As a group of faculty devoted to effective teaching and learning, we thought we'd pay tribute to some of history's most famous teachers and their pupils, along with influential educational theorists, many of whom are pictured in our graphics for this site. Our list here is not intended to be exhaustive or even to contain an in-depth discussion of each figure, but just to open up further avenues for exploration and reflection. As we contemplate the enormous influence of the educational theorists and some of the teachers and their pupils below, we may be inspired to contemplate our own influence on those we teach and our own growth through exchanges with our best students. Most of the figures on this list were known to have had numerous students, many of whom became famous in their own right.
Our list is heavily weighted towards the ancient, medieval, and early modern period. We'd love to expand on it. Want to add your own favorites? E-mail Deborah Vess.
Ancient China | India | Persia | Ancient Greece | Ancient Rome | The Middle Ages | Islamic Teachers | The Renaissance | The Age of Reason | Early Modern and Modern Teachers | Educational Theorists
Confucius was likely a minor government official who became a teacher. Although he never wrote down his teachings, his students compiled them and transmitted them to later generations. Confucius emphasized the development of inner virtue, and believed in education and learning as the path to virtue. He emphasized the importance of virtuous role models, such as parents, teachers, and leaders. His teachings inspired the creation of a meritocracy in China. Kelly Ross has an informative discussion of Confucian teachings on her Confucius Page, and the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy also has a nice article on Confucius. You might wish to read some Confucian texts in multiple languages, or explore the Confucian Classics with an explanation of Chinese characters in the titles of the works. The Internet Classics Archive at MIT also has a collection of Confucian texts. You might also want to read about Confucius, Confucianism, and the civil service exams during the Ming Dynasty.
Although there is considerable doubt about whether there was a historic Lao Tzu (Laozi), there is no doubt about the pervasive influence of the Tao te Ching. It is the most often translated work apart from the Bible, and Chan Wing-tisit estimated that there are over 700 commentaries on the Tao te Ching (The Way of Lao Tzu. Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill, 1963). It is useful to contemplate the text itself as teacher. You might want to read The Tao te Ching (Daodejing) from Internet Classics Archive at MIT or an article on Laozi from the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, teacher of the five aesthetics in the forest and as Buddha Shakyamuni (Sage of the Shakya), teacher of many others in his 45 years of teaching, and of countless others who are his spiritual heirs. Buddha taught that only the individual is responsible for his/her destiny. You might want to explore Buddhism resources on the WWW-Virtual Library. C. George Boeree also has a nice introduction to Buddhism on his site at Shippensburg State University.
Zoroaster (Zarathustra), known to the Greeks as "the Magus" and the founder of a religion followed from the Archaeminidae through the Sassanid period of Persian history. Zoroaster converted King Vishtaspa of Bactria, who may have been the father of Darius (known to the Greeks as Hystaspes). His teachings were later transmitted throughout the Roman Empire, especially in the cult if Mithras, which departed in many ways from Iranian mythology. If you'd like to read the primary source of his life, the Avesta, and explore other resources on Zoroastrianim, visit the Avesta -- Zoroastrian archives.
Pythagoras, founder of one of antiquity's most famous schools. If you'd like to read about his methods, teachings, and influence, visit Pythagoras and his School. If you'd like to read the fragments that remain of Pythagorean writings, go to the Hanover History Department site. You may also want to explore the Pythagorean Theorem.
Socrates, teacher of Plato. We are indebted to Plato for our knowledge of Socrates. Read his account of the last days of Socrates in the Apology, as well as the Euthyphro, and the Crito in this great interactive site from the Philosophy Department of Clarke College. Socrates used the elenchus as a method of instruction, and his penetrating questioning of those around him highlighted the weaknesses of received knowledge in his time. He made the Athenians so uncomfortable that they put him on trial for his novel ideas. He chose death rather than to capitulate to accepted custom. Today the Socratic method is used in many liberal arts classes, and commonly in many law schools, as well as in many other contexts.
Plato, teacher of Aristotle. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy has a nice entry. The Internet Classics Archive has a collection of his dialogues online. Plato transformed and developed many of his teacher's ideas in his Dialogues, which many feel represent more of Plato's than they do the thoughts of Socrates, who utters them, in the late works. Plato was a student who at least equaled his teacher, and perhaps went beyond him in his emphasis on an eternal, unchanging realm of forms, of which the world before us is a mere copy.
Aristotle, founder of one of antiquity's most famous schools, the Lyceum in Athens, and tutor to Alexander the Great. Aristotle was a pioneer of logic, and wrote a collection of treatises on this subject called the Organon. Here, he developed deductive logic and the syllogism, as well as other ideas. Aristotle was an astute observer of nature, and developed a system of classifying plants and animals into the genus and species. He also wrote treatises on politics, rhetoric, and the arts. Aristotle did not agree with many of his teacher Plato's ideas, in particular, with his doctrine of forms in its most fully evolved form. Aristotle preferred practicality to Plato's idealism. Plato must have greatly challenged Aristotle, as he becomes almost a straw man for many of Aristotle's arguments. In arguing against Platonic ideas, Aristotle developed his own, thus illustrating that the role of the teacher is not to bring one's student to one's own point of view, but to foster in them the ability to construct their own. You can read some of Aristotle's many works at the MIT Internet Classics Archive.
Sappho, a poet called the "tenth muse" by Plato. Most scholars believe that she was the head of a finishing school for girls on Lesbos. Visit the Divine Sappho and read the fragments that remain of her poetry and explore other aspects of her life and teachings. More than anything else, Sappho reminds us of the need to care for our students and to appreciate their gifts. Sappho taught her female students to appreciate their own gifts and their own beauty in an age which relegated females to a subservient status.
Zeno, a pupil of Parmenides whose teachings in the painted stoa influenced many throughout the Hellenistic world and the Roman Empire and developed into a body of thought known as Stoicism. You may wish to explore Diogenes Laërtius: The Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosopher: The Stoics. Zeno developed a number of mathematical paradoxes which have kept philosophers and mathematicians perplexed for centuries.
Diogenes, otherwise known as "the dog," student of Antisthenes, who taught rigorous self-control and abstinence, and a return to virtue through rejection of material goods. Although many of Diogenes's actions shocked those around him, he remains an inspiring spokesman for the virtuous life of the mind.
Stoicism was an important school of thought in ancient Rome. Consider how far the influence of a good teacher can travel through his or her students, as illustrated by the careers of Musonius Rufus, who advocated the education of women and who was the teacher of Epictetus, a slave who became the teacher of Flavius Arrianus Xenophon, known as Arrian in English, who recorded the sessions he had with Epictetus. Arrian wrote the earliest surviving account of Alexander the Great. If you are interested in further exploring Stoicism, you might want to read the Discourses of Epictetus.
Another famous teacher was Seneca, tutor and later advisor to the emperor Nero. Seneca was forced to commit suicide after being accused of conspiring against his student. Unfortunately, Nero shows that not all students are as much influenced by their teachers as we wish, but the later students of Seneca's works are many, such as the Elizabethan playwright Christopher Marlowe. You can read some of Seneca's essays online; his essay on the firmness of wise men is interesting in the context of his death.
The historic Jesus lived and taught in the Roman Empire during the first century C.E. Although Jesus himself ministered to relatively few people and was condemned to death in the first century C.E., Christianity spread through the ministry of Paul and other disciples and eventually became the official religion of the Roman Empire in the fourth century C.E. You may explore some of the history of early Christianity at the PBS site From Jesus to Christ. Although some early Christians rejected Classical learning as pagan, during the Middle Ages Christian learning dominated the monastic and then the cathedral schools and finally the universities. The teachings of Jesus as channeled through his disciples and the New Testament writings profoundly influenced the evolution of learning.
Cassiodorus was the founder of the monastery of Vivarium, where he encouraged the acquisition of classical learning. He was a model of learning himself and, although his Latin shows the degeneration of classical Latin during the early Middle Ages, he was still writing treatises at the age of 93. In his Institutiones, Cassiodorus writes of the liberal arts and of the division of them into seven disciplines, the trivium (grammar, rhetoric and dialectic or logic) and the quadrivium (arithmetic, astronomy, music, and geometry). For him, the "liberal" in "liberal arts" referred to liber, which he interprets as "book" (and not the alternative, "free"), so that these disciplines represented the "liberal arts" because there were books involved, something that our students often forget in the digital age! If you are interested in further exploring the life and contributions of Cassiodorus, you might want to read James O'Donnell's masterful treatment of the topic, entitled simply Cassiodorus. You might also want to read Cassiodorus's works in Latin. We don't teach Latin at Georgia College& State University, but perhaps some of you intrepid explorers would like to wander through them in their original language.
Lanfranc was originally a lawyer who founded and taught at a school in Avranches, Normandy. Later he became a monk and then prior of the monastery of Bec in Normandy, where he was the teacher of St. Anselm (and others). He also served as abbot of St. Stephen's in Caen, and finally, as archbishop of Canterbury after the Norman Conquest.
St. Anselm of Bec and Canterbury, monk and then prior of Bec; archbishop of Canterbury; and teacher of Eadmer (his biographer), Guibert of Nogent, Osbern, Gundulf, Gilbert Crispin (and countless others). In his Proslogion, Anselm claimed not to have said anything not said by his illustrious predecessor, Augustine of Hippo. In that work, however, he articulated one of the most innovative "proofs" for the existence of God ever crafted, and it has been the subject of scholarly controversy since. Anselm illustrates that no matter what the cultural context in which one works, enormous creativity is possible even when working with already present ideas and materials. For further exploration of the enormous influence of the school of Bec, see Sally Vaughan's article, "Among these Authors are the Men of Bec."
William of Champeaux was a proponent of realism and a teacher of Peter Abelard, much to his dismay! After Abelard's utter and very public humiliation of him, he retired to a hermitage which became the Abbey of St. Victor. Several of his students followed him, even the notorious Peter Abelard, eventually resulting in the creation of one of the most the influential schools of the Middle Ages. His legacy is seen in the teachings of Hugh of St. Victor, Richard of St. Victor (the mystic doctor), Adam of St. Victor, Peter Comestor (a historian), Peter Lombard (who compiled the famous Sentences). All of this goes to show that while one student may consider you a useless dunce, all may not be lost!
Peter Abelard was a student of William of Champeaux, Anselm of Laon, and really, of himself. He set up schools at Mt. Ste. Genevieve outside of Paris and the Paraclete. D.E. Luscombe chronicled the enormous influence of Abelard in The School of Peter Abelard (Cambridge, 1969). Abelard was the teacher of numerous figures, such as Peter Lombard and John of Salisbury, but most especially of Heloise, who became his wife; the mother of his only son, Astrolabe; and later, after both had entered monastic life, his "sister in Christ." Despite his brilliance in logic and his monumental ego (he considered himself the finest mind of his age), most Abelardian logic has been eclipsed by later developments. Alas. His ethical theories remained important, however, and some scholars suggest his student/wife Heloise had much to do with them. Abelard discusses his experiences as a student and as a teacher, as well as other life experiences and his theological ideas in his autobiography, the Historia calamitatum. You can read the first letter of Heloise to Abelard, sent to Abelard upon discovering the intimate details of their relationship floating around France in the Historia calamitatum.
Fullbert of Chartres, student of Gerbert of Rheims (later known as Pope Sylvester II) and one of the most famous teachers in the Middle Ages. He founded the famous school at Chartres.
John of Salisbury, Bishop of Chartres, student of Peter Abelard, William of Conches, and Gilbert de la Porreé. Scholars consider John of Salisbury a "medieval humanist," for his defense of the trivium in the Metalogicon, his letters, such as #303 and #304, and his famous Policratus, a treatise on government.
Ailred of Rievaulx, master of novices and beloved teacher of the monks at Rievaulx; later, he became the abbot of Rievaulx. Ailred's students loved his gentle and caring nature, and his intense spirituality. He was still teaching them on his deathbed, and one of his students, Walter Daniel, wrote the account of his life.
St. Thomas Aquinas, doctor of the Church and patron of many Catholic universities and schools. Aquinas's teachers thought him a dullard and one contemporary remarked that some thought him a "dumb ox," but Aquinas became one of the most significant figures in medieval intellectual history . One has only to list the names of prominent theologians and philosophers who have commented and elaborated on and followed his teachings, such as Thomas de Cantimpré, Peter of Auvergne, Thomas Bradwardin, Archbishop of Canterbury, John Tauler, Bl. Henry Suso, Nicholas of Cuso, Cajetan, and Jacques Maritain. And, if ever any of us needed to be humbled, take a look at this exhaustive list of Thomists just through the eighteenth century.
During the thirteenth century, Aquinas and other Christian philosophers attempted to reconcile the teachings of Aristotle and other pre-Christian with those of Christianity, and used as their sources Arabic commentaries on Aristotle, such as those of Ibn Rushd (Averroës). Siger of Brabant was another Christian philosopher who tried to harmonize the Islamic commentaries with Christian philosophy, and also made use of the work of Ibn Rushd (Averroës). Other Christian philosophers, such as Robert Grosteste, relied upon the commentaries of Ibn Sina (Avicenna). Many educators today emphasize the need for cross-cultural work, and these Christian philosophers and their Muslim counterparts are early examples of an attempt to explore commonalties, while also recognizing differences.
It is also worth reflecting on the difficulties some of these scholars experienced in their careers for their views. Aquinas was a very quiet man, but his teachings attracted considerable attention. In 1277 some teachings derived from the writings of Aquinas were condemned in Paris, but shortly thereafter the Dominicans validated Aquinas's teachings. Aquinas himself stopped writing about a year before his death, having decided in a moment of deep prayer that everything he had written was insignificant. Ibn Rushd had to defend his use of Greek texts and his ideas from the Ash'arite theologians. In fact, in 1195 he was banished from Cordova and some of his books were burned. Both remind us today of the importance of freedom of inquiry and of expression in the academy. Sometimes the places to which powerful thought leads can be difficult, and sometimes new ideas challenge the realities and boundaries within which we live. It is our unique responsibility as educators to embrace these challenges.
Vittorino da Feltre was an advocate of the liberal arts who founded a school at Mantua. The curriculum included Latin and Greek, arithmetic, geometry, algebra, logic, dialectics, ethics, astronomy, history, music, and eloquence. The curriculum also included mandatory physical education and emphasized the moral aspects of education.
Marsilio Ficino was tutor of Lorenzo de'Medici and master teacher of the Neoplatonic Academy, which was patronized by the de'Medici family. Ficino's philosophical ideas influenced the art of Botticelli, Michelangelo, and Titian, among others.
Speaking of art, think of all the famous artists who trained other famous artists in their workshops, such as:
Cimabue, teacher of Giotto. You might want to read excerpts from Vasari's Lives of the Artists chronicling their relationship. Cimabue was known as the "ox head" for his stubborn nature and did not like to be criticized. However, even he could recognize the gifts of the youthful Giotto, who painted a fly so realistic that Cimabue tried to swat if from the painting. Here are some more excerpts from Vasari's Life of Cimabue and also from his Life of Giotto, both with images.
Vasari also chronicles numerous other teacher/pupil relationships in his Lives of the Artists, such as Verrocchio, the teacher of Leonardo da Vinci; and Ghiberti, the teacher of Donatello. Verrocchio had one of the most successful workshops in Italy and was one of the most important teachers of later, greater artists, but is today himself regarded as a relatively minor artist. He completed some of the art in the Duomo in Florence, but as in life, his art in the dome is overshadowed by the technological ingenuity of the dome itself and of its designer, Brunelleschi. Think of the great works of art the world might never have seen without the teaching of Verrocchio.
As for Brunelleschi, he lost the competition to design the north doors of the baptistery in Florence to Ghiberti, or more exactly, refused a commission to work with Ghiberti on the project and so goes down in history as the loser of that competition. Because Ghiberti won the commission alone, he created another important workshop to produce the doors, out of which came Donatello and other famous artists. As for Brunelleschi, he went on to design the Duomo in Florence, the most brilliant example of architectural ingenuity in the Renaissance. Da Vinci studied many of the machines Brunelleschi designed for the Duomo, and his managerial techniques have become famous. Ghiberti and Brunelleschi both show that those who teach, can do too!
Erasmus, called the Prince of the Humanists. Erasmus was a proponent of Christian education, which he believed should be made accessible even to those who worked in the field. Humanist educators generally insisted on thorough knowledge of languages, such as Greek, Latin, and Hebrew, so as to better understand Greco-Roman sources and in particular, the Bible. Erasmus's most famous educational treatise was his Handbook of a Christian Knight, in which he insisted on the importance of study of classical works and of the writings of the Church Fathers. He also collected Greek and Latin proverbs and published them as the Adagia; his Colloquies were also pedagogical in nature. Erasmus had a biting sense of humor, as evident in his Moriae Encomium or Praise of Folly.
Isaac Newton, Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Trinity College, Cambridge, whose Principia Mathematica was for years buried in his drawer at Cambridge, likely amidst loads of teaching materials!
John Locke, was a tutor for awhile at Oxford and also tutor to the Shaftesbury household, but was more influential as an educational theorist. Locke believed that a human was born a tabula rasa, a blank slate, and that experience was the best teacher. He also believed that the overall purpose of education was to produce an individual better able to serve his country.
Jean Jacques Rousseau, author of Emile, a treatise on education in the Enlightenment that argued for nature as the best teacher of all.
Immanuel Kant had a career that would give any of us pause for thought. He was an unsalaried professor (Privatdozent) for fifteen years at the University of Königsberg, Prussia. And we think we have it bad in terms of salaries and raises! In 1770 he was finally appointed as a professor of philosophy at the University, where he taught for seventeen more years until 1797. If you would like to read more about Kant and see some of his works, go to Kant on the Web. Kant's writings have many implications for education. His Critique of Pure Reason explored the ways in which the structure of our own minds contributes to our understanding of the world as we experience it, the world of phenomena.
Philosophy flourished in the nineteenth century, but so did music. Among the more famous teachers and their students, were:
Beethoven, teacher of Czerny, who was teacher of Liszt, who was teacher of Arthur Friedheim, and of Alexander Siloti, who taught his cousin Rachmaninoff. Beethoven was a towering giant in the world of music, whose music crossed the boundaries between the classical and romantic eras.
Josef Lhévinne, student of Josef Hofmann, Fritz Reiner and Arthur Rodzinski, and teacher of Van Cliburn, Adele Marcus, Sascha Gorodnitzki, Daniel Pollack, Martin Canin, and others. Lhévinne was born in the late nineteenth century and, along with his wife, taught many famous pianists well into the twentieth century.
If you would like to further explore piano teachers and their legacy, go to the simply wonderful list of great teachers compiled by Piano Pedagogy Plus: Music and Resources.
Leopold von Ranke, professor of history and later chair at Berlin University from 1825 through 1871. Von Ranke thought of history as a science, and argued that one should simply show it the past "like it was" (wie es ist eigentlich gewesen) and avoid subjective judgments and interpretations. His method relied extensively on primary sources. The rigor of Ranke's methodology helped to create modern historical instruction. He taught numerous other famous historians. Despite his emphasis on objectivity, Ranke was notorious for his criticisms of the French, thereby illustrating the point of such modern philosophers of history as E.H. Carr, that one can never be entirely objective, as even the construct known as a "fact" involves some amount of subjectivity.
R.L. Moore, famous professor of mathematics at the University of Texas, Austin, and developer of the Moore method, in which students developed their own proofs within a framework supplied by the instructor. Moore produced many other famous mathematicians. Fior further information on Moore and his teaching methods, visit Creative Teaching: The Heritage of Moore. This site has an extensive list of Moore's students, their publications, and the students of his students, and their publications, and so on. Very impressive list of students. Viewers need to click on the next button when visiting the list of students to enter the full list. Thanks to Dr. Dave DeVries, Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, for providing this information.
Alfred North Whitehead, a professor of Trinity College, Cambridge; the University of London; and later at Harvard, Whitehead is primarily known as a mathematician, logician, and philosopher of science. In The Aims of Education he reflected on theories of development, the purpose of education, and the role of the teacher.
John Dewey, a professor at the Teacher's College, Columbia. The Center for Dewey Studies has a video and a nice collection of resources, including even an audio clip of Dewey talking. The Encyclopedia of Informal Education has a nice set of Dewey texts and links to other resources.
Benjamin Bloom is most well-known for his taxonomy, in which he categorized educational objectives into three domains: cognitive, affective, and psychomotor.
William Perry categorized intellectual and ethical development into nine domains.
Howard Gardner, a professor of education at Harvard, rejects the idea of a single intelligence and speaks of multiple intelligences, which he breaks down into seven categories.
Kolb, a pioneer of the theory of experiential learning. He also developed a learning styles inventory. If you would like to explore some of the critiques of Kolb's theory, click here.
Carl Rogers differentiated between cognitive and experiential learning, arguing that experiential learning provides greater meaning and more significant learning experiences.
Did anyone notice that on our top and bottom banners we have immortalized one profoundly influential teacher who was put to death for his intellectual insights and integrity and another teacher who was put to death for irritating a former student. Rather sobering, isn't it?
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Website designed and maintained by Deborah Vess. Special thanks to Cathy G. Locks for creating the top and bottom banner graphics.
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