Pedagogy: A Lexical Oddity

Abstract

Despite the games we often play with words, they are seldom defined by their derivations (etymology), more frequently their meanings are governed by their usage in sentences (semantics). Once we do that, we discover that the paidag gos was not and never was a teacher. That is why the choice of ‘pedagogy’ for the English meaning, ‘the art of teaching’, is so odd; it’s derived from a Greek word and custom that had little to do with the noble art of education. True, the paidag gos led or followed his charge to school, but this was simply one of the many places to which he accompanied the child, and such a role was hardly educational.