Eliot, Charles W. (1834–1926)

From College to University

At the time of Eliot's election, which was not unanimous, most American colleges were basically small liberal arts institutions that concentrated on classical studies and were governed by clergymen. Not only was Eliot a scientist rather than a minister, he was also known to be an advocate of reform in higher education. Just months before he became president of Harvard, Eliot had published a two–part article titled “The New Education” in The Atlantic Monthly. Eliot had declared that the old struggle over whether literary or scientific studies supplied the best mental training no longer held significance in modern education. He argued for the importance of both and stated that it was folly to suggest that any subject should be taught less than it then was. He reasoned instead that the curriculum should be expanded, deepened, and invigorated.

Reform Based on Freedom

In his inaugural address, Eliot laid out his plans for Harvard University. Not only did he expect the curriculum to expand, but he also called for higher standards, improved teaching methods, and increased student choice in the selection of courses. The “elective system” is perhaps the best known of Eliot's reforms. All required subjects were removed from the senior year by 1872; in 1879 all junior courses became elective, and by 1884 sophomores were given elective privileges and freshmen were required to study only rhetoric, English composition, and German or French for one year, plus a few lectures on chemistry and physics. Eliot defended the elective system by noting that it promoted specialization, heightened student interest, motivated professors to enliven their classes, and encouraged research and graduate study. There was also the practical dimension: No student could take more than a fraction of all the courses that constituted the burgeoning university curriculum. Choices had to be made and that responsibility should rest upon the individual student.

The elective system and many other reforms at Harvard were grounded in Eliot's belief in individual freedom. While he recognized that choice involved risk, he maintained that the freedom to choose developed character. He was insistent that both students and professors should have academic freedom. Freedom of choice for students included not only their selection of courses, but freedom in their private lives and, by 1880, complete freedom regarding class attendance. Eliot drastically reduced the long list of rules and regulations and separated records of scholarship from disciplinary records. As progressive as these steps were, Eliot was slower to acquiesce in the abolition of required chapel attendance, a practice not made voluntary until 1886.

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