Simon Somerville Laurie
FRSE LLD (13 November 1829 – 2 March 1909) was a Scottish educator. He became Bell Professor of Education at
Edinburgh University
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted ...
in 1876. He campaigned energetically and successfully for better
teacher training
Teacher education or teacher training refers to programs, policies, procedures, and provision designed to equip (prospective) teachers with the knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, approaches, methodologies and skills they require to perform their t ...
in Scotland.
Laurie also wrote extensively on philosophy, giving the
Gifford Lectures
The Gifford Lectures () are an annual series of lectures which were established in 1887 by the will of Adam Gifford, Lord Gifford. Their purpose is to "promote and diffuse the study of natural theology in the widest sense of the term – in o ...
in 1905–6.
Biography
Early life
Laurie was born on 13 November 1829 in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
, the eldest son of Rev James Laurie or Lawrie and his wife Jean Somerville.
[Templeton, 2010.] His father was a
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
minister and chaplain to the
Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh
The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, or RIE, often (but incorrectly) known as the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, or ERI, was established in 1729 and is the oldest voluntary hospital in Scotland. The new buildings of 1879 were claimed to be the largest v ...
.
[Knox, 1962.] His mother was the daughter of a United Presbyterian church minister at
Elgin, Simon Somerville.
[Watson, DNB supplement, 1912.] They lived near the
Edinburgh Royal Infirmary
The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, or RIE, often (but incorrectly) known as the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, or ERI, was established in 1729 and is the oldest voluntary hospital in Scotland. The new buildings of 1879 were claimed to be the largest v ...
at 112 Lauriston Place.
Laurie was educated at
Edinburgh High School
The Royal High School (RHS) of Edinburgh is a co-educational school administered by the City of Edinburgh Council. The school was founded in 1128 and is one of the oldest schools in Scotland. It serves 1,200 pupils drawn from four feeder primar ...
from 1839 to 1844.
[ To help pay his own school fees, he was already teaching at age 11.][ He studied arts at the ]University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
, where he graduated MA at then normal age of 19 in 1849.[ He then travelled for 5 years in England, Ireland and Europe, with private students.][
]
Career
In 1855 he became secretary and visitor of schools for the Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland.
The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Reformation of 1560, when it split from the Catholic Church ...
's education committee, which was then responsible for Scottish parish schools and for teacher training. Laurie held this role for 50 years, in which time he greatly improved the education of teachers in Scotland. He vigorously campaigned to have all teachers educated at university, with the teacher training colleges providing professional training only after that. It took until 1873 for the Scottish board of education to give the training colleges the right to send their best students, at least, to universities to gain full degrees. Laurie went further, campaigning to have day training colleges set up in England, and in 1890 he succeeded in this also, personally inaugurating the teacher training department of University College, Liverpool.[
In 1856 he became visitor and examiner for the Dick Bequest Trust. The trust distributed money to the best school teachers in northeast Scotland (Aberdeen, Banff, and Moray counties) according to Laurie's published reports.][
In 1868, the ]Merchant Company of Edinburgh
The Royal Company of Merchants of the City of Edinburgh, previously known as the Merchant Company of Edinburgh is a mercantile company and Guild officially recognised in 1681, but dating back to at least 1260. The Company, or Confraternity, was ...
and the Heriot Trust
George Heriot's School is a Scottish independent primary and secondary day school on Lauriston Place in the Old Town of Edinburgh, Scotland. In the early 21st century, it has more than 1600 pupils, 155 teaching staff, and 80 non-teaching staf ...
both invited Laurie to inspect their Edinburgh schools. The Merchant Company's schools were known as "hospitals" and were run in monastic style. His report was critical of these schools, observing that while a larger amount was spent on them than all the parish schools of Scotland, they were not providing adequate moral and intellectual education. Laurie recommended sending the boys to his alma mater, the Edinburgh High School, while a new high school should be opened for day girls. His recommendations were embodied in an 1869 Act of Parliament
Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...
which abolished the monastic and alms-giving nature of the former "hospitals".[
In 1872, Laurie was appointed secretary to the royal commission on Scottish endowed schools. His reports for the commission led to the reorganisation of secondary schooling under Lord Moncrieff (1878) and ]Lord Balfour of Burleigh
Lord Balfour of Burleigh, in the County of Kinross, is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1607 for Sir Michael Balfour.
He was succeeded by his daughter, Margaret, his only child. She married Robert Arnot, who assumed the su ...
(1882–1889).[
In 1876, Laurie became the first Bell Professor of Education at the University of Edinburgh. In his first year there, he had 12 students; the number rose to 120 by the end of his tenure in 1903. He used the position to improve pedagogy in the whole of Britain, not only in Scotland.][
Also in 1876, he became honorary secretary of the Association for Promoting Secondary Education in Scotland, a voluntary campaigning organisation. It was dissolved in 1880 when it achieved its goal with the passing of the Endowed Institutions (Scotland) Act 1878.][
In 1891, as president of the Teachers' Guild of Great Britain and Ireland, Laurie gave evidence before a select parliamentary committee, arguing for the registration and organisation of all state school teachers to improve the quality of teaching. At the same time, he was strongly opposed to centralised bureaucratic control by the board of education, favouring freedom for local education authorities.][
]
Writings
He wrote widely on education and on philosophical topics. Josipa Petrunic describes his philosophical writings as "often nebulous and obscure", in contrast to his more practical work on education.[Petrunic, 2012.]
Laurie resigned his chair in 1903, and retired from his work with the Dick Bequest in 1907.[
In 1905–6, he gave the Gifford Lectures in natural theology, in Edinburgh. He wrote up the lectures in ''Synthetica'' (1905–06), which "gave Laurie high rank among speculative writers". The French philosopher Georges Remacle translated and commented on ''Synthetica''.][
]
Awards and honours
On his retirement, Laurie's admirers presented him with the portrait oil painting by George Fiddes Watt :'' Not to be confused with George Frederic Watts''.
George Fiddes Watt (15 February 1873 – 22 November 1960) was a Scottish portrait painter and engraver.
Biography
Watt studied art at Gray's School of Art, Edinburgh and the Royal Scottis ...
(see illustration).[ The painting is now in the University of Edinburgh Fine Art Collection.
Laurie was given honorary LL.D. degrees by the ]University of St Andrews
(Aien aristeuein)
, motto_lang = grc
, mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best
, established =
, type = Public research university
Ancient university
, endowment ...
in 1887, the University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
in 1903, and the University of Aberdeen
, mottoeng = The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom
, established =
, type = Public research universityAncient university
, endowment = £58.4 million (2021)
, budget ...
in 1906.[ He was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.][
]
Family
Laurie married Catherine Ann Hibburd (1827–1895) in 1860. They had 4 children together; Katherine "Kitty" Ann Laurie (1863–1928), Margaret "Madge" Jean Somerville Laurie (1870–1955), the chemist Arthur Pillans Laurie
Prof Arthur Pillans Laurie FRSE LLD (1861 – 1949) was a Scottish chemist who pioneered the scientific analysis of paintings, especially by Rembrandt. He also was a fascist symapthiser who opposed the Second World War.
Early life
Laurie wa ...
(1861–1949), and the zoologist Malcolm Laurie (1866–1932). Arthur and Malcolm were both elected Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.
His sister, Mary Struthers Laurie, married Sir David Orme Masson
Sir David Orme Masson KBE FRS FRSE LLD (13 January 1858 – 10 August 1937)L. W. Weickhardt,Masson, Sir David Orme (1858–1937), ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'', Volume 10, MUP, 1986, pp 432–435. Retrieved 6 October 2009 was a scie ...
.
Catherine died in 1895. Laurie then married Lucy "Osy" Struthers (1871–1963), the daughter of Sir John Struthers, in 1901.
He died on 2 March 1909 at his house 22 George Square
George Square ( gd, Ceàrnag Sheòrais) is the principal civic square in the city of Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of six squares in the city centre, the others being Cathedral Square, St Andrew's Square, St Enoch Square, Royal Exchange S ...
, Edinburgh. He is buried in the Grange Cemetery
The Grange (originally St Giles' Grange) is an affluent suburb of Edinburgh, just south of the city centre, with Morningside and Greenhill to the west, Newington to the east, The Meadows park and Marchmont to the north, and Blackford Hil ...
in Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
.[ The grave lies in the western extension against the southern wall, close to the south-west corner.
]
Works
* ''On the Fundamental Doctrine of Latin Syntax'' (1859)
*
On the Philosophy of Ethics: An Analytical Essay
'' Edmonston and Douglas, Edinburgh. (1866)
* ''On Primary Instruction in Relation to Education'' (1867)
* ''Notes Expository and Critical on Certain British Theories of Morals'' (1868)
* ''Chair of Education, University of Edinburgh: Inaugural Address'' (1876)
* ''John Amos Comenius
John Amos Comenius (; cs, Jan Amos Komenský; pl, Jan Amos Komeński; german: Johann Amos Comenius; Latinization (literature), Latinized: ''Ioannes Amos Comenius''; 28 March 1592 – 15 November 1670) was a Czech Philosophy, philosopher, Ped ...
'' (1881; sixth edition, 1898)
* ''On the Educational Wants of Scotland'' (1881)
* ''Free education, etc., etc.: Chair of Institutes and History of Education: Introductory Lecture'' (1884)
* ''Metaphysica nova et vetusta: A Return to Dualism'' (under the pseudonym "Scotus Novanticus", 1884)
* ''Ethica, or, The Ethics of Reason '' (under the pseudonym Scotus Novanticus, 1885)
* ''The Rise and Early Constitution of Universities, with a Survey of Mediaeval Education'' (1887)
* ''Occasional Addresses on Educational Subjects'' (1888)
* ''Lectures on Language and Linguistic Method in the School, Delivered in the University of Cambridge, Easter Term, 1889'' (1890)
* ''Institutes of Education: Compromising an Introduction to Rational Psychology'' (1892)
* ''Historical Survey of Pre-Christian Education'' (1895)
* ''John Amos Comenius, Bishop of the Moravians: His Life and Educational Works'' (1899)
* ''Synthetica: Being Meditations Epistemological and Ontological'', Gifford Lectures. 2 Volumes
1. On Knowledge
2. On God and Man
. Longmans, Green and Co. (1905–1906)
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
External links
Art UK: Paintings: Simon Somerville Laurie
by George Fiddes Watt :'' Not to be confused with George Frederic Watts''.
George Fiddes Watt (15 February 1873 – 22 November 1960) was a Scottish portrait painter and engraver.
Biography
Watt studied art at Gray's School of Art, Edinburgh and the Royal Scottis ...
, 1904
National Portrait Gallery: Simon Somerville Laurie
by William Brassey Hole, 1884 etching
''This article incorporates edited text from the copyright-free 1912 Supplement to the Dictionary of National Biography, as referenced in the article.''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Laurie, Simon Somerville
1829 births
1909 deaths
Scottish educators
Academics of the University of Edinburgh
Scottish philosophers
People educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh
Alumni of the University of Edinburgh