Friedrich Adolph Wilhelm Diesterweg (29 October 1790 in
Siegen
Siegen () is a city in Germany, in the south Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly sho ...
7 July 1866 in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
) was a
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
educator
A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching.
''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...
, thinker, and
progressive liberal politician, who campaigned for the
secularization
In sociology, secularization (or secularisation) is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institutions. The ''secularization thesis'' expresses the ...
of schools. He is said to be precursory to the reform of
pedagogy
Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken as ...
. Diesterweg is considered as "a teacher of teachers".
Biography
Educated at Herborn and
Tübingen
Tübingen (, , Swabian: ''Dibenga'') is a traditional university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer rivers. about one in thr ...
universities 1808–1811, Diesterweg began teaching in 1811. He taught at
Mannheim
Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's 2 ...
and at
Worms Worms may refer to:
*Worm, an invertebrate animal with a tube-like body and no limbs
Places
*Worms, Germany, a city
**Worms (electoral district)
*Worms, Nebraska, U.S.
*Worms im Veltlintal, the German name for Bormio, Italy
Arts and entertainme ...
for about two years, and then moved to
the model school in
Frankfurt am Main
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
. Later he became rector of the Latin school of
Elberfeld
Elberfeld is a municipal subdivision of the German city of Wuppertal; it was an independent town until 1929.
History
The first official mentioning of the geographic area on the banks of today's Wupper River as "''elverfelde''" was in a docu ...
.
In 1820, he was appointed director of the new teacher's seminary at
Mörs
Moers (; older form: ''Mörs''; archaic Dutch: ''Murse'', ''Murs'' or ''Meurs'') is a German city on the western bank of the Rhine, close to Duisburg. Moers belongs to the district of Wesel.
History
Known earliest from 1186, the county of Moe ...
where he put in practice the methods of
Pestalozzi. In 1832, he was summoned to
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
to direct the new state-schools seminary in that city. Here he proved himself a strong supporter of
nonsectarian
Nonsectarian institutions are secular institutions or other organizations not affiliated with or restricted to a particular religious group.
Academic sphere
Examples of US universities that identify themselves as being nonsectarian include Adelp ...
religious teaching. In 1846, he established the Pestalozzi institution at
Pankow
Pankow () is the most populous and the second-largest borough by area of Berlin. In Berlin's 2001 administrative reform, it was merged with the former boroughs of Prenzlauer Berg and Weißensee; the resulting borough retained the name Pankow. P ...
, and the Pestalozzi societies for the support of teachers’ widows and orphans.
Because of his disagreement with the authorities regarding important phases of higher education he was in constant friction and resigned from the seminary in 1847. In 1850, he received a government pension. Thereafter, he continued to vigorously advocate his educational ideas through the medium of periodicals. In 1858, he was elected to the chamber of deputies as member for the city of Berlin, and voted with the Liberal opposition.
Philosophy
Diesterweg thought
criticalness and
responsibility were important in teaching, and sought to reform
social
Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not.
Etymology
The word "social" derives from ...
,
economic
An economy is an area of the Production (economics), production, Distribution (economics), distribution and trade, as well as Consumption (economics), consumption of Goods (economics), goods and Service (economics), services. In general, it is ...
and moral aspects of
education
Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...
publishing the influential ''Pädagogisch Wollen und Sollen''. He based his program on what was named the "basic principles of the struggle for life" that he saw in the
Catholicism
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
/
Protestantism
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
conflict. He thought there were several 'oppositions' (distinct choices) that were available in the conflict which could be reduced to a single "authority or freedom, Catholicism or Protestantism".
In his effort to reform schooling Diesterweg wanted to remove political and religious influence in the teaching itself and instead involve more of a social factor. He believed in the availability of education: "First educate men, before worrying about their professional training or class,
ecausethe proletarian and the peasant should both be educated to become human beings"; he also believed that through education the poor could be helped. He wanted professionalization of state teachers and fought for the relative autonomy of schools; he also had an influence on the teachers of that time through his newspaper ''Rheinische Blätter''.
Works
Diesterweg was a voluminous writer on educational subjects, and was the author of various school text-books.
He authored 50 books and published about 400 papers; he has been credited with originated the phrase 'learn to do by doing' by one source.
In 1851, he founded the ''Pädagogisches Jahrbuch'' ("Yearbook of Pedagogy") in Berlin. Among his publications were:
*''Wegweiser zur Bildung für deutsche Lehrer.'' ("Guide for the Instruction of German Teachers") 2 vols., 1834; 6th ed., 1 vol., 1890
*''Das pädagogische Deutschland''. ("German Pedagogy") 1836
*''Streitfragen auf dem Gebiete der Pädagogik''. ("Controversial Questions in the Field of Pedagogy") 1837
*''Leitfaden für den Unterricht in der Formlehre'' (1845)
*''Lehrbuch der mathematischen Geographie'' (1840; 18th ed., as ''Populäre Himmelskunde'', 1891)
*''Unterricht in der Kleinkinderschule'' (5th ed., 1852)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Diesterweg, Adolph
1790 births
1866 deaths
German schoolteachers
German educational theorists
19th-century educational theorists
University of Tübingen alumni
Musterschule