roots and Émile is first of all a protest against the pessimistic view of man after original sin, as viewed by Protestants and Jansenists. This is highlighted by Rousseau himself in an answer to the newspaper Mandement on 8 November 1762 when the Archbishop, who was decidedly anti-Jansenism, condemned the book.1349
Leaving aside the theological conflict and the well -founded suspicion of 'naturalism', Catholics,
without the Reformers, could have taken advantage of the occasion to revise their view of man after
original sin, and they could have corrected obviou s deviations created by Protestants and Jansenists. A
correct rediscovery of what was left in a human being from original creation would have helped
reclaim the human potential to rely to construct a Christian education respectful of what was human
and nat ural in the child. Revelation and Grace certainly did not imply that the Governeur was to have an authoritarian and oppressive role at all levels: political, ecclesiastical discipline, education. Rousseau became the forerunner of the 'Copernican revolution' in pedagogy and in didactics which would end up as 'new education', carried out in 'new schools'. 'New education' has a critical stance vis- a-vis education and traditional schools. They are accused of focusing on the objectives, the programs, on the educator and therefore on an adult-oriented education far from the complete life of the student to be educated.
'New education' aims at giving the old relationship a new place, setting the pupil at its centre, as the protagonist of his own development, in terms of his own needs and interests, which happen to be a hunger for life rather than for culture. In Europe there is discussion of the 'active school', (Adophe Ferrière)1350, of 'functional education', 'school made to measure', (Edward Claparede).
1351
In the Unite d States there is talk of 'progressive education' (John Dewey).
1352
In Italy there is discussion of 'activism'.
The last qualification marked the beginning, among Catholics, of attempts to revise, to acclimate one's
positions within the perimeters of a Christ ian vision of the world, of education and catechesis.
1353 The reason for the existence of the 'new schools' and 'activism' vary according to the different
orientations, authors and experiences. At times some references are made to features which could be
comp ared to the classic "preventive system". The preferred setting is that which is set apart from
everything and protected, like the countryside. There is repeated use of terms such as experience,
research, manual work, ability to work with ones hands, and th e pupil's autonomy. Adolphe Ferrière
expresses, in thirty specifications, the peculiar features of a 'new school', offering ten indicators for
three types of formation: general, intellectual, moral.
The 'new school' is a 'laboratory' of 'practical pedagog y'; a boarding institution located in the
countryside, it divides the pupils into groups and puts them in separate houses; it prefers co -education, promotes work; priority is given to workshops for manual work such as the carpenter shop, agricultural
1349 Cf. J.J. Rousseau, Lettre..., in Oeuvres complètes, t. IV, pp. 932-933.
1350 Cf. A. Ferrière. La scuola attiva. Florence, Bemporad 1930 XXIV-313 p.; L'école active. Textes fondateurs, par D.
Hameline, A. Jornord, M. Belkaïd. Paris, PUF 1995, 128 p.
1351 É Claparède, L'education fonctionelle, Neuchâtel, Delachaux et Niestlé 1931, 266 p.; Idem, L'école sure measure.
Neuchâtle, Delachauxet Niestlé 1953, 140 p.
1352 J. Dewey, Interest and Effort in Education. Boston, Houghton Mifflin Co. 1913, IX-101 p; Democracy and
Education. New York, MacMillan CO. 1916, XII-434 p.; My Pedagogic Creed, New York, E.L. Kellogg 1897, 36 p.; C.
W. Washburne,Che chos'è l'educazione progressiva? Florence. La Nuova Italia 1953 (original edition, New York, The
John Day Co. 1942).
1353 É Devaud, Pour une école active selon l'ordre chrétien. Paris, Desclée de Brouwer 1934, 368 p. - interpretations
and additions; M. Casotti, Scuola attiva. Brescia, la Scuola 1941, 318 p.; A. Agazzi, Oltre la scuola attiva. Storia,
essenza, significato dell'attivismo. Brescia, La Scuola 1955, 244 p.; G. Nosengo, L'attivismo nell'insegnamento
religioso della scuola media. Milan, IPL 1938, 281 p.; Idem, Sette lezioni di attivismo catechistico. Milan, IPL 1940,
184 p.; S. Riva, Esperienze e indirizzi di pedagogia attiva religiosa. Florence, LEF 1940, 184 p.; Idem, La pedagogia
religiosa del novecento in Italia. Uomini, idee, opere. Roma, Brescia, Antoniannum/La Scuola 1972, 379 p.; for a
discussion on the broad spectrum of pedagogues and Catholic philosophers cf. L'attivismo pedagogico. Atti del II
Convegno di Scholé, Brescia, 9-11 Sept. 1955. Brescia, La Scuola 1956, 358 p.