Introduction
Briggs (1883, pp2) asserts that Egerton Ryerson was one of the most influential people in Canada’s education system. He was an evangelical but most importantly, he was an educator. This title was granted during his years of service as Chief Superintendent of Education. At the beginning of his term in office, the education system of Upper Canada was in dire need of reforms. It was characterized by discrimination; most of the children catered for belonged to colonial administrators. It was also unregulated and consequently, funds were raised in a haphazard manner, this implied that the system became impoverished.
When Ryerson was given the mandate to hold office, most of his decisions we based on the fact that he had interacted with many impoverished individuals during his missionary work in poor countries of the world. It was also influenced by his deeply religious background that affected the way he went about his challenges. He was able to change power imbalance and to affect the way people in Ontario and English-speaking Canada conduct their education system. The details of how he went about doing this will be examined in detail in the latter parts of the essay.
Biography of Egerton Ryerson
Egerton Ryerson was born in the month of March during the year 1803. This was in Charlotteville in the country of Norfolk. He was the son of Colonel Joseph Ryerson who was a loyalist to the United Empire. This later influenced his son Egerton who also held the same belief. Such a viewpoint was expressed when Egerton asserted that the monarch was a source of dignity to government. On top of that, he claimed that the government limited some of the excesses of the governed. However, one should not assume that Egerton did not believe in equality for the people, on the contrary, he placed equality over and above the rule of law.
Sissons, (1937, pp 15) explains that one of the earliest influences of Egerton Ryerson’s beliefs was his strong religious background. Ryerson had an Anglican father and a Methodist mother. As a young boy, he was raised as an Anglican but later dropped from that faith to become a Methodist at the tender age of eighteen. Anglicans were normally associated with a conservative nature while Methodists were considered as radicals. One could say that the reason why Ryerson had a balanced outlook in his career was that the conservative from Anglican Church neutralized Methodist tempers.
Ryerson was educated in the District Grammar School of London. He was very fond of reading. Paley, Blackstone, Blair, Locke, Virgil, and Horace were just some of the many books that Egerton loved to indulge in. There was a point in his life when he read too much to the point of becoming ill.
Ryerson became a missionary when he joined the Methodist church. He lived among the Indians and was known to participate in their labor activities as he would be seen from time to time working in the fields. This came to an end in the year 1825 when he was ordained minister in the latter church. Alongside this, he also held the firm belief that church and state should be separate entities; these were all viewpoints that he gained from his diverse readings.
The Methodist Church needed someone to represent them against accusations made by the well-established Anglican Church and there was no better person to do this than Ryerson. The Anglicans claimed that Methodists did not have any sense of patriotism and that they were traitors. During the following year, Ryerson wrote a thirty-page letter that had a great influence on the people of the land, even his own father was appalled by his actions.
To counter Ryerson’s actions, the Lieutenant governor made a proposal concerning the establishment of a university affiliated with Anglicans. He suggested that the University should only have teachers who held strong beliefs in the power of the state and were loyal to the church. Ryerson did not let this go unnoticed; he exposed the lack of depth in the Lieutenant’s proposal and made his mark as one of the great champions of reform in education.
Those issues articulated by Ryerson were not exclusive to the church alone, they also included the legislature. Every year, there were suggestions to the council to secularize the clergy so that proceeds could be redirected to the development of education. But these proposals were always rejected. Shepherd (2002, pp 52) believes that by this time, Ryerson was now seen as the biggest voice in the Methodist church.
His opponents assumed that he was very influential in his faith yet this was not the case practically. Members of the Methodist church thought he was rather accommodating. When asked to comment about the issue, Ryerson explained that he admires the principles of the Anglican Church and the effect that those principles had on its people. In 1829, Ryerson was appointed as secretary of the Wesleyan Missionary Society. Later on, he was also made an editor of a Christian newspaper called the Christian Guardian. In this capacity, he succeeded in uniting the Methodist church and Wesleyan Association in Canada.
In the year 1833, Ryerson was appointed as one of the representatives to a conference in London. While he was there, he presented a petition that had been signed by twenty thousand signatories. They were suggesting that the system of leaving reserves for clergymen should be abolished and the proceeds gained from that abolition should be directed towards education. The petition was presented to the Colonel. As Ryerson stayed in London, he gained a lot of influences in education and took those influences back home. These were expressed in a series of articles published by him concerning the impressions he got from England about culture, education, and politics. However, these suggestions received cold responses from residents. One of the writers in another newspaper called Ryerson a deserter to the American system.
Even the newspaper he worked on lost subscribers. Ryerson did not lose sight of his goals and kept championing the coz. He wanted to enlighten people about the core values of the Methodist church and to eliminate the stereotype that they belonged to a political party.
In the year 1834, reformists won the election and Ryerson did not waste any time in applying for a Royal Charter that would allow him to establish a non-Anglican University. He was accorded the Charter and formed Upper Canada Academy in Cobourg. Seven years later, the academy became Victoria College headed by Ryerson as its president.
Besides those activities, Ryerson was busy showing his political support as explained by Steinacher (2003, pp 569-571). He was one of the people who supported the election of a new Lieutenant Governor by the name Francis Bond head. Ryerson continuously showed how he respected the powers of the Lieutenant Governor and that he upheld the principles of the 1791 constitutional Act. However, he also believed that the councilors who advise the Lieutenant must incorporate the views of the majority of the people in parliament. Implying that Egerton was a liberal and a conservative; he believed in the institutions of the state but also had faith in the capabilities of the citizens to hold sound and credible opinions.
Ryerson began engaging in serious attacks. First of all, he sent a number of letters to the London Times where he discussed the situation of education in Canada; he backed it up with his strong opinions. This started raising some concerns among members of the Methodist Church. First, the British Conference of Methodists claimed that Ryerson should express less political sentiments in the Christian Guardian.
There was also a directive upheld to prevent further support of the latter mentioned paper by Methodist Clergy. On top of that, they wanted Ryerson to cease being editor of the Guardian. But these sentiments met some opposition because Ryerson was not alone in this; he had gained some support in the Methodist church. He really needed this support because opposition came from both sides, that is, the Church party and the reformers (who were initially thought of as his supporters).
Ryerson’s capacity as president of Upper Canada Academy necessitated frequent visits to England to obtain finances as found in Thomas’ (1969, pp 2) book. This was primarily because of the fact that local funding was not available. These commitments could probably be the reason why Methodists in general and Ryerson in particular, did not take part in the 1837 Rebellion. On top of this, Ryerson was very familiar with Poulett Thompson who became a close friend and ally.
The latter was appointed as Lieutenant and he requested Ryerson to assist in the provinces. Ryerson accepted the offer since he wanted to eliminate bitterness between the differing groups. During Thompson’s reign, the Christian Guardian was viewed by many as a mouthpiece for the government. This came in light of the fact most articles written in the past upheld the government’s views.
In the year 1841, Thompson passed away and Egerton thought that his political life had come to halt. He made the choice to accept a pastoral post in Toronto. But this was soon to come to an end. Two years after going to Toronto, he received a letter from the Assembly asking him to write a report concerning what had transpired between the Lieutenant and his councilors. The councilors had all resigned after the refusal of the L. governor to accept their proposals. Ryerson wrote a number of letters to the British Colonist that supported the decisions of Lieutenant Metcalfe during that incident. He claimed that some of those councilors were tyrannical and Metcalfe was simply trying to uphold the principle of good governance. These articles were brilliantly written and they influenced the opinions of the people in the subsequent election; Metcalfe won.
Briggs (1883, pp 2) notes that in the following year; 1844, Ryerson was offered the position of Upper Canada’s Superintendent of education. He had been offered this post by the last two governors but he was rejected. He felt that he could only accept the post when his opinions were strong enough to influence people as witnessed in the previous year’s election. In that capacity, Ryerson dedicated the next twenty-two years of his life to the process of advocating for the new generation and in the creation of the Public School system which is still upheld in Ontario today.
Ryerson pioneered numerous reforms in the system today. He got most of his influences from the following countries
- Ireland
- Prussia
- Europe
- United States
- France
- Scotland
Ryerson felt that it was his duty to streamline the education system such that it could be beneficial to the very child as recorded by Shepherd (2002, pp15). These included peasants as well as the wealthy. He made this his creed. In the year 1846, specialist schools were under heavy discussion. Catholics wanted to gain complete control of the schools their adherents attended. Ryerson believed that all schools should be given equal grants and that they should all be inspected. Besides this, he believed that it was the duty of the department of education to deal with textbooks and the curriculum. He also adhered to the belief that Catholics could support Public schools if they wanted. However, he did not believe in extremes.
Between that same year and 1850, there were some changes that were incorporated into the education system. First of all, a district superintendent was chosen for all districts and his work was to receive reports from boards of trustees. The latter was responsible for the distribution of textbooks and raising money for schools. In addition, Sissons (1937, pp 52) says that board educators in counties and county councils were held responsible for public libraries.
Besides this, all the district superintendents were supposed to report to the Chief Superintendent who was also responsible for ensuring that the system was operating well and that the assembly’s grant was administered properly. He worked hand in hand with a council of Public Instruction who proposed authorization of textbooks, examining teachers, and putting in Place Normal Schools.
Other reforms that were initiated by Ryerson were Normal schools with the first in the year 1852. He also created a system that facilitated the sale of books to a depository at half price for schools. He was responsible for bringing about reforms in grammar schools through the Grammar school Act of 1864; it removed them solely from the powers of the church. Besides this, government grants were made equal to local grants such that new schools could be established.
Perhaps the greatest achievement was in the year 1871 when free education was passed. All children were expected to attend school until the age of sixteen. In 1874, Grammar schools were changed to high schools or collegiate, and grants were given to any school that had masters who were qualified or 60 Latin or Greek classes. In line with this, there was an intermediate examination during the early high school years.
Conclusions about Ryerson’s motivations
The Canadian education system is one of the most efficient in the world thanks to the efforts and output of Egerton Ryerson. This great philosopher contributed numerous literary works, articles, journals, and books that formed most of the opinions during his days. One should not imagine that Ryerson’s works were only restricted to education. He also played a great role in politics by writing books such as The Loyalists of America and their times. He greatly contributed to religion through his role as editor of Christian Guardian and Canadian Methodism.
One can say that Ryerson’s works especially in education were a direct result of the influences he got from his earlier upbringings. Reforms and politics at that time were greatly influenced by religion. There was a need for a neutral outlook in this regard. Ryerson was able to achieve that balance through his dual religious nature. He could understand both the Anglican standpoint which he got from his father and the Methodist standpoint which was his mother’s religion. Reformat that time was best dealt with in a calm and dispassionate manner and these qualities were deeply engrained in Ryerson. Students in Canada should be grateful that such a great person had chosen to devote a large part of his life to the field of education.
He was also affected by his father’s history according to Steinacher (2003, pp 569-571). Initially, his father was a soldier who fought as a loyalist but fled from his former settlement to Upper Canada. This influence trickled down to Egerton Ryerson because he was a strong ally to the British Government. The idea was very crucial in the dealings he engaged in during his career. He was able to do gain support for some of the reforms that he initiated because of this loyalist background. He also knew what the best way to tackle certain issues was.
Ryerson was a vast reader and these literary works formed the bulk of his opinions. He felt that there should be a liberal view on matters concerning traditional issues such as faith. He realized that being liberal could bring about some negative traits such as
- private individualism
- narrow selfishness
- materialism
He took it upon himself to fight against these vices. He did not do this in a radical manner, but through his articles and books, he informed the public about the importance of having a union of public spirit. He also emphasized the issue of morality and moral well-being. Lastly, he firmly believed in the idea of having liberal polity’s well-being as confirmed by Thomas (1969, pp2).
Ryerson on the issue of maintaining status quo
Some people have argued that Ryerson was conservative. They put forward this argument yet there is compelling evidence that he was a reformist. All the changes brought about by his efforts could not have been achieved if he wanted to maintain the status quo.
Ryerson did not focus on maintaining the status quo because he was a modernist thinker. During the 1830s and 1840s, the dominant faith was that of the Anglicans. If he was concerned with maintaining the status quo, he would not have spearheaded the fight for Grammar schools. That is, he wanted to remove those schools from direct influence from the church. On top of that, Ryerson was known for his controversial writings in the Christian Guardian.
He also sent a number of letters to the London times concerning the situation of Canada’s schools at that time. His actions were causing a lot of concern among members of the Methodist Church (which he adhered to). He was seen as a sort of rebel and was even branded as a traitor by a journalist in one of the American papers. These negative titles would not have been placed upon him if he wanted to simply maintain the status quo.
Besides these, Ryerson demonstrated how he went against popular opinion in the role he played during the controversy surrounding the Lieutenant Governor of 1843. Ryerson was bold enough to declare that all the councilors of Metcalfe did not uphold the principles of good governance. If he wanted to maintain the status quo, he would have taken sides with a group that had been well established by the institutions of that time. In relation to this, Ryerson was responsible for suggesting that councilors should uphold public opinion. He believed that the public has wisdom enough to make the right decision.
Most accusations labeled against Ryerson were a result of his support towards a number of issues.
- supremacy of the Lieutenant Governor
- supremacy of the state
What most people do not understand is that one might have respect for certain institutions or powers that be but at the same time be in the position of standing out against them. Ryerson supported Lieutenant governors only if they seemed to uphold certain principles that he shared. This was the reason why he wanted to retire from politics when he realized that Thomson had passed away. Maintaining the status quo should not be mistaken for the respect of law and order as was the case with Ryerson.
How Ryerson saw beyond the interests of his social group
Ryerson was someone who had traveled wide and had lived with various types of people as accounted by Briggs (1883, pp 2). During his early days as a minister for the Methodist Church, Ryerson was required to deliver sermons from door to door on horseback. This was quite a tedious exercise since there was no time to rest in between. However, life was made easier by the people he was going to preach to. He acquainted himself with the way of life of most families of Upper Canada and these people were the primary motivators for some of his school reforms. Although Ryerson lived a relatively comfortable life and was from a respectable social class, he could understand the predicament of some other members who may not have been as privileged as he was. This was the reason why he championed the coz for free education until it was eventually passed in the 1870s.
Ryerson was also able to see beyond the interests of his social groups because of the fact that he had worked with peasant Indians. He was seen by his brother helping these people in the fields and was therefore acquainted with their way of life. He even tried teaching then arithmetic, reading, and writing.
Sissons (1937, pp 15) explains that Ryerson belonged to the Methodist Church for the most part of his life. But he was able to understand the interest of other members of the state. This was the reason why he did not mind when the Roman Catholic Church wanted to give donations to certain schools as long as they were not extreme. Ryerson was also able to understand the interests of Anglicans because he had been one at some point in his life. This was the reason why some people mistook this for being traditional.
Conclusion
Ryerson’s evangelical influences and many other interactions caused him to change the education system of Upper Canada from its impoverished state to a universal, modern, public education system founded upon Christian principles. Ryerson had a huge vision for the education system in Canada. He got his motivation from great writers such as John Wesley. The main idea behind the reforms that Ryerson put across was to bring up citizens with the following traits;
- honesty
- self-control
- productivity
- responsibility
With these ideas in mind and relentless spirit, Ryerson became an architect of education in Canada.
Reference
Briggs, W. (1883): Ryerson, Egerton, Rev: The Story of My Life, Edited by J. George Hodgins. Toronto Publishers, pp 2.
Sissons, C. (1937): Egerton Ryerson: His Life and Letters. Vol. 1, Toronto: Oxford University Press, pp 15.
Shepherd, V. (2002): Egerton Ryerson: From Methodist Itinerant to Chief Superintendent of Education (1803-1882); Touchstone Publishers, pp. 52.
Steinacher, C. (2003): Ryerson, Adolphus Egerton: In the Biographical Dictionary of Evangelicals, edited by Timothy Larsen, Downers Grove: Inter Varsity Press, pp. 569-571.
Thomas, C. (1969): Ryerson of Upper Canada. Toronto: Ryerson Press, pp. 2.