Stages of Education from Avicenna's Viewpoint with an Emphasis on the Soul

The present paper is concerned with the explanation of the stages of education based on Avicenna’s views on the “soul”. The method adopted is qualitative case study with an analytic descriptive orientation. The results indocate three stages of preparation, moderation and uplift, and the heavenly stage consistent with the stages of the evolution of the soul. The preparation stage, which consists of the vegetal soul, animal soul and potential human (material to actual intelligence) phases, begins before birth and continues to the ostensible puberty. The second stage including the potential human (intelligence in habitus to actual intellect) and actual human (attainment of all second actualities) begins at age 15 and due to an increase in reason at age 50 onwards no end point is assumed for this stage. The heavenly stage which is the actual human stage in its proper sense and is synonymous with the attainment of the intelligible acquired intelligence is considered as the final stage of education corresponding to the ultimate goal of Avicenna’s philosophical system which is the attainment of true blissing. The results also show that Avicenna was the founder of lifelong education including both formal and informal systems of education by directing attention to the start of education before birth, moral upbringing and discipline since the age of two and so on.