Formal education is an educational theory in Europe in the18th century. It holds that the main idea of general education is to cultivate sensory ability and development ability, and to set courses and choose teaching materials accordingly, while the imparting of knowledge is irrelevant. This educational theory is represented by British educator Locke.

Substantive education, also known as "substantive training", is an educational theory that appeared in Europe in the18 ~19th century. It is believed that the main task of general education should be to acquire valuable knowledge, and learning knowledge itself includes the cultivation of ability, and ability does not need special training. Its ideological source is similar to Spencer and others in Britain. Not formal education. People think that the main task of education is to let students acquire knowledge. It is an educational theory of the bourgeoisie about setting up school curriculum and choosing teaching materials for general education, and the main representatives are Herbart and Spencer.