VF: Cultural Lesson - Roman Education

Roman Education

Recall that Pseudolus, as a slave in the imperial house, is a magister - a teacher. His role was a common one for Greeks, who were considered the most highly educated people. Prior to the late Republic, Rome did not have a formal education system. Children were mostly educated at home in the necessary skills and customs of Roman society. Most children began their schooling around the age of seven. The wealthiest families provided Greek tutors or slaves for instruction in the home. The historian Plutarch offered insight on the role of Greeks in Roman education:

For the teachers were all Greeks: not only the grammarians and philosophers and rhetoricians, but also the modelers and painters, the overseers of horses and dogs, and the teachers of the art of hunting, by whom the young men were surrounded.

Plurtach, Aemilius Paulus 6

Roman Education Overview

When discussing Roman education, it is important to remember a few factors.

• First, education was mostly reserved for the wealthy; there was no public school system, so to participate in the educational system cost money up front (even public schools cost money, but that money is distributed to the whole population through taxation).
• Second, most Romans learned their parents' trade with or without a formal education. A boy would take on his father's role while a girl would learn how to run a household from her mother. 
• Third, in general, only boys participated in formal education beyond the basics of reading and writing, and this was especially true of the highest levels of education, where women were simply not involved.

Ludus Litterarius

Most Romans did send their children to a primary school called ludus litterarius to learn basic reading, writing and arithmetic. The image above depicts a magister instructing students in a ludus litterarius. These schools were private, so the expense would vary depending on the quality of the litterator - the instructor. Wealthy children would often have a Greek chaperone who accompanied them to school, called a paedogogus. At the ludus litterarius, students would use tabulae et styli (wax tablets and pens) to practice writing. The lessons were rigorous and demanded strict study, discipline, and a great deal of memorization.

Higher Education

If a student wanted to continue their education after the elementary level (ludus litterarius) and the family could afford it, at age 12 they would move up to a higher level of education where they would be instructed by a grammaticus. The grammaticus would focus on the essentials of grammar and literature.

The story in this course (Caedes Foedissima) focuses on a set of students in the imperial household. These students are working under unique circumstances, because Pseudolus is such a talented magister. Most students were not able to continue their higher education at home. At the age of 15, advanced students would go to a rhetor for the Roman equivalent of higher education. A rhetor would instruct students in the art of oratory - public speaking. Between their time with the grammaticus and the rhetor, students were expected to master Latin and Greek literature, to gain a deep understanding of grammar and poetry and to work towards perfection in the art of public speaking. Exceptionally wealthy students could then study oratory and philosophy in Greece, considered the highest level of educational attainment.

The image depicts a rhetoric class in ancient Rome and was used as the frontispiece to a 1720 edition of Quintilian's Institutio Oratoria. A frontispiece in books generally refers to a decorative or informative illustration facing a book's title page.

Roman Education Review - levels of education:

• Age 7 - Taught at Ludus Litterarius.
  • Equivalent to elementary school - basics of grammar taught.
• Age 12 - Taught by a Grammaticus.
  • Advanced skills learned in grammar and literature.
• Age 15 - Taught by a Rhetor.
  • Oratory and the most advanced skills in grammar and literature.