Before the 3rd century BC, Rome's economy was dominated by agriculture. Besides farming, citizens also need to take part in the war. The education at this time was basically the education of farmers and soldiers. At that time, the family was both an economic unit and an educational unit. Father is in an absolute dominant position in the family, and mother is also respected. The child was brought up by the mother at first. From the age of seven, the boy was taught all kinds of life and production knowledge and skills by his father. The narrow and closed small-scale peasant economy, ancient paternalism and religious beliefs made the Romans pay great attention to filial piety. It is the duty of every citizen to worship ancestors, respect traditions, abide by the law and serve the country.
In the 3rd century BC, Rome began to expand outward, and great changes took place in Roman society, with the development of slavery and unprecedented economic prosperity. From then on. Roman culture, science and education were all influenced by Greek culture. Greek culture takes speculative philosophy as the core and advocates elegant education (see liberal arts education); Roman culture, on the other hand, emphasizes practical results and pays attention to cultivating politicians and managers with practical ability. The fusion of the two cultures gradually formed the far-reaching ancient Greek and Roman culture. In BC 146, the Romans conquered Greece, and a large number of Greek teachers came to Rome to run schools. Rome gradually formed an education system based on Greek schools.