JAN
AMOS COMENIUS
INFLUENCES UPON COMENIUS. The two major influences upon the educational thought of Comenius were Francis Bacon and Wolfgang Ratke.
WOLFGANG RATKE. (1571-1635). Ratke was a Lutheran schoolmaster who won the support of Prince Ludwig of Anhalt Kothen in establishing a school along the lines of a new methodology. Although the school failed after one year, Ratke's ideas were influential upon the thought of that great educational figure, Comenius. These theories of Ratke were contained in his work, "The New Method," which was published in 1617. Some of these principles of education were:
1. EXPERIENCE. Learning must proceed from experience. The child was expected to observe and to use whatever was taught. He would not rely upon words alone.
2. OPPOSED LEARNING BY ROTE. Ratke believed that memorization by rote of Latin and Greek grammar was both harmful and useless. He relegated Latin to the fourth grade and Greek to the sixth grade. He did not require any memorization by rote. Ratke held class discussions to insure understanding of the material.
3. SELF-DISCIPLINE. Rules were not to be imposed upon the children. They were expected to set their own regulations and to abide by them without adult interference.
LIFE OF COMENIUS. Comenius was a kind and gentle Moravian Bishop who lived in an age of violence that brought heartbreak to him. An account of his life, divided into four sections, follows:
2. SCHOOLING. Comenius attended school in the village of Nivnice. He described this experience in painful terms. The school demanded learning by rote of Latin grammar. The teacher drove home his lesson with physical punishment. Comenius completed his theological studies at the University of Heidelberg.
3. TEACHER AND MINISTER. Comenius returned to the province of Moravia in 1614. Because of his youth, he could not be ordained for two years. During this time, Comenius taught school and began his lifelong work in education. After his ordination, he was assigned as pastor and superintendent of schools in a Moravian village. Spanish troops looted and burned this village in 1621, during the Thirty Years War. Comenius lost his manuscripts as well as all his possessions when his home was burnt to the ground. He barely escaped. However, he moved to Poland where he became the headmaster of a Gymnasium in the city of Lissa. In 1625 Comenius was elected a bishop in the Moravian Church. His writings in education, originally intended for his own school, became known throughout Europe. They were received enthusiastically everywhere.
4. WRITER. Comenius moved to England in the hope of gaining
support for the writing of a universal encyclopedia. Failing to achieve
the necessary backing, he moved to Sweden where he was supported in the
writing of textbooks for Swedish schools by a Dutch nobleman. After five
years, Comenius was elected Senior Bishop of the Moravian Church and he
returned to Lissa, Poland. Between 1650 and 1654, Comenius ran a school
in Hungary. After he again returned to Poland, he supported the Swedish
effort to conquer Poland. In 1657 the Polish people turned against the
Moravians because of the support the Moravians gave the Protestant army,
and they destroyed the city of Lissa. Comenius lost everything he had,
including his manuscripts of the Czech language grammar, sermons and encyclopedia.
He moved to Amsterdam, Holland. In Amsterdam Comenius brought out another
edition of "The Great Didactic." He died in 1670, a broken man.
2. CURRICULUM. Comenius proposed a curriculum for primary elementary education that is used in the primary grades today.
3. SUBJECTS RECOMMENDED. He recommended the study of science and social studies in the secondary school.
4. METHOD. He emphasized the fact that learning comes through the senses. The teacher must adapt his methods to this principle. Whenever possible the teacher must be concrete, permit the child to observe for himself, and arrange for the child to have direct experience in learning by doing.
5. THE SCHOOL. Comenius suggested that the school experience be made as pleasant as possible. He proposed that the school year be limited to forty-two weeks, that the teacher make use of play in teaching children, and that the school surroundings be made as attractive as possible.
6. AN OLD BELIEF. He reaffirmed Quintilian's belief in the need for personal motivation in learning.
7.DISCIPLINE. Comenius proposed a modern theory of discipline in which the burden rests with the teacher to provide the interest and atmosphere in which the child will wish to learn. The child must understand the reason for rules. When all this fails, punishment must not be associated with schoolwork.