Cecil Reddie

Cecil Reddie (1858-1932) is a British pedagog, founder of the school of Abbotsholme, the first new school English.

Biography

Cecil Reddie was born in a Scottish family from the middle-class. Orphan at thirteen years, he was boarder during the six following years with the college of Fettes. Its experiment of supervisor leads it to decide to become teacher. It continues with the Université of Edinburgh studies of medicine and chemistry, and returns in 1885 in Fettes as a professor of sciences. The ideas that he preaches, in particular as regards sex education, indicate in the college, that he leaves in 1887 for Clifton College of Bristol-board.

It at that time meets the poet Edward Carpenter, who will have a great influence on his ideas of teacher. In 1889, it founds the school of Abbotsholme, with RF Muirhead and William Cassels who finances the experiment. The school opens with sixteen pupils. Very quickly, of the conflicts appear between the founders and Reddie remains alone directing school. These conflicts of people, due to the strong personality of Reddie, will be repeated throughout its career: the professors, often foreign, will follow one another Abbotsholme, coming to discover its practices, then setting out again to found their own schools.

In 1906, sick, it must leave the direction of Abbotholme to look after itself two years with the the United States. It takes again then the direction of the school until its retirement in 1927. The school has problems during the Guerre of Boers and the First World War because of sympathies pro-allemandes of Cecil Reddie; in 1927, it does not count any more that two pupils, and owes his survival only with the intervention of former students. Its successor, Hake Sharp, will rectify the situation quickly, but, with the wire of time, Abbotshome will become a more traditional college.

Educational principles

Influenced by the romantic authors, Cecil Reddie is not far from accepting the theories rousseauists of the man " naturally good " , however it estimates that these provisions with kindness require to be waked up and developed. He dreams of a school which made it possible to the children to transcend their potentialities.

This school is clearly intended for the formation of the aristocratic elite, for " to meet the normal needs for the leading classes of the English nation réorganisée". Reddie tries to remove the English college from lesson which he judges without relationship with reality, and closer to the cranium stuffing than of the instruction. He seeks a more practical and more coherent teaching. According to one of its first professors " the goal of Abbotsholme was to develop all faculties and qualities of the boys by a renovated and extended program which would connect the disciplines the ones to the others so that they are explained and are reinforced mutually, and which would adapt to the environment… ".

Reddie protests against the traditional colleges, " factories where one manufactured with the dozen candidates to the examens". The sport, tool of competition, are replaced by manual work and the agricultural work. Moral education has an important place, the oldest pupils framing youngest.

Influence

Work of Reddie at the school of Abbotsholme is an experiment pionnière which the first pedagogs will take as a starting point by the new education.

John Badley will be teaching in Abbotsholme of 1890 to 1892, it will take again certain principles of them to found since 1893 the school of Bedales. In 1896, Hermann Lietz remains several months with Abbotholme, before founding in Germany the movement of the popular schools. It makes known its ideals, in particular at Kurt Hahn and Adolphe Ferrière. Then, in 1897, Edmond Demolins will describe this attempt in has what holds the superiority of the Anglo-Saxons , following what it will found the school of the Rocks, pionnière in France of the active methods.

Another former teacher, Friedrich Gründer, publishes in 1910 " the movement of the new schools " and a New School in Switzerland founds.

Although as such having known little success in England, the work of Cecil Reddie can thus be considered as founder for new education. It rejects the system of English corporal punishment to substitute to him principles of self-discipline and tutorat. Although refusing co-education, it poses the principles of education by the real life. John Bradley, the founder of Bedales, said: " Reddie taught me all that I was to do and how not the faire.".

Source

English new schools , Robert Skidelsky, Maspero, 1972.

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