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1. Definition and varietyThe term  Latin school denotes all non-university schools where – in contrast to the German  Schreib- und Rechenschulen (Elementary school) –  instruction was primarily (though not exclusively) in Latin, so that  “a firm grasp of confessional religion and the language of scholars” [10. vol. 1, 465] was a central goal of instruction. These institutions of secondary education were extremely heterogeneous in size and structure and therefore were also called by a wide variety of names, including particular school, tr…

1. Definition; current researchWhile only a very small portion of the early modern population came into contact with academic or higher Bildung (including Latin, Greek, and rhetoric) at Latin schools, gymnasiums, and universities, the various forms of lower schools focused primarily on the middle and lower classes, providing basic knowledge of the cultural techniques of reading, writing, and arithmetic along with religious instruction. It is impossible to make a clear distinction between the variou…

1. Terminology The term “gymnasium ”, which originally denoted a sports facility in ancient Greece, came into use in Germany in the early 16th century for grammar schools and Latin schools, primarily those whose offerings exceeded the normal educational objectives (Curriculum). Such an educational institution, similar to a college, was called a  gymnasium illustre,  gymnasium academicum, or Hohe Schule (high school); they were established in places like Bremen, Burgsteinfurt, Herborn, and Zerbst. They were multi-class Latin schools that also offered…

1. State – administration – civil servants: BasicsWith the emergence of the modern state and the concomitant development of a professional government, office-holders attracted more attention, since exercise of sovereignty based on general norms was possible only if an appropriately qualified civil service organized and supervised their implementation (Civil servant). Until around 1800 personal connections and in part hereditary claims played a major role in the selection of civil servants, as this new …

The Bürgerschule developed in Germany during the 18th century as a municipal middle school to fill the frequently deplored gap between the ordinary Elementary school ( Elementarschule) and the  Latin school  ( Lateinschule). This new kind of school emerged through a division within the elementary school system;  its goal was to provide a general “realistic” Bildung for the children of the urban middle class (Bourgeoisie), with instruction in such subjects as modern languages, arithmetic and mathematics, natural history and physical science, hi…

Unlike the city- and private Latin schools operated by the commune, the country schools and so-called fürstenschulen  provided secondary schooling in Protestant Germany that was operated by the state ruler (Territorial sovereignty [Holy Roman Empire]) [5]; [9].This new type of school was named after the Saxon establishments founded in 1543 and 1550 under Duke (and later Elector) Maurice of Saxony in secularized monasteries in Meissen (St. Afra) [3], Schulpforta (St. Marien), and Grimma (St. Augustin) [10], which were long considered to be among the most important …

In contrast to schools that provide a general education, in Germany the term Fachschule or   Gewerbeschule (“professional school” or “vocational school”) is used for all kinds of educational institutions attended voluntarily for practical vocational training. Within this preprofessional educational sector there are three groups: (1) higher-level institutions, similar to universities (for example mining academies, forestry academies, academies of arts. and military academies, which as practice-centered specia…

1. Principles and basis of researchThe history of elementary education and the vocational education and training related to it forms a second line of tradition in western education alongside that of academic training at Latin schools and universities (Bildung). The dichotomy of “academic knowledge” and “practical knowledge” often associated with these two traditions, however, is mostly a product of the modern educational system. No such precise distinction can be made in relation to the realities of early modern education.As a subdiscipline of occupational and economi…

As was usual in early modern crafts and trades generally, aspiring hunters (Hunting) and foresters or forestry officials were trained for their profession in an exclusively practical apprenticeship based on by imitation (Professional training). Not until the last third of the 18th century do we find the beginnings of training based on scientific methods that included theoretical elements (silviculture, forest protection, forest management, use of seeds and planting methods, selection …

1. General survey 1. Definition and functionToday the word school (from Latin  schola, from Greek  scholḗ, “freedom from tasks”; see Leisure) denotes a public or private institution charged with using systematic instruction to convey knowledge, insight, and the ability to reach reasoned conclusions – primarily to children and adolescents, but also to adults. The functions of a school thus involve the acquisition of qualifications, adaptation to socio-cultural systems (socialization), screening by means of tes…