Like every other year, the Juniors of GZAAT are starting to get ready for their college applications, which can indeed be stressful. Many of them are studying for the SAT, preparing college lists, choosing their future Majors. It might come as a surprise for many of you, but this process has been somewhat different but still operating since the middle ages. Since medieval times, students ages 14-16 were getting ready for universities to build up their intellectual skills. One of the first universities- The European University is a special organization that originated from the conditions of medieval society. The idea of a university was born because people with skills and knowledge were needed in the middle ages. Therefore, universities were founded to preserve, enhance and transmit knowledge.
Their curriculum was somewhat similar to today’s learning programs; Medieval learning was based on the seven liberal arts. The quadrivium (four) was mathematically based, which includes arithmetic, music, geometry, and astronomy. These were much less popular than the linguistic trivium (three), which included grammar, rhetoric, and logic. These led to further study in theology, medicine, and law. Students were free to choose from the various courses. Unlike nowadays, then students were the ones hiring their masters (teachers). Thus they would revolt against them if they did not enjoy their teaching methods. Students had an uptight schedule starting from 5 am, filled with classes until 5 pm. They even had homework after school to keep them busy for the whole night. One can assume that some things never change!
The notion of University was always connected to the concept of freedom. The students were far away from their homes, in their university towns, and found various exciting ways to have fun. They often held many protests against the school system, against the church, even their curriculum. The students at the universities were the ones to play a big part in separating the universities from the church’s authority, thus creating a concept called “Student power.” They created their own set of rules that functions to this day.
Still, after so many centuries, students face the same difficulties as those in medieval periods. It is scary for everyone to meet the idea of getting ready for college, stepping into adulthood… The fear of the unknown is indeed stressful, but at least we do not have to start our courses at 6 am like the medieval students did!
Edited By Beqa Ramishvili
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