Richard D'Aeth (3 June 1912 – 19 February 2008) was a British

educationalist Education sciences, also known as education studies or education theory, and traditionally called ''pedagogy'', seek to describe, understand, and prescribe education including education policy. Subfields include comparative education, educationa ...

and President of

Hughes Hall Hughes Hall is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England. The majority of students are postgraduate, although nearly one-fifth of the student population comprises individuals aged 21 and above who are studying undergraduate ...

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

, from 1978 to 1984.

Early life

D'Aeth was born in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, the son of Walter D'Aeth and Marion Turnbull. He was educated at

Bedford School Bedford School is a 7–18 Single-sex education, boys Public school (United Kingdom), public school in the county town of Bedford in England. Founded in 1552, it is the oldest of four independent schools in Bedford run by the Harpur Trust. Bed ...

and

Emmanuel College, Cambridge Emmanuel College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1584 by Sir Walter Mildmay, Chancellor of the Exchequer to Elizabeth I. The site on which the college sits was once a priory for Dominican mo ...

. At Emmanuel, he was a scholar and took a first class Honours degree in Natural Science before completing his

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

.''Who's Who 2007'' (London, A. & C. Black, 2007)

Career

D'Aeth's first job was as a schoolmaster at

Gresham's School Gresham's School is a private school (English fee-charging boarding and day school) in Holt, Norfolk, England, one of the top thirty International Baccalaureate schools in England. The school was founded in 1555 by Sir John Gresham as a f ...

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

, from 1938 to 1940, after which he served in the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In 1946 he was appointed one of Her Majesty's Inspectors of Schools. In 1952 he took up an appointment as the Professor of Education at the University College of the West Indies and in 1958 returned to the United Kingdom as the first full Professor of Education at the young

Exeter University The University of Exeter is a research university in the West Country of England, with its main campus in Exeter, Devon. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School o ...

, where he remained until a merger with St Luke's College in 1978 created a new School of Education. He was then appointed as President of

Hughes Hall, Cambridge Hughes Hall is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England. The majority of students are postgraduate, although nearly one-fifth of the student population comprises individuals aged 21 ...

, where he remained for six years. He was also a Commonwealth Fellow at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

and retired to

Stoke Gabriel Stoke Gabriel is a village and parish in Devon, England, situated on a creek of the River Dart. The village is a popular tourist destination in the South Hams and is famous for its mill pond and crab fishing (known colloquially as ''crabbing'') ...

, near

Totnes Totnes ( or ) is a market town and civil parish at the head of the estuary of the River Dart in Devon, England, within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is about west of Paignton, about west-southwest of Torquay and ab ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

in 1984.

Publications

D'Aeth's most significant publication was his ''Education and Development in the Third World'' (Farnborough, UK: Saxon House Press; Lexington, Mass: Lexington Books, 1975).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:D'Aeth, Richard Alumni of Emmanuel College, Cambridge Fellows of Hughes Hall, Cambridge Harvard University faculty Academics of the University of Exeter British educational theorists People educated at Bedford School Academics from Vancouver 1912 births 2008 deaths Academic staff of the University of the West Indies Royal Air Force personnel of World War II Royal Air Force airmen Canadian military personnel from British Columbia