Friday Feature: Charlotte Mason
Earlier this week marked the 100th anniversary of the death of British education pioneer Charlotte Mason, whose influence continues to be felt around the world. This anniversary has prompted her fans to celebrate her legacy and share her story. While I was slightly familiar with her and her work, seeing these stories piqued my curiosity: who was Charlotte Mason and what was her philosophy?
Born on New Year’s Day in 1842, Charlotte was educated at home by her parents until she was orphaned—and impoverished—at the age of 16. Prior to that, Charlotte had dreamed of being a teacher. Unable to afford tuition, she made arrangements with a college to begin teaching while earning her teaching certificate so she could cover her costs.
Over many years of teaching in multiple schools, Charlotte formulated her own ideas about how best to educate children. She recognized the importance of home, so she gave a series of lectures to better equip parents to help their own children. In 1886, her lectures were published in Home Education, a book focused on educating children up to the age of nine. Some of the ideas she covered include how to encourage your child to grow mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically; ideas for enjoying time outdoors; how to cultivate good habits in children; and ways to develop a child’s will and conscience.
Shortly after Home Education was published, Charlotte started the Parent’s National Education Union (PNEU) to support parents educating their children at home. Her approach was child‐centered; she believed children are pre‐disposed to learn, so she promoted positive learning environments to encourage their natural inclinations. Before too long, PNEU schools that followed Charlotte’s educational philosophy were opening in England. She also started a monthly magazine, the Parent’s Review, to help parents and schools that followed her philosophy stay connected.
With growing interest in her educational approach, Charlotte opened the House of Education in Ambleside, England in 1891 to train governesses and others who worked with young children. She continued to write, eventually publishing several more books: Parents and Children, School Education, Ourselves, Formation of Character, and A Philosophy of Education. Her House of Education became a teacher training college to supply the new PNEU schools that were opening. Charlotte led these efforts—including the network of schools, the teaching college, and support for home educators—until her death on January 16, 1923.
Charlotte Mason’s House of Education has been renamed or brought under other entities over the years. It is currently part of the Ambleside campus of the University of Cumbria (UK), where Deani Van Pelt is a visiting research fellow in Charlotte Mason Studies. “The Charlotte Mason approach recognizes that kids are hungry and curious, that they welcome exposure to—and mastery of—new experiences, and that they flourish when joy is a feature of their learning,” says Deani. “Children in a Charlotte Mason program encounter historical, literary, and scientific traditions through literature. And they spend hours outdoor learning about nature through journaling and exploring all the plants, birds, insects, and animals around them.”
In Home Education, Charlotte said, “We are limited to three educational instruments the atmosphere of environment, the discipline of habit, and the presentation of living ideas.” She further explained each of these pillars: the home environment must be conducive to learning, good habits of mind and body need to be thoughtfully formed, and students should learn using living methods. Charlotte also believed a child’s natural relationship with God should be encouraged and that Bible stories were an important part of a good education.
According to Sonya Shafer, co‐founder of Simply Charlotte Mason, “At the time of Charlotte Mason’s death, she had trained some 400 students to be teachers, and there were hundreds of elementary schools, secondary schools, and home schools all over the world using her programs and following her approach to educate about 40,000 children.” Today, there are private and charter schools, homeschool co‐ops, distance and online options, and various curricular materials that follow her philosophy in the U.S. and around the world.