THE THEORY OF JEAN JACQUES ROUSSEAU

Theory in Education

The noblest work in education is to make a reasoning man, and we expect to train a young child
by making him reason! This is beginning at the end; this is making an instrument of a result. If
children understood how to reason they would not need to be educated.

— Rousseau, Emile, p. 52

In his idea of education, Rousseau placed a strong emphasis on the value of expression in raising
well-rounded, independent thinkers. He had the opinion that children will develop to their fullest
potential, both academically and ethically, if given the freedom to grow naturally, free from the
restraints placed on them by society. The needs and experiences of the child at each stage of
development should be the heart of this natural development, which should be child-centered.

Nature of Human Freedom Theory

The first man who, having fenced in a piece of land, said 'This is mine', and found people naive
enough to believe him, that man was the true founder of civil society. From how many crimes,
wars, and murders, from how many horrors and misfortunes might not any one have saved
mankind, by pulling up the stakes, or filling up the ditch, and crying to his fellows: Beware of
listening to this impostor; you are undone if you once forget that the fruits of the earth belong to
us all, and the earth itself to nobody.

— Rousseau 1754

Like other thinkers of his time, Rousseau looked to an idealized "state of nature" as a standard of
conduct. Humans would not have had "any moral interactions with or fixed obligations to one
another" in their pre-existing state. The differences between them would have made little effect
because of their infrequent interactions. The absence of property or conflict, as well as any
feelings of jealously or mistrust, would have resulted from their distinct living arrangements.

Source:
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jean-Jacques-Rousseau/Years-of-seclusion-and-exile