In this series, we examine the historical, economic and cultural dimensions of technical and scientific education. When did this branch of learning emerge? Which models shaped it? How does it benefit industrialised societies? Where is it taught, and with what methods? By answering these questions, we prepare ourselves for the future with greater awareness and a more robust economic strategy.
The Evolution of Technical and Scientific Education
Technical and scientific education grew out of the need to align practical and technological knowledge with rapidly evolving societies – especially from the early 19th century, during industrialisation. It has since undergone various transformations in Italy, across Europe and worldwide, shaped by the major industrial revolutions:
- First Industrial Revolution (mid-18th century): Mechanisation and steam power
- Second Industrial Revolution (late 19th century): Rise of electricity
- Third Industrial Revolution (late 20th century): Growth of electronics and computing
- Fourth Industrial Revolution (early 21st century): Industry 4.0, integrating digital and traditional production
These shifts greatly influenced educational policies and labour markets.
Studying them reveals key elements of our society: how we structure schooling, social hierarchies and professions – and it highlights the often unhelpful divide between the humanities and technical fields. Practical training, experimentation and the scientific method remain crucial for making data-driven decisions.
The Origins of Technical Education
Tracing the origins back around 250 years to the First Industrial Revolution, nations began recognising the advantages of science and technology, which led to the founding of the first technical schools.
In Italy, these schools emerged in the 19th century alongside the country’s push for unification and industrial growth.
Figures like Quintino Sella championed technical education to narrow Italy’s economic gap with other European powers, culminating in the 1862 law on Technical Institutes, which offered market-focused curricula in areas such as mechanics, chemistry and civil engineering. Around the same time, the Polytechnic University of Turin (1859) and the Polytechnic University of Milan (1863) became hubs for engineering education and supported Italy’s industrial expansion.
In England – the epicentre of the Industrial Revolution – technical schools had already begun to appear by the mid-18th century, with Technical Schools and Mechanics’ Institutes training the specialised workforce needed to power the country’s manufacturing boom.
France also laid the foundations for its technical education system in the late 18th century, founding the Écoles d’Arts et Métiers (1780) and, earlier still, the École du Génie Militaire (1748).
Germany took a similar path in the early 19th century, establishing institutions such as the Gewerbeschulen (1835), which combined theoretical instruction with practical apprenticeships – an approach linked to significant growth in industrial employment and entrepreneurship.
Conclusion
We often learn that the Industrial Revolution spurred urbanisation and economic progress, yet we seldom hear how integral technical and scientific education was to that transformation. In the 19th century, countless young people gained the knowledge and skills to operate sophisticated machinery for the first time in history.
Now, as we face another industrial revolution, we once again need a forward-looking educational model – one that emphasises technical and scientific learning to meet the demands of today’s rapidly changing world.
Massimo Temporelli
President and Founder, TheFabLab
