Medieval Education

Posted in , By Jade* 0 comments


"Education is the transmission of civilization." - Ariel and Will Durant

Education in the Middle Age was nothing like what we have today. It was often carried out by the Church and the center of most curriculum were grammar, mathematics, logic, Latin, philosophy, and astronomy. Since science was viewed as taboo, children could only learn natural science which taught them things like: an elephant is afraid of the dragon.

In the classroom, students would sit together on the floor and would take notes “using a bone or ivory stylus on wooden tablets coated with green or black wax” because paper was very scarce. Books were very rare. The picture below contains the wooden tablet that the medieval students used. (The 2nd picture is something for you to smile about. :D )

Knights would be looked down upon if they were not educated and women were generally illiterate. Only daughters of the rich could attend a few courses. In Western Europe, school and universities were more flourished than other places in Europe and which in terms helped the birth of the Renaissance. In fact, Cambridge University was actually built in this era. The following video is a part of an introduction of how the Cambridge University was built. One will be surprised by the level of sophistication of the building.

Video: Introduction to Great Britain: Medieval Architecture-Cambridge


Were you paying attention? Here are some questions to see if you were paying attention. :P

1. What was the peak of medieval sophistication?

2. At the beginning of the Medieval Times, buildings grew out of what?

3. In which century did the Cambridge University begin?

4. Who decided to build the King's College?

5. Why was it difficult to build the King's College at first?

6. Which building was the most magnificent building in the University?

7. King's College has the largest what in the world?

8. How long did it take to complete the King's College?

Answers*

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taboo - a prohibition . Chinese:禁忌 Spanish:tabú

peak - the highest point of a mountain. Chinese:頂;山頂 Spanish:cima

delicacy - fineness of texture, quality, etc. Chinese:n. 精美;柔軟 Spanish:delicadeza

miraculous - marvelous; like miracle. Chinese:奇蹟般的 Spanish:milagroso