encyclopaedia archives explore aristotle We only have scraps of his work, but his influence on educational thinking has been of fundamental importance. Aristotle (384 - 322 BC). Aristotle's work was wide-ranging - yet our knowledge of him is necessarily fragmented. Only around 20 per cent of his written work has survived - and much of that is in the form of lecture and other notes. However, there can be no doubting his significance. He was: A tireless scholar, whose scientific explorations were as wide-ranging as his philosophical speculations were profound; a teacher who inspired - and who continues to inspire - generations of pupils; a controversial public figure who lived a turbulent life in a turbulent world. He bestrode antiquity like an intellectual colossus. No man before him had contributed so much to learning. No man after could hope to rival his achievement Jonathan Barnes (1982) Aristotle , Oxford: OUP. There are only scraps of his work On Education , however we can get a picture of his ideas from surviving works. Aristotle believed that education was central - the fulfilled person was an educated person. Here I want to focus on those elements of his thought that continue to play a key part in theorizing informal education. | |
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