Froebel as a Pioneer in Modern Psychology

Some day Froebel will come to his own, and the carefulness of his observation, the depth of his thought, the truth of his theories, and the success of his actual experiments in education will all be acknowledged.



There are few schools nowadays so modern as the short-lived Keilhau, with its spirit of freedom and independence and its "Areopagus" in which the boys themselves judged grave misdemeanours while the masters settled smaller matters alone. There are few schools now which have such an all-round curriculum, including, as it did, the mother tongue as well as classics and modern languages; ancient and modern history; Nature study and Nature rambles; school journeys, lasting for two or three weeks and extending as far as Switzerland for the older lads, while the younger boys visited German towns and were made acquainted with peasant life; definite instruction in field-work, in building and carpentry, etc.; religious teaching in which Middendorf endeavoured "to show the merits of the religions of all nations"; physical training with the out-of-doors wrestling ground and shooting stand and gymnasium "for every spare moment of the winter," and organized games; and dramatic teaching where "classic dramas" and other plays were performed, and for which the boys built the stage and painted the scenes. There was even co-education, "flirtation being unknown," because all had their heads so full of more important matters,[vi] but where free intercourse of boy and girl "softened the manners of the young German savages.