The Life of Napoleon I (Volume 1 of 2) by John Holland Rose
page 313 of 596 (52%)
page 313 of 596 (52%)
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or to leave it blank.
The result can scarcely be cited as a proof of his educational zeal. Elementary schools were left to the control and supervision of the communes and of the _sous-préfets_, and naturally made little advance amidst an apathetic population and under officials who cared not to press on an expensive enterprise. The law of April 30th, 1802, however, aimed at improving the secondary education, which the Convention had attempted to give in its _écoles centrales_. These were now reconstituted either as _écoles secondaires_ or as _lycées_. The former were local or even private institutions intended for the most promising pupils of the commune or group of communes; while the _lycées_, far fewer in number, were controlled directly by the Government. In both of these schools great prominence was given to the exact and applied sciences. The aim of the instruction was not to awaken thought and develop the faculties, but rather to fashion able breadwinners, obedient citizens, and enthusiastic soldiers. The training was of an almost military type, the pupils being regularly drilled, while the lessons began and ended with the roll of drums. The numbers of the _lycées_ and of their pupils rapidly increased; but the progress of the secondary and primary schools, which could boast no such attractions, was very slow. In 1806 only 25,000 children were attending the public primary schools. But two years later elementary and advanced instruction received a notable impetus from the establishment of the University of France. There is no institution which better reveals the character of the French Emperor, with its singular combination of greatness and littleness, of wide-sweeping aims with official pedantry. The University, as it existed during the First Empire, offers a striking |
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