Roman Education

Sifting through the pages of history, I find it incredible how education and culture have played an incredible role in the evolution of most civilizations. From the rites of passages in ancient societies to the liberal policies of the Roman academic systems there is much to relate when considering the educational system of today’s societies. In the following reflection I will be commenting on the description of ancient Roman educational practices, the evidence found in today’s schools, and the legal and ethical issues raised today if certain practices in both Greek and Roman schools were present.

The turn of events that lead to the pages of Roman history clearly marked an incredible decay of academic competence, moral behavior, and mastery of skill. Much changed from the formation of elite alumnus found in the ancient Sumerian and Egyptian cultures. Rome had taken a back seat in modeling the integrity and pioneering spirit of an academically sound society. From the looks of their achievements they resembled, and practiced much of what contributed to the Spartan Empire. With great military strength, but little academic knowledge they conquered by force.

It has been noted that Rome paid little attention in the assessment, development, discipline, or even formation of their youth and teachers. Students were left to learn on their own, given the liberties to attend classes when desired, and discouraged from assessing their aptitude on particular subjects. This liberal mentality left the Roman populace wondering, what was the appropriate age for children to attend school, or whether they should attend schools at all. With no overall curriculum agendas and little academic discipline Roman practices encouraged the method of competition to claim the social status of the young. Residents even went as far as excusing students from not attending class for fear of picking up bad habits. With a “strong” religious foundation, this may have given rise to the possible concept of Roman “homeschooling”. For statistics prove that most people in today’s society practice this method of education due to religious beliefs and practices.

Focusing our attention on the curriculum of Roman schools, most institutions and teachers structured their courses not on what the student needed, but rather on what would intrigue the students’ interest and attendance. We can contend that as far as a formal education is concerned very little was enforced, but as far as the extra curriculum activates great emphasizes was given to sports and music. This emphasizes path the way to the modern aristocratic social structure which can be found in our modern society. From the millionaires found on the pages of sports magazines to rap stars posing for the next issue of GQ, we can safely say that there are elements in this ancient culture which resembles today’s capitalist society.

In conclusion, mentioning the evidences found in history, if Roman academic ideologies were to be practiced into today’s society most teachers would lose their jobs, institutions closed down, and parents incarcerated. Much of the United States educational systems have been tremendously influenced by western ways of thinking. With reformation made to our school systems, boards, committees and disciplinary actions have been sanctioned in order to maintain a competitive level of social as well as academic competence. Even though parents are partners in the academic development of children, we still have ways to go in the moral connotation of what education mean sociably, domestically, and culturally.