American Scholars’ Learing At German Universities And Its Influences On American Higher Education(1815-1917)

To study abroad is the most important and effective way to achieve international cultural and educational communications. Though the collision between globalization and nationalism never diminish, the pursuit for learning and truth is never ending and will be everlasting for each country or area. In the early 20 th century, China once had successful experiences in promoting the reform of higher education through study abroad. After the reform and opening up, study abroad has been ever more highly valued. Now China has made great progress in bothway education abroad activities in the world and made great achievements. However, its international educational communications also have some shortcomings. For example, the quality of the large amount of communicational activities needs to be improved, the study purposes need to make clear, the returned scholars’ arrangement and management turn rather loose and the benefit of higher education institutions is not obvious, etc. To solve these problems is the important premise to secure the effective international educational communications and realize the reform in higher education..American scholars’ learning in Germany is the most successful model in world educational communications. The US is a country with strong pioneering spirit, always open to learning. The American universities never deny its close relationship with German universities. In the 19 th century, German universities first started their transformation from the traditional to modern categary, thus raise the model for the construction and development of the modern universities in the world. Germany replaced England and became the new international scientific and educational center. In the early 19 th century, a great number of young Americans poured into Germany for learning. This booming of study in Germany lasted for a whole century, covering over ten thousand scholars.The American’s study in German universities has become the keynote for frequent and effective cultural communications between the two countries. The scholars played the leading role in this activity and they were also the executor and promoter of the reform and development of higher education. The returned scholars transplanted management mode and ideas of German Universities back to America, which takes the combination of teaching and research and the principle of academic as the core. The present dissertation takes the American scholars’ activities in Germany from the 19 th to early 20 th century and their activities back in America as the major objects, focuses on the characteristics and experiences of this great education activity. Hopefully it may provide useful reference for the higher education reform in China under the era of globalization.The dissertation includes three parts, introduction, main body and the conclusion.The first part is the introduction which mainly introduces the foundation, content and methodology of the research.The second part is the main body which consists of four chapters. According to the scale and development of American scholars’ learning in Germany from the 19 th to early 20 th century, the boom is devided into three periods, including the starting, quick development, and the ending. It discusses the causes, the concrete activity contents and the influential elements in each period in detailed analysis. It also studies the leading role of the returned scholars in the promotion of American higher education ideas and reform. The major clue in the second part is the American studients’ study and adoption of German Universities’ experiences and their meditation on American universities’ education reform and ideas. Apart from the analysis of historical details, this part is supposed to illustrate how the US realized its transformation to modern higher education system through multifaceted study and adoption of Germany idea, function, forms of institutions, curriculum setting and teaching modes. In this process, the returned American scholars play a leading role through their active spreading and practice of the German ideas.The third part is the conclusion, which makes comments on the significance of the booming of the American scholars’ learning in Germany from the perspective of the history of the western university, analyzing its promotion in the rising of American higher education and tries to give suggestions to develop the international higher education communications of China.