The Influence of the Enlightenment on Education Today

The Enlightenment had a profound influence on the development of modern education, and its influence can still be felt in the contemporary educational landscape. From the structure of the public school system to the methods of pedagogy, from the goals of liberal education to the contemporary debates about the proper scope of public education, the insights of the Enlightenment thinkers continue to shape the way in which we think about the proper education of the next generation. This article examines the contemporary influence of Enlightenment ideas on education, considering both the achievements and the limitations of the Enlightenment approach.

The Public School System

The contemporary public school system is, in important respects, a direct descendant of the Enlightenment commitment to public education. The basic principle that the state should provide for the proper education of all children, regardless of their social class or economic circumstances, was an Enlightenment commitment, and the contemporary system of public education is the practical expression of this commitment.

The American public school system, which developed in the nineteenth century under the leadership of figures such as Horace Mann and Henry Barnard, was directly inspired by the Enlightenment commitment to public education. The common school movement established a system of free, universal, and non-sectarian public education that has become a model for the rest of the world.

The European public school systems, including the French system, the German system, and the various other systems that developed in the nineteenth century, were also directly inspired by the Enlightenment commitment. The European systems, in turn, have been an important model for the development of public education in other parts of the world, including the developing countries that have established their own systems of public education in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.

The contemporary system of public education has, of course, evolved significantly since the Enlightenment. The contemporary system includes provisions for special education, for bilingual education, for the various other forms of education that are necessary for the proper development of the diverse student population of the modern world. But the basic commitment of the Enlightenment — to the proper education of all children, regardless of their social class or economic circumstances — remains a basic commitment of the contemporary system.

The Methods of Pedagogy

The contemporary methods of pedagogy are also descendants of the Enlightenment tradition. The basic principle that the proper education of the child requires the cultivation of the rational faculties, the development of the powers of observation and judgment, and the engagement of the child with the actual conditions of the world — all of these are descendants of the Enlightenment approach to pedagogy.

The contemporary emphasis on active learning, on problem-based learning, on the engagement of the students with the actual conditions of the world, is a direct descendant of the Enlightenment approach. The contemporary emphasis on the development of the critical thinking skills, on the cultivation of the ability to evaluate evidence and to construct arguments, is also a direct descendant of the Enlightenment approach.

The contemporary methods of pedagogy have, of course, evolved significantly since the Enlightenment. The contemporary methods include the use of technology, the various forms of collaborative learning, the various other innovations that have been developed in the centuries since the Enlightenment. But the basic commitment of the Enlightenment — to the proper development of the rational faculties of the child — remains a basic commitment of the contemporary methods.

The Goals of Liberal Education

The contemporary concept of liberal education is, in important respects, a direct descendant of the Enlightenment tradition. The basic idea of liberal education — that the proper education of the citizen requires the cultivation of the various faculties of the human mind, the engagement with the great works of human culture, the development of the capacity for independent thought and judgment — is an Enlightenment idea.

The contemporary liberal arts curriculum, with its emphasis on the humanities, the social sciences, the natural sciences, and the arts, is a direct descendant of the Enlightenment approach to liberal education. The contemporary commitment to the development of the well-rounded citizen, who is capable of participating in the various activities of the public life, is also a direct descendant of the Enlightenment approach.

The contemporary debate about the proper scope of liberal education, including the various critiques of the contemporary curriculum and the various proposals for the reform of the curriculum, is, in important respects, a continuation of the Enlightenment debate about the proper scope of the educational program. The various contemporary proposals for the integration of the various disciplines, for the engagement of the students with the actual conditions of the modern world, for the development of the various capacities that are necessary for the proper functioning of the democratic political life, are all descendants of the Enlightenment approach.

The Critiques of the Enlightenment Approach

The contemporary engagement with the Enlightenment approach to education is not, of course, uncritical. The various critics of the contemporary educational system have developed important critiques of the Enlightenment approach, and the contemporary debate about the proper reform of the educational system is shaped by these critiques.

The first major critique is the critique of the emphasis on the rational faculties. The contemporary critics argue that the Enlightenment approach to education has been too narrowly focused on the development of the rational faculties, and that it has neglected the importance of the emotional, the social, and the moral development of the child. The proper response to this critique, on most contemporary accounts, is the development of a more balanced approach to education, one that recognizes the importance of the various dimensions of human development.

The second major critique is the critique of the universalism of the Enlightenment approach. The contemporary critics argue that the Enlightenment approach to education has been too universalistic, and that it has neglected the importance of the cultural, the religious, and the local particularities of the various communities that the educational system serves. The proper response to this critique, on most contemporary accounts, is the development of a more culturally sensitive approach to education, one that recognizes the importance of the various particularities of the communities that the educational system serves.

The third major critique is the critique of the role of education in social reproduction. The contemporary critics argue that the Enlightenment approach to education has been too closely tied to the interests of the dominant social classes, and that the educational system has served to reproduce the existing social inequalities rather than to provide for the proper development of all children. The proper response to this critique, on most contemporary accounts, is the development of a more critical approach to education, one that recognizes the role of the educational system in the reproduction of social inequalities and that works to overcome these inequalities.

The Public School System

The Methods of Pedagogy

The Goals of Liberal Education

The Critiques of the Enlightenment Approach

Further Reading