Part III Summary and Analysis

Chapters 10 - 18 Present Educators' History and Times from Rousseau and Pestalozzi through Jefferson, Wollstonecraft, Mann, Owen, Froebel, Mill and Spencer.

Chapter 10 Jean Jacques Rousseau: Prophet of Naturalism

Historical context of Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) was the Age of Reason or the Enlightenment when Rousseau's educational ideas foreshadowed romanticism of later centuries. His ideas and methods influenced child-centered teaching in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Rousseau's educational biography begins in Geneva, Switzerland, as the son of a watchmaker who raised him with an aunt since his mother died 9 days after his birth. His father tutored him by reading late into the night from a variety of books beyond his ten year-old understanding. Rousseau subsequently left Geneva for Italy and Savoy to live with a wealthy widow who supported his classic education and music study. He tutored children in 1739 and wrote a...