Schools and Universities at the Time of Shakespeare: How was the Education at Shakespeare's Time

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Schools and Universities at the Time of Shakespeare

England in Shakespeare’s day did not have a formal, national system of education. The state did not require children to attend school, and for many farmers and laborers reading and writing were regarded as unnecessary skills. The 1500s, however, saw many changes that made education more desirable to the average person. When England became a Protestant nation, ordinary people were encouraged to read the Bible for themselves, and advances in printing made books widely available. By the late 1500s most towns had at least one school at which local children could, if their parents wished, obtain a basic education.

Basic Education System at the time of Shakespeare:

Basic Education System

The most elementary lessons for children, learning the alphabet and gaining some basic proficiency in reading and writing, were ordinarily taught at home. Reading was introduced before writing, because it was considered a more important skill, and many Elizabethans could read but not write.

Parents instructed their own children or, in wealthy homes, hired a private tutor. In large households a tutor might have several children to instruct, and it was fairly common for children of one upper-class family to teach those of another.

For those who could not supply home instruction, some type of basic educational institution, generally known as a petty school, was usually available for children between the ages of five and seven.

Classes might be taught by the local preacher or by a private instructor employed by the town. The cheapest form of elementary education, which later came to be known as a dame school, was provided by a local woman who offered little more than daycare services.

What was Grammar School Education:

Since most occupations of the day did not require formal education, few children learned anything beyond the most basic level. If their parents wished it, however, they could continue their education in a grammar school. Most grammar schools had endowments—sums of money that had been set aside by wealthy donors for the purpose of maintaining the institutions. These funds paid for most of a school’s costs, so that students had to pay only a small fee to attend. As far as Shakespeare’s school is concerned, the grammar school young Shakespeare probably attended in Stratford-upon-Avon was free, except for the cost of school supplies: paper, ink, quill pens, and knives to sharpen them.

Schools and Universities at the Time of Shakespeare: How was the Education at Shakespeare's Time

Most grammar schools catered solely to boys, although a few were open to girls under nine years of age. The curriculum was based on the ancient Roman system, which included the trivium (grammar, rhetoric, and logic) and the quadrivium (arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, and music).

In practice the emphasis was on mastering Latin grammar, with little attention to other subjects. Latin was the language of the educated, essential for a career in law, government, or the church. Students typically memorized lessons from a grammar book written by scholar William Lily. Once they had mastered its basic lessons, they moved on to ancient writers such as Ovid, Virgil, and Seneca. Eventually they learned to translate material from Latin to English and vice versa.

Other subjects, such as Greek, music, and modern languages, were sometimes taught as “extras” for an additional fee. Some subjects now considered essential were hardly taught at all, such as English grammar, which was supposed to be learned through the study of Latin grammar.

Grammar schools contained both “day” students, who lived nearby and traveled to and from school daily, and boarding students, who lived at the school. Vacations were much shorter than in modern schools, consisting of approximately two weeks off at Christmas and two at Easter.

The school day was longer as well, beginning around 6 A.M. and continuing until 5 P.M., with a pause for lunch and one or two short breaks called recesses. Students were expected to remain attentive and well behaved throughout a very long day. A whipping with a birch rod awaited those who failed to learn their lessons or who broke the strict rules of behavior. Some educators objected to the methods used in English schools, arguing that learning should be a rewarding experience for students rather than a painful one.

Educational reformers such as Roger Ascham, the former tutor of Queen Elizabeth I, believed that students should learn English as well as Latin and that physical punishment should be rare. Such views, however, had little influence at the time.

Higher Education System at the Time of Shakespeare

Higher Education System:

There were only two universities in Elizabethan England: Oxford and Cambridge, about 50 miles from London in different directions. Each of these universities was organized into separate colleges, which had originally existed to provide housing for faculty. During the 1500s it became common for all students to live and study at a particular college, although they still received their degrees from the university.

In Shakespeare’s day a student at Oxford could rent a good room for about £1 a year and a satisfactory one for about half that price. To save money, students sometimes shared rooms. A month’s worth of meals at the college dining hall also cost about £1. Altogether, a student could enjoy a comfortable lifestyle at college for around £20 per year.

Universities were open only to men. Boys generally enrolled around age 15, although one student is known to have started Cambridge at age 9 and another did not enter until he was 38. Perhaps one-third of the students were from the upper classes—the nobility and the gentry—with most of the rest belonging to what would today be called the middle class. About 10 percent of the students described themselves as poor. Students with little money could pay for their education by earning scholarships—funds awarded to talented students—or by taking jobs at the college. During Queen Elizabeth’s reign the total population of both Oxford and Cambridge was about 3,000 students.

Curriculum in the universities:

The curriculum at the universities was similar to that of the grammar schools, only more advanced and with somewhat more attention to Greek. Older students often taught younger ones, although quite a few students brought their tutors with them to the university. Unlike modern universities, where students earn a number of credits for each course, Elizabethan colleges awarded degrees solely on the basis of a final examination, a written theme and an oral “disputation,” both in Latin, which covered all of a student’s work. If the student passed, he received his degree. It took four years to earn a bachelor’s degree and another three to earn a master’s degree.

Many students left residential colleges after receiving their bachelor’s degrees, returning three years later to present their disputations and try for a master’s degree. It was also common for students to leave without earning a degree at all. Few callings required a university education, and there was no shame in attending college for a few years.

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Schools and Universities at the Time of Shakespeare: How was the Education at Shakespeare’s Time