|
Confucius' Life Story
 During
the Spring and Autumn and the Warring States period
(770-221 BC), private education developed rapidly. It
was very popular for scholars to give private lessons
to groups of selected disciples. Confucius (551-479
BC), who is regarded as a great thinker and educator
of ancient China, was a pioneer in running private schools.
He was from a declining aristocaratic family of the
State of Lu, a centre of culture and private education
at the time. His father died when he was only three
years old. Though poor and humble in his childhood,
Confucius was determined to become a learned person.
After working as a low-ranking official for several
years, he began his career as a teacher around the age
of thirty. He set up his own study halls and gave private
lessons. As what he taught met the needs of the time
and his teaching methods were good, he gradually gained
fame. He had altogether three thousand disciples, of
whom 72 became proficient in the "six arts".
Confucius made great contributions to education in ancient
China. He invented the elicitation method nearly one
hundred years earlier than the Socratic dialogue and
was the first to challenge the spoon-feeding method
of teaching. He advocated equality between teacher and
student and encouraged students to form opinions of
their own. His idea of teaching according to the student's
aptitude is still regarded as an important educational
principle in China today.
TOP
Confucius' Great Works
- The Twelve Classics
-
- The Book of Changes
- The Book of Songs
- The Book of History
- Account of the Tites of the Zhou Dynasty
- The Book of Ceremony
- The Book of Rites
- Gongyang's Commentary on Spring and Autumn Annals
- Guliang's Commentary on Spring and Autumn Annals
- Zuo Qiuming's Commentary on Spring and Autumn
Annals
- The Analects of Confucius
- The Erya
- The Canon of Filial Piety
- The Four Books
-
- The Great Learning
- The Doctrine of the Mean
- The Analects of Confucius
- Mencius
- The Five Classics
-
- The Book of Songs
- The Book of History
- The Book of Rites
- The Book of Changes
- The Book of the Spring and Autumn Annals
|
