Enlightenment Thought in New Zealand Schools

In this essay I will be looking at how the political and intellectual ideas of the enlightenment have shaped New Zealand Education. I will also be discussing the perennial tension of local control versus central control of education, and how this has been affected by the political and intellectual ideas of the enlightenment.

The enlightenment was an intellectual movement, which beginnings of were marked by the Glorious Revolution in Britain. (Kramnick, 1995). The enlightenment movement continued evolving over the following centuries. The main aim of the enlightenment was to make the world more focused on the individual rather than the authority of one person. The individual was not longer under the control of a government that had been given authority from God. Kant (1995) described it as a “man’s release from his self-incurred tutelage.” (p.1). This is talking about the individuals right to use their own judgment and reasoning not just accepting what others say and whet they are told. Kramnick (1995) stated that enlightenment intellectuals believed “human reason, not faith or tradition was the principle to human conduct.” (Kramnick, 1995, p.xi). This focus on the individual is summed up by Kant (1995, p.1) said “Have courage to use your own reason.” This in other worlds is telling people to think for themselves. With the enlightenment movement being for the individual, the individual had to learn that there were now responsibilities for each individual to take on if society was to function properly. The focus of the enlightenment of the rights of the individual allowed people to be more free, as stated by Kant (1995) “if only freedom is granted, enlightenment is almost sure to follow” (p.2). The individual was set fee in three...

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