Classics in German Education

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Swiss and German educationalists were breaking new ground. Pestalozzi was founding his revolutionary schools in which the child - not the teacher - was the centre of attention. Froebel in his Kindergarten was encouraging the learning of infants through play, using stories, toys, nature, music and geometrical shapes, and Fellenberg at his experimental school in Hofwyl, was setting up a sort of educational mini-state in which the curriculum was the joint responsibility of teachers and pupils. The influence of these founding fathers of progressive education was enormous. It shaped the thinking of Montessori, William Maclure (in the US), the Mayos (in the UK), and many others, and it continues to be felt in classroom today. the writings of these German-speaking pioneers have not been readily accessible to scholars. Some important texts can be found only in inadequate translations, while others are absent from libraries in any languages. Thoemmes Press has assembled nine of the most interesting works in this tradition, and presents them as a set of facsimile reprints of the original German editions in 12 volumes.
Included in the set are four works by Pestalozzi, among them "Meine Nachforshungen" which lays the philosophical basis for his transformation of the art of education into a science; his four-volume novel "Lienhard und Gertrude" which pleads for social reform; and his illustrated "Buch der Mutter", a simplification of his method for use by the child's first teacher - the mother herself. Also present is J.F. Herbart's landmark book "Allgemeine Padagogik", in which he argues that the ultimate focus in education should be the moral character and individuality of the learner. Froebel is represented by two key works: his theoretical treatise "die Menschenerziehung", which characterizes education as the process by which man realizes his essence; and his less abstract "Mutter und Kose Lieder", where Froebel articulates the principles and methods of the Kindergarten. The set also contains two books relating to Fellenberg's famous Poor School at Hofwyl: the rare first edition of Renegger's report on the school (bound with two other such reports), and Fellenberg's own "Beleuchtung..."
, in which he justifies his educational philosophy, while conceding that his high ideals had not been realized. Each of these rare and crucial texts comes with a brief introduction in English by Jeffrey Stern. The collection should be of interest to specialists in the history and philosophy of education; it will also be valuable for cultural historians and those interested in the early development of sociology and psychology.