1. FROEBEL'S KINDERGARTEN PHILOSOPHY.

In the Education of Man (1826), Froebel articulated

the following idealist themes: 1. All existence originates in and with God. 2. Humans possess an
inherent spiritual essence that is the vitalizing life force that causes development. 3. All beings
and ideas are interconnected parts of a grand, ordered, and systematic universe.

2. 4. • The kindergarten is a special educational environment in which this self-active development
occurs. • The kindergarten's gifts, occupations, and social and cultural activities, especially play,
promote this self-actualization. • Froebel was convinced that the kindergarten's primary focus
should be on play–the process by which he believed children expressed their innermost
thoughts, needs, and desires. • For Froebel, play facilitated children's process of cultural
recapitulation, imitation of adult vocational activities, and socialization. • According to Froebel's
theory of cultural recapitulation, each individual human being repeated the general cultural
epoch in his or her own development.

3. 5. • Using play, songs, stories, and activities, the kindergarten was designed as an educational
environment in which children, through their own self-activity, could develop in the right
direction. • Froebel's reputation as an early childhood educator increased and kindergartens
were established throughout the German states. By the end of the nineteenth century,
kindergartens had been established throughout Europe and North America. • The kindergarten
provided a milieu that encouraged children to interact with other children under the guidance of
a loving teacher.

4. 6. THE KINDERGARTEN CURRICULUM Froebel developed a series of gifts and occupations for use
in kindergartens. Representing what Froebel identified as fundamental forms, the gifts had both
their actual physical appearance and also a hidden symbolic meaning.

5. 7. FROEBEL'S GIFTS WERE THE FOLLOWING ITEMS: • Six soft, colored balls. • A wooden sphere,
cube, and cylinder. • A large cube divided into eight smaller cubes. • A large cube divided into
eight oblong blocks. • A large cube divided into twenty-one whole, six half, and twelve quarter
cubes. • A large cube divided into eighteen whole oblongs: three divided lengthwise; three
divided breadthwise. • Quadrangular and triangular tablets used for arranging figures. • Sticks
for outlining figures· Whole and half wire rings for outlining figures. • Various materials for
drawing, perforating, embroidering, paper cutting, weaving or braiding, paper folding, modeling,
and interlacing.

6. 8. • In the early twenty-first century, kindergarten teachers continue to emphasize Froebel's
ideas of developing the social side of a child's nature and a sense of readiness for learning. • The
important outcome for the kindergarten child is readiness for the intellectual learning that will
come later in his educational career.

7. 9. Today’s application Before Froebel, Kindergarten didn't exist, now it's a obligation due to its
importance in the children's educational process. Nowadays many institutions are working with
the progressive ideas developed by Froebel, because they appreciate children as free, active,
feeling and thinking human beings. Thanks to Froebel´s ideas, now the teachers are aware about
the importance of game in the children's learning process.
8. 10. “Play is the highest expression of human development in childhood, for it alone is the free
expression of what is in a child's soul.” Friedrich Froebel.

9. 11. "The play of children is not recreation; it means earnest work. Play is the purest intellectual
production of the human being, in this stage … for the whole man is visible in them, in his finest
capacities, in his innermost being." ~ Friedrich Froebel
1. Froebel’s kindergarten system Introduction Friedrich Wilhelm august Froebel (1782-1852) The
German educator, psychologist, best known founder of the kindergarten system and one of the
greatest contributors of the 19th century to the science of education. Froebel’s first
kindergarten was started in 1837 in Blakenburg, Germany. Educational views of Froebel He was
an absolute idealist and his ideas about education were related to concept of religion and god.
According to Froebel, the real purpose of education is to expand the life of an individual until it
comprehends the existence through participation in all pervading spiritual activity. To him
education is a stage in the evolution of the child. Education helps to elevate child to a higher
level and be a useful member of the society. He introduces a new method of teaching related to
the interest and inborn tendencies of children, which emphasizes natural development through
self activities and experience. Froebel’s educational ideals 1. The whole universe is simply a
unity. It demonstrates unity of substance, unity of origin and unity of purpose. 2. There is one
eternal law-the law of unity-that governs all things, men and nature. 3. Education is a growth
from within. Every one develops according to some universal law. 4. Education is a development
by which and individual realizes that he is one unit of the all encompassing unity (God). 5.
Development is possible only through activity and practice. 6. The purpose of educationis to
unfold the child’s innate power and awaken his spiritual nature so that he may have a spiritual
union with god. 7. There is similarity between the growth of a plant and that of a child. 8. Play is
the highest expression of human development inchildhood for it alone is the free expression of
what is in a child’s soul. 9. Play is the spontaneous activity of the child.Therefore it is the test to
for their education. 10. Self activity is the greatest teacher. The teacher is only a guide. He
should have full sympathy for the child. Froebel’s kindergarten Kindergarten is the system of
pre-school in which children are taught through creative play, social interaction and natural
expressions. He called this school as kindergarten which means in German language as ‘Garden
of children’. He aimed children in his school to grow as freely as flowers in a garden.

2. 2. To him a child is repository of all good qualities and each child carries with in itself the seeds
of its fullest development. Hence, He compared a school with a garden, a child with a seedling
and a teacher with a gardener. The name kindergarten signifies both a garden ‘for’ children and
also a garden ‘of’ children. Garden for Children: A garden for children means a location where
they can observe and interact with nature. Garden of Children: A Garden of children means
where they themselves can grow and develop in freedom from arbitrary political and social
imperatives. Features of Kindergarten 1. Free self Activity-Kindergarten system gives
opportunity to carries out his impulses and motives. It provides for the free self activity. 2.
Creativity- Child is in creative in nature. The kindergarten fosters creativity by process materials
(gifts) for the child self directed activity. 3. Social Participation- It provides opportunities for
participation in social activities and co- operative activities and which will encourage the child to
discover himself and his world. As a result he can build social relationships. 4. Motor expression-
Children are impulsive andphysically active by nature. The kindergarten system promotes
learning by doing. 5. Gifts and occupations as materials and method of education – Froebel
design special materials known as gifts and a series of recommended activities known as
occupations for use in kindergarten. The gifts are a set of geometric shapes such as balls, cubes,
cut papers etc. Occupations such as folding paper, clay modeling etc. 6. Teaching through play-
Play is the characteristics activity of childhood. Kindergarten system makes use of this play
behavior for providing learning experiences to the child. So the child will learn many things
 easily and eagerly. 7. Teaching through songs, gestures and construction- Froebel says that
singing, gestures and constructing something are the general nature of children. Hence, proper
organization of these activities is the best means of their developments. Froebel’s Gifts The
Froebel’s Gifts are play materials for young children designed by Froebel for the original
Kindergarten. The sonntagsblatt published (1838-1840) by Froebel explained the meaning and
described the use of each of his gifts. Gift-I The 1st gift is a soft ball or yarn ball
insolidcolour,which is the right size for the hand of a small child. These soft balls can be
squashed in the hand, they revert to their original shapes. His intention was that through
holding, dropping, rolling, swinging, hiding and revealing the balls, the child may acquire
knowledge of objects and spatial relationship, movements speed and time, colour and contrast,
weights and gravity.

3. 3. Gift-II The 2nd gift originally consisted of two wooden objects, a sphere and a cube. Froebel
called this gift “the child’s delight” since observed the joy of each child discovering the
differences between the sphere and cube. This gift was developed by Froebel to enable a child
to explore and enjoy the differences between shapes. Gift-III The cube is divided into 8 identical
beech wood cubes, about one inch long each edge, which is a convenient size for the handoff
small child.A child delights in rearranging the 8 cubes in many ways, and reassembling them in
the form of a cube. This is the 1st building task. Gift-IV It is the 2nd building gift and it appears
similar to the first. Each of these 8 identical beech wood blocks is twice as long and half the
width of the cubes of the previous gift. Many new possibilities for play and construction arise
due to these differences. Gift-V Considered by many too complex for a young child, this building
gift consists of more cubes, some of which are divided in halves or quarters. Merit of
Kindergarten System  It laid emphasis on early childhood education.  It gave importance to the
principle of learning by play.  It develops imagination and creative capacities of children.  It
develops mental, emotional, social, and spiritual qualities of children.  This is very simple,
interesting and attractive method.  This system broadened the concept and scope of the school
as an essential social institution. Demerits  The over emphasis on play is likely to distract the
child from serious learning.  The method requires a number of materials and specialized
teachers which cannot be provided at all times.  Children of early age do not comprehend the
principle emphasized by Froebel.  There is only limited scope for correlation in the teaching of
various subjects in Kindergarten system. Conclusion Froebel was the first person who gave
attention to early childhood education. To him educationis a necessary condition for the
complete development of child. He envisaged the gifts will teach the child to use his/her
environment as an educational aid.
2.0 FROEBEL PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION

Froebel laid the foundation for modern education based on the recognition that children have unique
needs and capabilities. He is most famously known as "the father of kindergarten"; it was due to his
contributions that the notion of early childhood education was born. Froebel’s religious belief form the
basis of his educational philosophy .For him God is at the heart of the universe as well at the heart of
education. He opined that education consists in "leading man, as a thinking, intelligent being, growing into
self-consciousness, to a pure and unsullied, conscious and free representation of the inner law of divine
unity, and in teaching him ways and means thereto. Froebel philosophy of education is pedagogical in the
sense that it is interested in the education of children

2.1 Kindergarten:
This is the school opened by Froebel to educate the children. It means Garden of small kids. His
educational thoughts applied through this school. In this very school he provided full and free
opportunities to children for the expression of their self activities. Child was educated and guided on the
principles of self experience, observation and socialization. Child expresses himself through activities and
plays. Mother's play and nursery rhymes together with gifts, and occupation were used as means of
educating the child.

2.2 METHODS OF EDUCATION IN FROEBEL

Froebel's teaching method was Kindergarten centered.

Mainly three methods were employed there: a) use of gifts and occupation
b) singing of his songs and c) the games

Teaching through song : in the kindergarten ,education is generally imparted through songs .songs are
included in the daily school program . Each song has three parts (i) a motto for the mother’s guidance (ii)
a verse for singing to the child and (iii) a picture illustrating the verse. Songs and stories stimulate the
child’s imagination and introduce him or her to their cultural literature. Songs also help for mental and
physical development

Teaching through gift and occupation: Gifts are simple educational toys given to children in a definite
order without charging their form. The children are given freedom to handle them in the way their like.
Gifts signify the material while occupation represents activities which are suggested by that material and
which can be continued with the help of the material. Occupation include activities like construction with
paper , clay , wood , and material . the gift helps in awakening the child’s power to conceptualize and lead
him or her to recognize ultimate truth

Teaching through play: It is through play that the child discloses his real self and clearly indicates his
interest . Froebel opined that play is not only a child medium of learning but also his or her work for he
noted “play is the characteristic activity of childhood .it is the highest phase of child development of
human development to this period , for it is self active representation or the inner representation of the
inner form, inner necessity and impulse

2.3 Roles of the teacher:

Teacher in the Kindergarten acts as a gardener, whose function is to see that young plants (small
children) under her care grow according to their own natural course of development. Froebel compares
young growing children with plants and, therefore, he asks the teachers to let the children grow and
develop in accordance with their natural endowments. So the teacher is instructed not to distort the
natural endowments, powers and tendencies of children by undue and willful interference in their
activities. The teacher is simply to redirect the child's growth to natural direction when she feels that the
child is going astray. According to Froebel, education is controlled development so it is the duty of the
teacher to control this process. So, here, a teacher does not mean the person who teaches or impacts
knowledge in the other people, but one who guides and controls the process of self-directed leanings
among the little ones.

2.4 CRITICISM OF FROEBEL PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION

There is too much focus on motor skill and that more language,writing and reading would benefit the
children, also gift and occupation should be supplemented with more academic type of activities
Also the theory of not teaching a child but guarding him/her as he explores things will cause latency in
knowing things
Froebel advocating for natural consequence whereby a child get corrected only bt experience ,this can be
dangerous to individual because he get to learn things which can be a dangerous to his health or life only
by being a victim of that.
Furthermore, looking at the complexities of some technological and scientific gadgets in the world today, I
doubt if this Froebelian theory can hold in all dimensions of life. If a child is left to learn how to use some
of these complicated and life-threatening instruments, there is every possibility that the child may be
injured, electrocuted or even lose his life without proper trainings on how to use such gadgets, especially
electrical gadgets
1. The Educational Theory of Herbert Spencer 1. Theory of Value: development of independent
thought;  importance of presenting the "natural history of society" survival of the fittest; 
learning as an individual effort;

2. 6. 1.Theory of Value:  education should be directed to self- preservation, care of offspring,

preparing adults to enjoy nature, literature, fine arts, prepare to be good citizens;  knowledge
of science worth more than any other knowledge;  train the memory, cultivate judgment,
impart an admirable moral and religious discipline;  advocacy of instruction in public and
private hygiene

3. 7. 2. Theory of Knowledge: knowledge as the scientific study of education, psychology,

sociology, and ethics from an evolutionary point of view; two fundamental beliefs -
importance of science, sanctity of political and economic laissez-faire;  philosophy is
knowledge of highest generality; man can only know from experiences; all thought founded on
relations - humans think in terms of differences and likenesses

4. 8. 3. Theory of Human Nature: notion of intelligence as mental capacity; "If they are
sufficiently complete to live, they do live, and it is well they should live. If they are not
sufficiently complete to live, they die, and it is best they should die."  a stage of evolution

5. 9. 4. Theory of Learning: learning as an individual effort; learning as synthesis of all thought;
learning should be collaborative; good training of the senses to observe accurately;
"rational explanation of phenomena"

6. 10. 5.Theory of Transmission: science as the most important subject matter;  curriculum to

be a synthesis of thought based on science (especially evolution), and including philosophies of
education, biology, psychology, sociology, ethics, and politics individual to teach self, aided by
teachers, books, observation, laboratory work

7. 11. 6.Theory of Society: progress of all kinds should be maximized by societies and

governments that allow free competition to reign in all spheres of activity; unregulated free
enterprise; survival of the fittest

8. 12. 7.Theory of Opportunity: All young people should be taught; education open to competent
children or adults without fee; survival of the fittest

9. 13. 8.Theory of Consensus: No beliefs are wholly false; they are true to the point to which they
all agree; eliminate the discordant elements and observe what remains after; this is truth and
should take precedence

10. 14. Important Matters: Knowledge that is best for use in life is also best for the development of
power Emphasis on physical education Importance of science in the curriculum
Johann Friedrich Herbart (1776-1841) was a Ger man philosopher-psychologist and
educator, noted for his contributions in laying the foundations of scientific study of
education.
Johann Friedrich Herbart was born on May 4, 1776, in Oldenburg, the son of the state
councilor for Oldenburg. He attended the University of Jena (1794-1799). While there he
studied under Johann Gottlieb Fichte and met Friedrich von Schiller. Upon graduation
Herbart went to Interlaken, Switzerland, where he served as tutor to the governor's three
sons. In Switzerland he met Johann Pestalozzi and visited his school at Burgdorf.
Herbart taught philosophy and pedagogy at Göttingen (1802-1809). He began to seek a
sound philosophical base upon which to rest his educational theories. His major works
during this time include ABC's of Observation (1804), The Moral or Ethical Revelation of the
World: The Chief Aim of Education (1804), General Pedagogics (his chief educational work,
1806), Chief Points of Logic (1806), Chief Points of Metaphysics (1806), and General
Practical Philosophy (1808).
In 1809 Herbart accepted the chair of philosophy at Königsberg University. He met Wilhelm
von Humboldt, the Prussian commissioner of education, and at his request served on the
commission for higher education. Herbart, a believer in normal schools and teacher
education, sponsored the establishment of a pedagogical school and practice (laboratory)
school at Königsberg in 1810. He then married Mary Drake, an English girl.
Herbart wrote System of Psychology (1814), Text-book of Psychology (1816), Psychology
as a Science (1825), and a two-volume work, General Metaphysics (1829). His work cast
him as a liberal thinker in many minds, and this did not fit well into the reactionary tone then
gaining headway in Prussia. It cost him an appointment to Hegel's vacated chair of
philosophy at Berlin University in 1831. Dissatisfied with the way things were progressing in
Prussia, Herbart returned to Göttingen in 1833. He lectured at the university and
published Outline of Pedagogical Lectures (1835). He died on Aug. 11, 1841.

Philosophy of Education
Herbart's influence on educational theory is very important, even at the present time. He not
only developed a philosophical-psychological rationale for teaching but a teaching method
as well. Herbart believed that the mind was the sum total of all ideas which entered into
one's conscious life. He emphasized the importance of both the physical and the human
environment in the development of the mind. To Herbart, ideas were central to the process.
He felt they grouped themselves into what he called "apperceptive masses." By assimilation
(or apperception) new ideas could enter the mind through association with similar ideas
already present. This was the learning process.
Herbart's method of instruction has been identified by his students as involving the "Five
Formal Steps of the Recitation." These are preparation, presentation, association,
generalization, and application. Herbart went further to emphasize that through the proper
correlation of subjects (curriculum materials) the student would come to understand the total
unity of what is the world.
In Germany, Leipzig and Jena became centers for Herbartianism. It was through the
influence of Americans who studied at Jena that the ideas of Herbart reached the United
States (ca. 1890). The advocates formed the National Herbartian Society in 1892 (now the
National Society for the Study of Education). Its purpose was to promote Herbart's ideas as
they might relate to America's needs. The principal criticism which has been leveled at the
Herbartians is the extreme formality into which they let Herbart's instructional method fall.