Secular education didn't mean that the moral instruction was abandoned. In fact the opposite was the case. As citizens of the new nation, parents were responsible for socialising their children into the moral code of Judeo-Christian civilisation. Teachers, acting in loco parentis, took on this responsibility at school.
Moral instruction was taught both directly and using stories from that ancient heritage. Good manners, respect for older people, decent conduct, and self-responsibility were expected from a young age.
What was called 'the Nelson System' was an attempt to balance the tension between those who wanted instruction into religious beliefs and those who wanted secular schools which taught the general moral code. The constant need for balance between conflicting interests is, today as in the 19th century, democracy's creative tension being practised in real life.
Moral instruction was taught both directly and using stories from that ancient heritage. Good manners, respect for older people, decent conduct, and self-responsibility were expected from a young age.
What was called 'the Nelson System' was an attempt to balance the tension between those who wanted instruction into religious beliefs and those who wanted secular schools which taught the general moral code. The constant need for balance between conflicting interests is, today as in the 19th century, democracy's creative tension being practised in real life.
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Professor Elizabeth Rata is a sociologist of education in the School of Critical Studies, Faculty of Education and Social Work at the University of Auckland where she is Director of the Knowledge in Education Research Unit (KERU).
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