ASHAM, ROGER. - Humanist and educationist, b. at Kirby Wiske (Yorkshire) in 1515, d. 23 Dec. 1568. He cultivated humanistic studies and with special care Greek, of which he became "royal professor" in 1540; he was also tutor to Elizabeth, still a princess, then Latin secretary to Henry VI, Mary Tudor and Elizabeth, once she became queen.
His name is linked to two works of considerable pedagogical value: the first, Toxophilus (1545), deals with archery, considered as physical exercise, most useful for the harmonious development of the body and for the defence of the country. Written in English, it aimed to persuade readers of the efficacy and the plasticity of the national idiom against the predominance, at that time, of Latin, Italian and French. The second, The Schoolmaster (1570), published posthumously by his widow, had been written for the education of his three children, and it dealt above all with three points: truth in religion, honesty in life, the true method of study. In it A. shows himself dominated by the ideas of B. Castiglione's Cortigiano, and indeed recommends its reading; but as a good Puritan, while esteeming and praising fine Italian culture, he warns young men against coming to Italy, lest they be corrupted by contact with the relaxed morals of the Italians. Important above all is the third point, concerning didactic problems: he recommends the method of translation and retranslation for Latin; he wants it to be learned more from the constant reading of the classics than from the arid study of grammar; he deplores the habit then current of imposing on school pupils the exclusive use of the Latin language; the national language too has its merits and its beauties; not only that: but children, forced to speak a language that is not their own, end up using it in a barbarous manner and without reflection.
Bibliography
Celestino Testore