The beginning of the age of Hellenism is usually marked with the advent of Alexander the Great (336–323 B.C.) and then continuing for five centuries. The term Hellenism not only describes the military and political occupation by Greek leaders, but it also signifies the large cultural movement that expanded across the empire. At the center of this cultural and political movement was education. The Hellenistic epoch produced a new understanding of humankind, and education was responsible for this advancement. In fact, the Greek culture has been described as the “civilization of paideia.” The Hellenistic period was a splendid time for learning.

The goal of education in this period was to produce good citizens. Learning was not for the sake of gaining a skill in order to secure employment. Rather, all types of learning, whether mathematical analysis or rhetoric, were for developing culture. Education meant the training of character and taste and the development of the body, mind, and imagination—all for the purpose of producing a better Athens. To be educated was to discover the worth of the individual, to produce citizens who loved beauty and loved Athens.

A system for education was developed in order to accomplish these goals. The central place for learning in the preschool years was the family. The Greeks focused on the importance of play, dance, and stories for young children.

At the age of seven, the young boy was sent to Greek school and given a formal opportunity to learn to read and write. Girls generally did not receive an education outside the home. A standard system and curriculum prevailed in the elementary school. Each Greek student had three teachers who taught the basic subjects. These teachers were sometimes paid by the city. The grammatistes taught reading, writing, arithmetic, and poetry; the kitharistes taught the seven-stringed lyre and songs of ancient Greek poets; and the paidotribes taught physical development such as wrestling, boxing, running, jumping, and throwing the javelin and discus. To learn music and letters were two important components of study, and these subjects were taught simultaneously.

The teaching methodology in the elementary school was based on memorization and drill. The young boy was taught Greek letters by means of metrical alphabets, visual aids from live choral performers who would physically represent the letters of the alphabet as they sang the letters. Writing was also important. Wax tablets were used as copybooks because papyrus and vellum were expensive and could not be reused as easily as the wax tablets. Dictation came next. The teacher would read passages from great poets, and the students would listen carefully, recite the passage after him, and then finally memorize the passage. There were no children’s books, so children began hearing the classics early. Recitation was also important, because it was not only a repetition of the words but also an opportunity to live and act out the part.
Arithmetic was taught more as a game than as a science. Greek educators attached a great deal of importance to play as a pedagogical tool. To become a good builder, therefore, the student must play at building toy houses. To be a good farmer, the student must play at tilling the land. Arithmetic was like play for students who measured angles and counted spaces for the building of a play house. Plato understood the value of mathematical training when he wrote that “in relation to economics, to politics, and to all the arts, no single branch of educational science possesses so great an influence as the study of numbers: its chief advantage is that it wakes up the man who is by nature drowsy and slow of wit, and makes him quick to learn, mindful, and sharp-witted, progressing beyond his natural capacity by art divine.”

Music had a major role in the education of a young man. The music, however, was not just instrumental music, but music with texts. Plutarch said, “The right moulding or ruin of ingenuous manner and civil conduct lies in a well-grounded musical education.” Actual training in music began when a young boy was thirteen years old. He then learned to play the lyre and to sing. The focus of the training was not to produce perfect musicians but to instill an appreciation for great music.

Physical education was also important in the elementary school. Plato understood that physical fitness was necessary for a good life. The young boy was taught how to sit correctly and how to stand straight. He was also given instruction in gesticulation, exercises to increase agility and graceful arm movements. He then received training in wrestling, boxing, pankration (combination of boxing and wrestling), running, long jump, and throwing the discus and the javelin.

After these early years of elementary education were completed, the Greek boy of about 14 or 15 years of age would go on the gymnasium for further instruction if his parents could afford it. The gymnasium was crucial to the educational system. Like the Jewish synagogue, the Greek gymnasium was the center for instruction as well as a social club for the citizens. The director of the gymnasium was a powerful person in the society. Called gymnasiarch, this important city dignitary was usually a rich citizen who could support the institution from his own means, although usually the gymnasiums were built and owned by the state. The gymnasium was not only a place to compete physically. Many boys went to the gymnasiums in order to sharpen their literary skills. They usually visited the gymnasiums in the afternoons and then had dinner. Exercise was taken out in the open air. Free lectures might be given by visiting scholars in the dressing rooms or in the outside cloister. Women were prohibited from the gymnasiums. And because this was an important means of educating and preserving the citizens of the state, women were again pushed to the sidelines or periphery of intellectual life.

The sophists, teachers who have been described as the founders of educational science and of pedagogy, brought educational reform to Athens. They determined to improve the old system under which a child’s education essentially concluded at 15 years of age. These wandering scholars from the colonies in Asia Minor gave instruction to those who had not benefited from education beyond elementary school. They were basically concerned with preparing young men for public careers. The preparation involved extensive training in speech—grammar, rhetoric, and oratory. The sophists traveled around from city to city, calling and gathering disciples. While on the road, the students would learn from the teacher by informal association and conversation as well as by direct instruction. It was also important to learn to imitate the teacher—to follow his example. The sophists had good success with the young Athenians who were looking for a new form of intellectual discourse. Protagoras, the most famous teacher of all of the sophists, advocated that the real cultural education of a citizen begins after leaving school, when the state forces him to live in accordance with their pattern and example.

From the sophists came the rhetorical and philosophical schools that would persist for hundreds of years. The first one was established by Isocrates near Lyceum about 390 B.C. Students came to him from all over the Greek world, and they became the future politicians and statesmen. Plato established his academy about 386 B.C. with a program given over to philosophy and mathematics. The focus, however, was not on preparation for public service but on the goal of discovering truth. This school and others remained primarily in Athens and did not follow the traveling tradition of the sophists.

In describing the role of teacher, Socrates uses the image of a midwife when he says, “Come then to me remembering that I am the son of a midwife and have myself midwife’s gifts and do your best to answer the questions I ask as I ask them.” The role of the teacher was tremendously important to the success of these philosophical groups.

The success of the schools of Socrates, Plato, Aristotle and others can also be attributed to their community life. These centers of intellectual thought were also centers of shared life. As the students learned, they also studied and fellowshipped together around a meal. Even after the death of their teacher, the group continued on in the style of their former leader. The teacher and his philosophy of life and teaching style were crucial to the formation and longevity of these ancient schools.

Education was a powerful element in Hellenism, and teachers played a crucial role. The dissemination of information and the building of an appropriate political structure for the empire were important products of the educational system. Not only did the educational methods serve the state, but the Greek system has also given us the basis for an educational theory that promotes liberal arts and a general appreciation for learning so that the life of the individual might be transformed.

Works Consulted (for Jewish and Hellenistic Education)

Barclay, William. Educational Ideals in the Ancient World. London: Collins, 1959.

Bridges, Linda McKinnish. “To Be a Disciple.” Biblical Illustrator (Spring 1990): 16–19.

Crim, Keith R., ed. Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible.  Nashville: Abingdon, 1976. S.v. “Education, OT” by J. Kaster.

               . Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible. Nashville: Abingdon, 1976. S.v. “Education, NT” by S.V. McCasland.

Freedman, David Noel, ed.  Anchor Bible Dictionary, Vol. 2. New York and London: Doubleday, 1992.  S.v. “Education (Israel)” by André Lemaire.

Hengel, Martin. Judaism and Hellenism. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1984.

Jaeger, Werner. Paideia: The Ideals of Greek Culture. 2nd ed. Translated by Gilbert Highet. 3 vols. New York: Oxford University Press, 1965.

Koester, Helmut. Introduction to the New Testament: History, Culture, and Religion of the Hellenistic Age. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1982.

Mohler, James. The School of Jesus. New York: Alba House, 1973.

Smith, William. Ancient Education. New York: Philosophical Library, 1955.

Wilds, Elmer. The Foundations of Modern Education. New York: Holt, Rhinehart and Winston, 1970.