Education

In the 16th century, only boys were allowed to go to school. A good education (college / university) was almost only available to boys from the higher social classes. From a very early age, children were educated at home, by their mothers. Whereas boys would go to school, girls had to stay at home and be educated there. Boys would go to a local grammar school where they learned Latin, studied Latin prose (Virgil, Ovid) and where only Latin was spoken (!). Depending on the boy’s ambitions and his situation, he would either go into service or apprenticeship to learn a trade. Or, if he wanted a career in law, medicine or the Church, he would continue going to school, to a college or university in Oxford or Cambridge.

In the course of the 16th century, a lot of things changed in the education system. Humanism, a movement that focussed on education, had a lot of influence. Humanist teachers brought their ideas about learning into practice in schools throughout Europe. A famous English teacher, Roger Ascham, who was also the private teacher of Queen Elizabeth I, wrote a book about education: The Schoolmaster. Humanists found it very important that knowledge was brought into practice, that it had a function in society. Education therefore also dealt with correct moral behaviour; what to say and how to behave in a certain circumstance.

Women and education

The education of women was a controversial issue in the 16th century. Many humanists agreed that women did have the ability to learn. But the question that arose was: what would they do with this knowledge? The ideas of society about the role and function of women, made it almost unnecessary for a woman to receive the same education as a man. If women’s roles in daily life did not change, there was no need for education.

Despite the development of the idea that women are just as intelligent as men, there were no fundamental changes. There are exceptions to this general picture, of course. Examples are queen Elizabeth I who received a very good education. This was also true for Catharine de Medici, queen of the France. More and more women from the higher social classes were able to study. However, the same opportunities and rewards that men received, were still absent for women.

More on school life in 16th century England:

http://www.likesnail.org.uk/welcome-es.htm