【历史上的名师】优秀教师

　　他们的人生积极进取，他们的学识博大精深，他们的方法流传百世，他们的指导影响深远——他们是全人类的导师。　　Teachers can be some of the most important people in our lives, influencing our education, our outlook on life, and the decisions we make. They have also been some of the important figures in history, changing the course of human events and teaching students along the way. Here, we’ll take a look at four great teachers from history, two ancient and two modern, who have offered inspiration and guidance through the years.
　　Confucius
　　Known as the Great Master, Confucius is one of the most respected teachers in history. The famous philosopher was born in the sixth century BC, into an aristocratic family in the state of Lu. Confucius grew up in poverty, and was constantly urged by his mother to be diligent in his studies so he could escape a poor life and raise his status in society. He heeded her words, working hard and rising through the ranks to become a government official.
　　As a learned official, Confucius traveled throughout China, espousing his wisdom and political opinions and looking for states that could use his services. He became highly-regarded throughout the land, but Confucius still found that the many rulers he visited were not respecting his advice. So he chose to change paths, devoting his energy to teaching instead.
　　Students who had heard of his great wisdom came from far and wide to learn from him, and Confucius founded the first private school in China. He took on any student eager to learn, no matter their ability to pay tuition. This school likely included instruction in Chinese ritual, history, music and poetry, but most importantly, Confucius taught the importance of respecting all people, studying diligently, and thinking deeply for oneself.
　　Confucius would again travel throughout China, this time with his students, spreading his philosophy. His teaching and beliefs would be further taught and spread by his own disciples, becoming the bedrock of Chinese society. Confucius and his ideas have served as inspiration for the world’s teachers and students for millennia.
　　Socrates
　　Little is known about the specifics of Socrates’ life, but it is known that by his middle age, he gave up professions as a soldier and a stonemason to work full-time doing what we know him for—teaching and philosophizing in the Greek city of Athens.
　　It all began when Socrates’ friend Chaerephon went to the Oracle of Delphi to ask if anyone was wiser than Socrates, and the Oracle answered that Socrates was the wisest. Socrates himself believed he had no wisdom at all, and decided to test the Oracle’s answer by going to the men of Athens who considered themselves wisest and asking them questions. His questions made them all look foolish, and Socrates decided that the Oracle was right, that he was indeed the wisest because he was the only one who knew of his own ignorance.