The blind spot: Hidden Gems of Knowledge and Education
Jürgen Vollmer
On April 4th we took a walk along the WissensSpur, that was conducted in English. The theme of the tour focused on blind spots of our perception: which gems knowledge and educational history remain hidden on our everyday routes?
Historical Context
Nikolai school and Antkikenmuseum of Leipzig University in Das Zentrum vpm Leipzig: Gestern und heute. Foto: Horst Brandt und Friedrich Niessner.
We began the tour in front of the Nikolai School with a brief introduction to educational privileges in medieval times, including Monastic schools (Thomasschule, since 1212) and the first municipal schools (Nikolaischule, 1512).
School Museum
Visiting the Schulmuesum. Foto: Louisa Becker.
At the School Museum we explored how school education has developed in Leipzig in the past 150 years — with a special focus on the social subtext in mathematics textbooks, science education, and the New Education movement. We extend our sincere gratitude to the head of the museum, Dr. Jörn-Michael Goll, for his warm hospitality and his insightful explanations.
New Schools in the 19th Century
Walking past “Weißes Roß” in Leipzig around 1800; inspired by a painting of the Stadtgeschichtliches Museum Leipzig Inv. Nr. 5544. © Wissensspuren.
As we walked through the city center we learned about the emergence of free, high-quality public education by the Freischulen founded roughly 250 years ago.
Subsequently, we crossed the Rossplatz, the venue of the “Weißes Roß” where the Samuel-Heinicke-School was founded. We also learned about the remarkable accomplishments of Anna Catharina Elisabeth Heinicke, who led the school for 38 years. During her tenure she secured fundin for the first dedicated school building, and later in life she still witnessed the erection of the second, substantially larger building in the (present) Liebigstraße, not far from the venue of the Henriette-Goldschmidt-School.
Assimilation, Education, and (Forced) Migration
Visiting the Leibniz Institute for Jewish History and Culture – Simon Dubnow. Foto: Louisa Becker.
We are grateful to Dr. Julia Roos for her expert tour of the exhibition at the Leibniz Institute for Jewish History and Culture – Simon Dubnow. Her insights offered a profound understanding of the challenges involved in re-establishing Jewish life, culture, and education in post-war Poland. Afterwards we reflected on these impressions in a discussion about migration, as well as opportunities it presents for education and personal growth.
Conclusion
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Samuel-Heinicke School in May 2016. Martin Geisler, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
We concluded the tour with a stroll through the Schreber gardens KGV Johannistal and the botanical gardens in the Friedenspark, arriving finally at the Förderzentrum Samuel Heinicke which today houses the school along with various facilities for individuals with hearing impairments.