The ancient education in China refers to the educational thoughts, educational institutions and educators in the history of China. From the broad sense of culture, the culture created by human beings, that is, experience, knowledge and skills, is passed down and spread through broad sense of education.
Characteristics of ancient education
First, schools came into being in ancient times, and education became a special function of society.
Schools appeared in the Xia Dynasty before17th century BC, such as "School, Xu and Zhou Yueyao" recorded in Mencius. Schools with different names undertake different educational tasks. At present, the relatively clear and systematic school is the Zhou School, because the patriarchal clan system established by the Zhou Dynasty needs to be maintained through a certain educational system. Schools in the Western Zhou Dynasty are divided into "Chinese studies" and "rural studies". "Chinese Studies" is a school located in the capital of the Zhou Dynasty and the capital of the vassal state, for children of big noble to study; "Rural School" is a local school set up in various places for ordinary aristocratic children to study.
Second, ancient school education was out of productive labor and unproductive.
Education in China was born in primitive society. With the development of productive forces and the expansion of social division of labor, education and productive labor are separated and become a special activity, which needs to be carried out in special places, and schools come into being. These people are also divorced from productive labor and specialize in educational activities.
Third, ancient school education adapted to the development of ancient economy and politics, and schools with classes and feudal societies also had hierarchical systems.
In essence, the state is a tool for the economically dominant class to carry out class rule, and class nature is the fundamental attribute of the state. The relationship between the ruling class and the ruled class.
Relatively speaking, the hierarchical system of feudal society will be more strict and hierarchical. For example, the "six schools and two halls" in the Tang Dynasty had strict grade restrictions. It was stipulated that the Hong Wen Pavilion and Chongwen Pavilion would recruit descendants of royalty and ministers; Guo Zixue accepted the descendants of civil and military officials above the third grade; Descendants of civil and military officials who have achieved grade five or above in imperial academy; Children of civil and military officials above grade seven in four courses; Calligraphy, mathematics and law are accepted by descendants and Shu Ren scholars under eight categories. ".
Fourthly, ancient school education adapts to the development of ancient ideology and culture, showing orthodoxy, autocracy, rigidity and symbolism.
1. Orthodox. The content of education is the political thought and ethical concept of the ruling class, and education is subordinate to the rule.
2. autocracy. The process of education is a process of control and being controlled, indoctrination and passive acceptance. The majesty of orthodoxy depends on the majesty of teachers and priests, and on the majesty of enrollment, examination and teaching discipline.
3. rigidity. Teaching methods and learning methods are rigid, rote learning and mechanical imitation.
4. symbolic. What kind of education you can receive marks a person's social status. The education of classics and theories is in a higher position in society, while learning practical knowledge is in a lower social position.
Fifth, the initial development of ancient school education has not yet formed a complex structural system.
China paid attention to education in ancient times.
In ancient China, education was regarded as the lifeblood of national survival. Because our ancestors knew the importance of education very early, they began organized educational activities as early as four or five thousand years ago. According to historical documents, the origin of ancient education in China can be traced back to Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties. It is said that Fuxi, Shennong, Huangdi and Yaoshun all attached great importance to education. According to the Records of Shangshu Shundian, there was a lay man who managed educational affairs in times of crisis, such as "respecting the five religions" for Stuart, that is, he was responsible for educating the people in five kinds of ethics: father's righteousness, mother's kindness, brother's friend, brother's respect and son's filial piety; Wei Xiao was called "classical music", that is, he was responsible for educating people about music and poetry. Because the Chinese nation has a long tradition of attaching importance to education, the splendid ancient culture of China has not only come down in one continuous line for 4,000 to 5,000 years, but also its connotation is more substantial and splendid than other ancient nations in the world.
During the Western Zhou Dynasty, there were not only Chinese studies, but also rural studies. Not only universities, but also primary schools; Not only court education, but also preschool education has gradually formed a "six arts" education system with etiquette, music, shooting, imperial examination, calligraphy and mathematics as the main body. In the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, "private school" began to develop as a new form of prose education, and a number of private school masters appeared, such as Confucius, Mozi, Mencius and Xunzi. They have made great achievements in educational thought, which is the result of private free teaching. Not only the Analects of Confucius, Mozi, Mencius, Xunzi, Guanzi and Lv Chunqiu recorded a large number of educational materials, but also educational monographs such as The Book of Rites, The Book of Rites, University, Xunzi and Guanzi Disciples' Duty appeared. Xue Ji and Da Xue are the summaries of rich educational experiences and theories in this era, and they have become the earliest classical educational monographs in the world, laying the foundation for China's ancient educational thoughts.