''Practical Education'' is an educational treatise written by

Maria Edgeworth Maria Edgeworth (1 January 1768 – 22 May 1849) was a prolific Anglo-Irish novelist of adults' and children's literature. She was one of the first realist writers in children's literature and was a significant figure in the evolution of the n ...

and her father

Richard Lovell Edgeworth Richard Lovell Edgeworth (31 May 1744 – 13 June 1817) was an Anglo-Irish politician, writer and inventor. Biography Edgeworth was born in Pierrepont Street, Bath, England, son of Richard Edgeworth senior, and great-grandson of Sir Sal ...

. Published in 1798, it is a comprehensive theory of education that combines the ideas of philosophers

John Locke John Locke (; 29 August 1632 – 28 October 1704) was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as one of the most influential of Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment thinkers and commonly known as the "father of liberalism ...

and

Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolu ...

as well as of educational writers such as

Thomas Day Thomas Day may refer to: Sports * Tom Day (rugby union) (1907–1980), Welsh rugby union player * Tom Day (American football) (1935–2000), American football player * Tom Day (footballer) (born 1997), English footballer Others * Thomas Day (wri ...

William Godwin William Godwin (3 March 1756 – 7 April 1836) was an English journalist, political philosopher and novelist. He is considered one of the first exponents of utilitarianism and the first modern proponent of anarchism. Godwin is most famous for ...

Joseph Priestley Joseph Priestley (; 24 March 1733 – 6 February 1804) was an English chemist, natural philosopher, separatist theologian, grammarian, multi-subject educator, and liberal political theorist. He published over 150 works, and conducted exp ...

, and

Catharine Macaulay Catharine Macaulay (née Sawbridge, later Graham; 23 March 1731 – 22 June 1791), was an English Whig republican historian. Early life Catharine Macaulay was a daughter of John Sawbridge (1699–1762) and his wife Elizabeth Wanley (died 1733 ...

. The Edgeworths' theory of education was based on the premise that a child's early experiences are formative and that the associations they form early in life are long-lasting. They also encourage hands-on learning and include suggestions of "experiments" that children can perform and learn fun. Following Locke's emphasis on the importance of concrete language over abstract, the Edgeworth's argued that words should clearly indicate "distinct ideas". This contributed to what

Romanticist Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...

Alan Richardson calls "their controversial positions", including their resistance to reading

fairy tale A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story, magic tale, or wonder tale) is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic (paranormal), magic, incantation, enchantments, and mythical ...

s to children or discussing religion with them. The critic

Nancy Armstrong Nancy Armstrong (born 1938) is a scholar, critic and professor of English at Duke University. Overview Before moving to Duke, Armstrong was the Nancy Duke Lewis Professor of Comparative Literature, English, Modern Culture & Media, and Gender Studi ...

has described ''Practical Education'' and Erasmus Darwin's ''A Plan for the Conduct of Female Education in Boarding Schools'' (1798) as "efforts at institutionalizing the curriculum proposed by"

conduct books Conduct books or conduct literature is a genre of books that attempt to educate the reader on social norms and ideals. As a genre, they began in the mid-to-late Middle Ages, although antecedents such as ''The Maxims of Ptahhotep'' (c. 2350 BC) ...

References

*Richardson, Alan. ''Literature, Education, and Romanticism: Reading as Social Practice, 1780-1832''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994. .

External links

First edition;
Vol I 1798
Third edition;
Volume I 1811
at Google books
Volume II
at Google books {{Authority control 1798 non-fiction books Books about education Enlightenment philosophy Irish non-fiction books