Article 9: Jefferson’s Classical Curriculum: An Examination of the Classical Influences on Thomas Jefferson’s Educational Philosophies

In light of modern debates over national curricula, one should not be surprised to find that similar debates took place within the ancient world and the outcome of these debates held influence in United States history. Upon an examination of education from the Classical period into the Roman Empire, one finds a wide divergence of opinions. These various means towards the common good of producing useful citizens arose often from different philosophies that emphasized fields that were more crucial to their own discipline. The United States of America remembers with great pride its roots, and the origins of this nation most commonly held in high esteem are the founding fathers, but our roots go far deeper than 1776. Before the United States were formed the ideological beginnings of this country can easily be traced backwards in time through the Enlightenment, the Renaissance, and to their ultimate origin in the Classical Age. Greece and Rome left America with the two political ideas of the democracy and the republic, but they made many other additions to Western civilization. The beginnings of Western educational thought are as evident in Greece and Rome as are the origins of Western political structures.