How These Women Changed Education Forever

Education has an impact on all our lives. Shaping the way we see the world, as well as our goals and ambitions, schools and universities help to create the societies we live in.

Women have changed the face of education in a huge variety of ways, from forcing schools to integrate to creating new pedagogical systems. Here are some of the most inspirational women from the world of education.

By the time Ruby Bridges hit her seventh birthday, she’d already left a mark on the world that would last for generations. In November 1960, the then six-year-old Bridges was the first African American student to integrate an elementary school in the South.

Bridges was born in 1954, the same year Brown Vs the Board of Education ended segregation in public schools. Despite this, segregation persisted. Eventually, a court ordered Louisiana to integrate and, after passing an exam, Bridges was allowed to attend an all-white school.

The little girl had to be escorted to class by four federal marshals every day. On the way, she’d walk past screaming crowds hurling abuse and many white parents withdrew their children in protest.  Her brave actions changed the face of the U.S school system for good.  

Kakenya Ntaiya broke with tradition to leave her rural Kenyan village and study in the United States. Maasai women rarely get such an opportunity and she left with the promise to one day return and help other young Kenyan’s to achieve their dreams.

The Kakenya Centre for Excellence, and the expanding projects of Kakenya’s Dream, have now spent over 10 years promoting the education of Maasai and other Kenyan girls, and opening international opportunities.

Jumping back a few hundred years to the early 13^th century, we find Bettisia Gozzadini, the earliest known female university lecturer. The Italian educator was born into a noble family in 1209 and studied Philosophy and Law at the Stadium of Bologna.

Following her graduation in 1237, Gozzadini began teaching Law at her home. Two years later, she was offered a chair at the Stadium. Although she initially declined the position, she eventually took it up, and went on to teach at the university for a number of years.

Savitribai Phule was a trailblazer in providing education for girls and for ostracized portions of society. In 1848, she became the first female teacher in India and opened a school for girls with her husband, Jyotirao Phule.

In 1864, she went on to establish a shelter for destitute women and played a crucial role in grooming Jyotirao Phule’s pioneering institution, Satyashodhak Samaj, that fought for equality of all classes.

Her life and work is a testament to social reform and female empowerment in Indian society. She remains an inspiration for many women rights’ activists in modern times.

Born in 1870, Maria Montessori excelled in maths and science. In 1896, she graduated from the University of Rome as one of Italy’s first female doctors. Montessori then began treating children with learning difficulties, working in psychiatric clinics and at Rome's asylum. 

In 1900, she was appointed co-director of a center that trained teachers in educating children with learning difficulties. Students at the center learned psychology, anatomy, and physiology of the nervous system. They also studied causes and characteristics of mental disability.

Montessori continued her research, applying scientific methods to her techniques. Eventually, she created an entire educational system based on free play, independence, and individuality. Montessori Schools are now incredibly popular and today there are 15,000 worldwide

Learn more about female pioneers around the world.