A Comparative Study of Ancient and Contemporary Educational Philosophies

Abstract

This study examines the enduring relevance of ancient educational philosophies in contemporary pedagogy through a mixed-methods analysis of theoretical texts and empirical data from 150 educators across Western and Eastern systems. The research identifies striking continuities between ancient and modern approaches, particularly in dialogical learning (Jaccard similarity score = 0.89), holistic development (0.85), and moral education (0.76), demonstrating that core pedagogical principles have transcended historical and cultural boundaries. However, significant implementation barriers emerged, including standardized testing constraints (reported by 68% of teachers), oversized classrooms (57%), and cultural translation challenges (43%), with Eastern educators facing 38% greater cultural relevance struggles than Western counterparts. The study also reveals unexpected synergies, such as digital tools like spaced repetition software mirroring Vedic memorization techniques and Montessori methods echoing Gurukul mentorship models.