Before Rousseau's educational thought, children were usually regarded as passive recipients of education, but in Rousseau's educational idea, children were placed at the center of education for the first time. The theory of natural education advocated by him emphasizes respecting the laws of children's physical and mental development and their interests and needs, rather than forcing the wishes of adults or society on them. This educational thought is full of the spirit of freedom, equality and fraternity of the new bourgeoisie, which effectively changes the passive position of children in education.
Rousseau's natural education theory has a far-reaching influence on later generations and has become a pioneer of progressive education. As an important theory in the history of western educational thought, naturalistic educational theory constitutes one of the main lines of western educational development after the Renaissance. Therefore, Rousseau's Emile is regarded as a watershed between the old and new educational thoughts.