Johann Bernhard Basedow
Encyclopedia
Johann Bernhard Basedow was a German educational reformer
, teacher and writer. He founded the Philanthropinum
, a short-lived but influential progressive school in Dessau
, and was the author of "Elementarwerk", a popular illustrated textbook for children.
, the son of a wig
maker. His father has been described as "severe almost to brutality", his mother as "melancholy almost to madness", which made his childhood a less than happy one. It was planned that he should follow his father's profession, but, at the age of 14, he ran away from home, finding employment as a servant of a country physician in Holstein
. His employee recognised Johann's extraordinary intellectual gifts and sent him home to his parents with a letter which persuaded them to allow their son to be schooled at the Johanneum
in Hamburg. Here, Johann came under the influence of the rationalist H.S. Reimarus
(1694–1768), author of the famous Wolfenbütteler Fragmente, published by Lessing
.
In 1744, Basedow went to the University of Leipzig
as a student of theology
, but turned instead to the study of philosophy
, being particularly influenced by Wolff's
"Philosophy of Reason". This made him examine his own Christian faith
, arriving at a position that was "in a centre between Christianism and naturalism". He rejected his clerical vocation and turned instead to radicalism and reformism.
, Holstein
. He developed new teaching methods based on conversation and play with the child, and a program of physical development. Such was his success that he wrote a treatise on his methods, "On the best and hitherto unknown method of teaching children of noblemen", which he presented to the University of Kiel
in 1752, and obtained the degree of Master of Arts.
In 1753, he was appointed professor of moral philosophy
and belles-lettres
at Sorø Academy
in Denmark
. He proved to be a very popular teacher and was also called on to lecture on Theology. However, his fearless, anti-establishment views and the publication of a book in 1758, "Practische Philosophie" ("Practical Philosophy"), in which he expounded his unorthodox religious position, led, in 1761, to his removal from this post and transfer to Altona
; here his published works brought him into conflict with the orthodox clergy. He was forbidden to give further instruction, but did not lose his salary; and, towards the end of 1767, he abandoned theology to devote himself with the same ardour to education, of which he conceived the project of a general reform in Germany.
, Basedow published a book, Vorstellung an Menschenfreunde für Schulen, nebst dem Plan eines Elementarbuches der menschlichen Erkenntnisse ("Idea to philanthropists for schools, along with the plan of an elementary book of human knowledge"). He proposed the reform of schools and of the common methods of instruction, the establishment of an institute for qualifying teachers and solicited subscriptions for the printing of a new, illustrated, book, Elementarwerk ("Elementary Book"), where his principles were to be explained at length. The subscriptions for this work amounted to 15,000 thaler
s, and in 1774 he was able to publish it in four volumes, with illustrations by Daniel Chodowiecki
. The Elementarwerk contained a complete system of primary education
, intended to develop the intelligence of the pupils and to bring them, so far as possible, into contact with realities, not with mere words; it was the first picture textbook for children to be published since the "Orbis Pictus
" of Comenius
in 1664. There was also a companion "Methodenbuch" (Method Book) to assist teachers and parents.
Basedow was a friend of Goethe, and through him made the acquantance of Prince Franz of Anhalt-Dessau
, who became a firm supporter of Basedow's plans for educational reform and agreed to back the founding of a new school, the Philanthropinum, in Dessau. The school opened in December 1774, its keynote being, "everything according to nature". Rich and poor were to be educated together, the curriculum was practically-based and conducted in German (rather than Latin or Greek), handicrafts were taught, there was an emphasis on games and physical exercise, and school uniform was made simple and more comfortable. Although the school was open for only a relatively short time until 1793, its reforming influence proved to be considerable and inspired the founding of many similar institutions in Germany and abroad.
Basedow died in Magdeburg
in 1790.
Education reform
Education reform is the process of improving public education. Small improvements in education theoretically have large social returns, in health, wealth and well-being. Historically, reforms have taken different forms because the motivations of reformers have differed.A continuing motivation has...
, teacher and writer. He founded the Philanthropinum
Philanthropinum
The Philanthropinum was a reformist, progressive school in Dessau, Germany from 1774–93.-History:...
, a short-lived but influential progressive school in Dessau
Dessau
Dessau is a town in Germany on the junction of the rivers Mulde and Elbe, in the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt. Since 1 July 2007, it is part of the merged town Dessau-Roßlau. Population of Dessau proper: 77,973 .-Geography:...
, and was the author of "Elementarwerk", a popular illustrated textbook for children.
Early years
Basedow was born in HamburgHamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, the son of a wig
Wig
A wig is a head of hair made from horsehair, human hair, wool, feathers, yak hair, buffalo hair, or synthetic materials which is worn on the head for fashion or various other aesthetic and stylistic reasons, including cultural and religious observance. The word wig is short for periwig and first...
maker. His father has been described as "severe almost to brutality", his mother as "melancholy almost to madness", which made his childhood a less than happy one. It was planned that he should follow his father's profession, but, at the age of 14, he ran away from home, finding employment as a servant of a country physician in Holstein
Holstein
Holstein is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider. It is part of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of Germany....
. His employee recognised Johann's extraordinary intellectual gifts and sent him home to his parents with a letter which persuaded them to allow their son to be schooled at the Johanneum
Gelehrtenschule des Johanneums
The Gelehrtenschule des Johanneums is a Gymnasium in Hamburg, Germany. It is Hamburg's oldest school and was founded in 1529 by Johannes Bugenhagen. The school's motto is The Future needs a Heritage...
in Hamburg. Here, Johann came under the influence of the rationalist H.S. Reimarus
Hermann Samuel Reimarus
Hermann Samuel Reimarus , was a German philosopher and writer of the Enlightenment who is remembered for his Deism, the doctrine that human reason can arrive at a knowledge of God and ethics from a study of nature and our own internal reality, thus eliminating the need for religions based on...
(1694–1768), author of the famous Wolfenbütteler Fragmente, published by Lessing
Gotthold Ephraim Lessing
Gotthold Ephraim Lessing was a German writer, philosopher, dramatist, publicist, and art critic, and one of the most outstanding representatives of the Enlightenment era. His plays and theoretical writings substantially influenced the development of German literature...
.
In 1744, Basedow went to the University of Leipzig
University of Leipzig
The University of Leipzig , located in Leipzig in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, is one of the oldest universities in the world and the second-oldest university in Germany...
as a student of theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
, but turned instead to the study of philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
, being particularly influenced by Wolff's
Christian Wolff (philosopher)
Christian Wolff was a German philosopher.He was the most eminent German philosopher between Leibniz and Kant...
"Philosophy of Reason". This made him examine his own Christian faith
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
, arriving at a position that was "in a centre between Christianism and naturalism". He rejected his clerical vocation and turned instead to radicalism and reformism.
Teacher and academic
Between 1749 and 1753, Basedow was a private tutor to the son of Herr Von Quaalen, a nobleman living in BorghorstAltengamme
Altengamme located in the Bergedorf borough of the Free and Hanseatic city of Hamburg in northern Germany, is a rural quarter on the right bank of the Elbe river. Altengamme is the most eastern part of Hamburg. In 2009 the population was 2,192....
, Holstein
Holstein
Holstein is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider. It is part of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of Germany....
. He developed new teaching methods based on conversation and play with the child, and a program of physical development. Such was his success that he wrote a treatise on his methods, "On the best and hitherto unknown method of teaching children of noblemen", which he presented to the University of Kiel
University of Kiel
The University of Kiel is a university in the city of Kiel, Germany. It was founded in 1665 as the Academia Holsatorum Chiloniensis by Christian Albert, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp and has approximately 23,000 students today...
in 1752, and obtained the degree of Master of Arts.
In 1753, he was appointed professor of moral philosophy
Ethics
Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime, etc.Major branches of ethics include:...
and belles-lettres
Belles-lettres
Belles-lettres or belles lettres is a term that is used to describe a category of writing. A writer of belles-lettres is a belletrist. However, the boundaries of that category vary in different usages....
at Sorø Academy
Sorø Academy
Sorø Academy is a boarding school and public gymnasium located in the small town of Sorø, Denmark. It traces its history back to the 12th century when Bishop Absalon founded a monastery at the site, which was confiscated by the Crown after the Reformation, and ever since, on and off, it has served...
in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. He proved to be a very popular teacher and was also called on to lecture on Theology. However, his fearless, anti-establishment views and the publication of a book in 1758, "Practische Philosophie" ("Practical Philosophy"), in which he expounded his unorthodox religious position, led, in 1761, to his removal from this post and transfer to Altona
Altona, Hamburg
Altona is the westernmost urban borough of the German city state of Hamburg, on the right bank of the Elbe river. From 1640 to 1864 Altona was under the administration of the Danish monarchy. Altona was an independent city until 1937...
; here his published works brought him into conflict with the orthodox clergy. He was forbidden to give further instruction, but did not lose his salary; and, towards the end of 1767, he abandoned theology to devote himself with the same ardour to education, of which he conceived the project of a general reform in Germany.
The Elementary Book and Philanthropinum
In 1768, strongly influenced by Rousseau's ideas on education in EmileEmile: Or, On Education
Émile, or On Education is a treatise on the nature of education and on the nature of man written by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who considered it to be the “best and most important of all my writings”. Due to a section of the book entitled “Profession of Faith of the Savoyard Vicar,” Émile was be...
, Basedow published a book, Vorstellung an Menschenfreunde für Schulen, nebst dem Plan eines Elementarbuches der menschlichen Erkenntnisse ("Idea to philanthropists for schools, along with the plan of an elementary book of human knowledge"). He proposed the reform of schools and of the common methods of instruction, the establishment of an institute for qualifying teachers and solicited subscriptions for the printing of a new, illustrated, book, Elementarwerk ("Elementary Book"), where his principles were to be explained at length. The subscriptions for this work amounted to 15,000 thaler
Thaler
The Thaler was a silver coin used throughout Europe for almost four hundred years. Its name lives on in various currencies as the dollar or tolar. Etymologically, "Thaler" is an abbreviation of "Joachimsthaler", a coin type from the city of Joachimsthal in Bohemia, where some of the first such...
s, and in 1774 he was able to publish it in four volumes, with illustrations by Daniel Chodowiecki
Daniel Chodowiecki
Daniel Niklaus Chodowiecki was a Polish - German painter and printmaker with Huguenot ancestry, who is most famous as an etcher...
. The Elementarwerk contained a complete system of primary education
Primary education
A primary school is an institution in which children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as primary or elementary education. Primary school is the preferred term in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth Nations, and in most publications of the United Nations Educational,...
, intended to develop the intelligence of the pupils and to bring them, so far as possible, into contact with realities, not with mere words; it was the first picture textbook for children to be published since the "Orbis Pictus
Orbis Pictus
Orbis Pictus, or Orbis Sensualium Pictus is a textbook for children written by Czech educator Comenius and published in 1658...
" of Comenius
Comenius
John Amos Comenius ; ; Latinized: Iohannes Amos Comenius) was a Czech teacher, educator, and writer. He served as the last bishop of Unity of the Brethren, and became a religious refugee and one of the earliest champions of universal education, a concept eventually set forth in his book Didactica...
in 1664. There was also a companion "Methodenbuch" (Method Book) to assist teachers and parents.
Basedow was a friend of Goethe, and through him made the acquantance of Prince Franz of Anhalt-Dessau
Leopold III, Duke of Anhalt-Dessau
Leopold III Frederick Franz, Duke of Anhalt-Dessau , known as "Prince Franz" or "Father Franz", was a German prince of the House of Ascania...
, who became a firm supporter of Basedow's plans for educational reform and agreed to back the founding of a new school, the Philanthropinum, in Dessau. The school opened in December 1774, its keynote being, "everything according to nature". Rich and poor were to be educated together, the curriculum was practically-based and conducted in German (rather than Latin or Greek), handicrafts were taught, there was an emphasis on games and physical exercise, and school uniform was made simple and more comfortable. Although the school was open for only a relatively short time until 1793, its reforming influence proved to be considerable and inspired the founding of many similar institutions in Germany and abroad.
Later life
Basedow, unfortunately, was not disposed by nature or habit to succeed in an employment which required the greatest regularity, patience and attention; his temper was intractable, and his management of the Philanthropinum was one long quarrel with his colleagues. He resigned his directorship of the institution in 1778.Basedow died in Magdeburg
Magdeburg
Magdeburg , is the largest city and the capital city of the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Magdeburg is situated on the Elbe River and was one of the most important medieval cities of Europe....
in 1790.
External links
- Biography (Answers.com)