to develop freely. Education, therefore, must be in harmony with original and unspoiled human nature. He said that learning takes place best when a child is free to develop and grow according to his natural impulses. He was convinced that the child’s original nature is good and pure. But since the child is immature and unable to care for himself, education is necessary. The function of education is to preserve the child’s goodness and cleanliness without stain from the world. His naturalism holds that the best learning comes from dealing with natural objects. The catch words of naturalism are freedom, growth, interest, and activity. All these words are well known in the field of modern progressive education.
Threefold meaning of Nature in the Emile
The essence of “Naturalism” was to go back to nature and fight against all sorts of artificialities. The term “Nature” has been interpreted in different senses.
- Nature in the psychological sense: It means the original endowment inherited by man. It includes instincts, emotions, desires, impulses, and natural tendencies. Voltaire emphasized intellect, whereas Rousseau gave emphasis on volition and emotion. Intellect is not all in human destiny. He was always against the formation of ‘habits’. Habit is nothing but a fixed method of action.
- Nature in the phenomenal sense: In this sense, nature stands for the physical world. Here, nature is used to indicate inanimate and subhuman nature. It includes trees, rivers, seas, fountains, mountains, sky, etc. Rousseau was a great lover of phenomenal ‘Nature.’
- Nature in the social sense: In the early stage of human society, men and women were guided by their natural instincts and emotions. They were natural men and women. The ‘natural man’ is not the savage man, but man governed and directed by the laws of his own nature.
In primitive society, people entered into a contract to form a common authority in the shape of a state, which would serve the best interests of the individual. A state was thus the creation of individual for their own interest and betterment. To regulate their lives, they formulated certain laws and regulations. In this way, artificial conventions, customs, and rules entered human society. This led to the destruction and loss of human freedom. He revolted against the very structure of the society. “Everything is good in the hands of Nature, but everything degenerated in the hands of man”.
Rousseau’s Philosophy and Theory of Education
Rousseau has pointed out his educational guidelines in his famous educational treatise, “Emile”. This educational romance was written with a definite purpose. It was to show the sophisticated society of those days that education, if properly given, would minimize the drawbacks of civilization and would bring man near to “Nature.”
Rousseau’s philosophy of education is Naturalistic. He is against the system of conventional and formal education. Rousseau believed that education does not mean teaching information or knowledge. It is not a burden; it is the development of the child’s natural powers and abilities. Rousseau was a faithful supporter of education according to nature.
Rousseau bitterly felt that the autonomous self was completely neglected. As a result, the child was absolutely neglected. The educand was not recognized by the educators of the day. The child was in the background. The curriculum was in the front. The child was regarded as the incarnation of all evils. A rigid system of education was imposed on him. There was no scope for self-realisation, fulfillment of personal native interests and aptitudes. The old school was a sort of prison-house. Discipline in the traditional system was very strong. It was a rigid order maintained by the rule of the rod.
Rousseau had great sympathy for the children. He placed the child in the center of the educational world. He was regarded as Copernicus in the educational universe. The child must be the pivotal factor in the educational domain. Education is not an accretion from outside. It is development from within. It is a process of self-development in terms of the nature of the child. This process of development takes place through successive stages, each of which is distinct by its characteristics.
Rousseau’s General Aims of Education
Rousseau revolts against the entire traditional concept of education. His general aim of education is given below:
- Education is a natural process, not artificial.
- Education is a development from within, not accretion from without.
- Education could be acquired by exploiting the natural instinct and interest.
- It is the expansion of natural power.
- It is life itself.
- The attainment of the fullest natural growth of the individual
Rousseau’s Methods of Education
Rousseau had deep sympathy for children and advocated simple and direct methods of instructing them. He laid special emphasis on object teaching. He said, “Let the senses always be the guides, let there be no textbooks but the world and no other instruction than facts. The child who reads, does not think---he merely reads; he is not receiving instruction, but learning words”. He also said that only the textbook was the great book of nature.
Rousseau objected to verbalism in education. Words, according to Rousseau, were being memorized but not understood. A child, he believed, should be taught by experience and not by verbal lessons. That’s why Rousseau advocates the playway method.
Stages of Education as Showed by Rousseau in Emile
Rousseau, in his book Emile, has given specific aims for different stages of education. Emile is divided into five parts. The first four parts contain education for infancy, childhood, boyhood, and manhood. In the fifth part, he gives a plan for the education of women.
- Education for Infancy (1 to 5 years): For this period, Rousseau advocates physical education. “All wickedness comes from weakness. A child is as bad as he is weak. Make him strong, and he will be good,” said Rousseau. The child should be made strong so that he will always keep a restraint upon himself and will not be led into evil ways. This is a period of physical education, freedom, and activity. The first education should be the free and unrestricted expression of the natural activities of the child in his natural environment.
- Education for Childhood (5 to 12 years): It is the most critical period of human life. When the infant grows into a child, he has different needs. The child's mind is dominated by the senses. This period can be called the period of sense education. The child at this stage lacks proper power of reasoning. He cannot understand right and wrong. So, no intellectual training during this period is to be given, but moral training is to be given by example and through. Necessity must be his teacher. Let him learn by experience and the results of his own conduct.
- Education for Boyhood (12 to 15 years): This is the pre-adolescent stage and the period of intellectual education. It is also the period of acquisition of knowledge. The boy is now in adult life. In this period, curiosity develops and creates in the boy an urge for knowledge. Rousseau, in his book Emile, is introduced to studies that reveal nature, astronomy, geography, science, and the arts and crafts. He should deal with these problems on his own resources, independent of the authority or advice of other people. He should learn by his own efforts through the observation of nature.
- Education for Manhood (15 to 20 years): This is a period of moral training. But no formal instruction in moral education is to be given. Placed in the proper environment, humans would learn things through direct experience. At this stage, the adolescent undergoes a new birth on account of the appearance of sex desire. The adolescent has to learn at this stage the control of passions. In this stage, man should have moral and religious education.
- Women’s Education: Rousseau, in his book Emile he came to believe that men and women are not and ought not to be constituted alike in character and temperament. Women should be taught sewing, embroidery, and lacework. They should also be taught singing, dancing, and accomplishments. Ethics and religion must be taught, but no philosophy, science, or art. Girls should be taught to be obedient and industrious. In respect of women’s education, Rousseau appears to be conservative and traditional. In this regard, he does not show a progressive outlook.
Rousseau’s View on Curriculum
We have discussed at length the subjects to be taught to Emile at different stages of his development- infancy, childhood, boyhood, and manhood.
During infancy, Emile will not be taught the usual subjects, for those do not fulfill the needs of childhood. Children are not capable of learning things that adults can learn. Their ways of seeing, thinking, and feeling are different from those of the adults. So, at this stage, the education of Emile will be purely negative. It is the period for physical development of the children, their senses are properly exercised, and for cultivating natural habits.
In the second stage, Emile's education is to be purely negative. There will be no verbal lessons for him. He is to learn from his own experiences. No book should be used. There is no place of moral instruction at this stage, as it requires the exercise of reasoning, and “childhood is the sleep of reason”. Education at this stage includes mainly training of the senses because these are the gateways of intellect. But no intellectual training should be provided at this stage. Some amount of moral training can be given by example.
With his bodily organs and senses trained, Emile is now prepared to receive Knowledge in the pre-adolescent period. It is a period of intellectual education. Accordingly, he will be taught physical sciences, language, mathematics, manual work, trade, social relations, music, and drawing. Curiosity or interest is the sole guide in this period of education. The curriculum, therefore, at this stage should be built around curiosity and useful activities. No book Knowledge will be given even at this stage. The child will learn by his own efforts and through contact with nature. The only book which Rousseau recommends for Emile at this stage is “Robinson Crusoe”, a study of life according to nature. Manual and industrial arts should also be included in the curriculum.
With the beginning of the adolescent period, begins the moral and religious education of Emile. Moral qualities such as benevolence, kindness, service, and sympathy should be developed now. Moral education, says Rousseau, is to be given through activities and occupations and not through lectures on morality. Besides moral education, the curriculum at this stage should include history, religious instruction, aesthetics, physical culture, sex instruction, etc. The education of Emile has now to be positive and not negative. Now, the youth is to be educated for life with others and is to be educated in social relationships. Now, the training of the heart should receive attention. Because of the appearance of sex impulse, the adolescent at this stage has to learn the control of passions.
Criticism of Rousseau’s Ideas and Practices
Dr. Graves has severely criticized the educational ideas and practices of Rousseau. Rousseau’s ideas, according to him, are full of contradictions and inconsistencies. Rousseau himself said: “I should rather be a man of paradox than prejudice”. The education advocated by Rousseau was anti-social. The society is subordinated to the supreme individual. The social environment is neglected. Rousseau’s view of democracy is wrong in the present world. He strongly opposed women’s education: “A woman of culture is to be avoided like a pestilence”.
