genders entrusted, in small groups, to their respective male or female instructor.161

What needs to be underlined is the strict connection that the style of education practiced in the 'little schools' of Port Royal has with the preventive system in general, and in particular with the Don Bosco’s educational experience. Even though the Piedmontese educator does not venture into the theological elaborations of the Port Royalists, he does present, in his educational praxis, not a few similarities with the ones used by the Port Royalists.162 But these similarities have to do with the style, seasoning the attitudes of the educators towards their pupils. As far as the contents and contexts are concerned, however, the life experience of the young Port Royalists is much more austere than the one lived by the young people who packed into Don Bosco's Oratories and schools.

Evidently the promoters and administrators of the 'little schools' support the absolute primacy of grace in reference to salvation and therefore also in reference to the educational process. This, however, does not exclude personal responsibility and commitment, rather it highlights them.

For several reasons, a child is a defenseless creature, exposed to the attacks of the Tempter, undermined like everyone by original sin; a fragile creature because of his age, because of his psycho-physical structure, because of the pressures of the environment. The work of an educator is absolutely necessary for the following reasons: to protect the child's innocence; to preserve the child from evil, a wound which will render salvation even more difficult to attain; to restore his fallen nature; to discipline his passions; to strengthen his spirit and his will and to render his heart good.

Contributions to all this are provided by the supernatural means offered by Faith and the constant, vigilant and affectionate work of the educator who accompanies, encourages and urges the child on, acting in cooperation with God as an indispensable "useless servant" who, more than being the “orator” (oratore), is first of all the “pray-er”(orante). “The devil attacks children and they do not fight back. Hence the need to fight for them... Separation from the world, good example are the best help other than prayer, that one can give them”.163

Jacqueline Pascal, in her book Rules for children writes: “I believe that in order to usefully serve children, we should never speak to then and not even work for their good without looking at God, and without begging him for his grace, with the desire to draw from him all that is needed to train children in the fear of God.164

Therefore the educational space is especially an area separated from the world and its dangers, in the countryside or within the confines of a house or a boarding institution. It is its own little supervised universe, that is, the pupils are constantly supervised — the first imperative for an organisation — and under the direction of the educators. The small family, like groups of five or six pupils, are entrusted to educators who share the life of their pupils day and night. The main goal is not only to preserve the children's innocence, but also to foster their active growth by teaching everything that can help them grow in virtue and knowledge and in love of things eternal. This is dictated by infinite zeal, suggested

161 For the ‘Little schools’ of Port-Royal, cf. Les Pédagogues de Port Royal… Historie des Petites Écoles. Notices, extraits

et analyses avec des notes, par. 1 (Carré, Paris: Delagrave 1887). p. 287-337 Règelement pour les enfants de Port-Royal

by Jacqueline Pascal; L. Cavallone, I maestri e le ‘piccole scuole’ di Port-Royal, (Turin: Paravia 1942); F. Delforge, Les

petites écoles de Port-Royal 1637-1660, (Paris: Éditions du Cerf 1985), 438 pages.; an excellent contribution, attentive

to the connections between theology, pedagogy and didactic theory is offered by M. Ferrari, “Le piccole scuole di Port

Royal: una didattica teoricamente fondata”, in Scuola e città 37 (1986): 522-531.

162 P. Stella offers some interesting observations, and clarifications of comparison, dependencies, similarities, in his Don

Bosco nella storia della religiosità cattolica, vol 2, pp. 232-236, 260, 317, 451-452.

163 Entretien de Saint Cyran et de M. Le Maître sur les enfants, cied by M. Ferrari, Le piccole scuole, e 528; F. Delforge,

Les petites écolese, pp. 269-276.

164 Règelement pour les enfants, part 2, n.1, 393. Quoted from the edition contained in the work by V. Cousin, Jacqueline

Pascal, Premières études sur les femmes illustres et la société du XVIIe siècle, (Paris:. Didier et Cie 1856) Ed. 1844,

358-425.