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Introduction

A. Significance of Research
Firstly, W. E. B. Du Bois plays an important role in the history of blackEducation in America. He is a great writer, thinker, and social activist. He is also thefather of pan-African movement and a spiritual leader of the civil rights movement.Despite the fact that much research on W. E. B. Du Bois has been conducted,because of his multiple roles, people often ignore that he is also an outstandingeducator. Just as the educational historian Derrick P. Alridge says, it is a great loss toignore Du Bois’ contribution to education. Du Bois put forward a lot of incisive andpenetrating ideas about black education, which had great influence on Americanblack education in the late 19th and early 20th century.Secondly, W. E. B. Du Bois’ ideas about black education still have greatsignificance to today’s black education. When it comes to black education, peopleoften compare Du Bois with another great black educator, Booker T Washington. Butunlike Booker T Washington, who paid more attention to black vocational education,Du Bois emphasized the importance of liberal arts education instead. He argued thatvocational education was helpful to improve the situation of black peopletemporarily, if black people wanted to pursue long-term development, the blackeducation should be “people-oriented”. The black should learn ideas rather than skillsto change their fates. Thinking of the function of American higher education, we canfind that Du Bois’ philosophy of education is very foresighted, and offers lessons fortoday’s higher education. Therefore the study towards Du Bois’ philosophy ofeducation is of great importance.
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B. BriefAccount of W. E. B. Du Bois’Personal Experience
Du Bois’ school experiences are quite different from those of most AfricanAmericans, which has great influence on Du Bois later life and his educational ideasand theories. Therefore in order to have a better understanding to Du Bois’educational ideas and theories, it is quite necessary to be familiar with his lifeexperiences especially his school experiences.William Edward Burghardt Du Bois was born in Great Barrington,Massachusetts, on February 23rd, 1868, where he spent his whole childhood andteenage years until when he was 17 and went to the south to receive collegeeducation. There were about 5,000 residents in this small town, most of whom werewhite and there were only a few blacks. But the town was very democratic inmanagement. Residents of the town often solved problems through having meetingsand almost everyone had opportunity to speak at the meetings. In addition, whitepeople of this place were mostly Protestants, with a typical “New England spirit”--hard-working, cautious in life and easy-going, therefore the white and the black inthis town were getting on well with each other for years and there were hardly a clearrace line. So Du Bois didn’t experience overt racial discrimination and violence thatother southern blacks had experienced, and grew up in a relatively peacefulenvironment. At school, Du Bois was more talented than his white schoolmates. In1884, when Du Bois graduated from middle school, he was the only black student inthe school. Because of his excellent performance, Du Bois had the opportunity totake part in the graduation speech together with his white schoolmates. His speechwas about Wendell Philips, a social activist who opposed the slavery and just died inFebruary of