在儒家思想中，“君子怀德，小人怀土”“君子喻于义，小人喻于利”“君子坦荡荡，小人长戚戚”“君子求诸己，小人求诸人”“君子易事而难说也，小人难事而易说也”“（君子）知之为知之，不知为不知，是知也”。儒家经典经常强调“君子”和“小人”二者行为的不同。中国古代的“小人”好比今天的普通人或普通市民。因此，在中国古代社会，不是所有人都可以成为“君子”。事实上，中国古代学习儒家思想本身也仅限于极少的一群人中。他们中的很多人来自统治阶层和上流社会家庭。他们是群有需要学习经典和理解道德的人。由于自身对家族、祖先和帝国的责任，他们需要理解为什么有些事情不得不做。于是乎，拥有学识的君子们便贯彻实行中国文化传统，甚至为其他人设立社会规则。
Many Chinese scholars believe the history of education in China can be traced back at as far as the 16th century B.C. during the late “Xia Dynasty” (1523-1027 B.C.). Throughout this period of time, education was the privilege（特权tèquán） of the elites. The teachings of Confucianism during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods (770-221 B.C.), the curriculum（课程kèchéng） were mainly based on The Four Books and The Five Classics. The Four Books and The Five Classics were the acknowledged subjects of the Confucian culture in the feudal society in ancient China. The Four Books refers to The Great Learning, The Doctrine of the Mean, Confucian Analects and The Works of Mencius. And The Five Classics includes The Book of Poetry (also known as The Book of Songs, The Book of Odes), The Book of History, The Book of Rites, The Book of Changes, and The Spring and Autumn Annals.
许多中国学者认为中国教育的历史可以追溯到公元前16世纪的夏朝晚期（公元前1523年——公元前1027年），在这整个时期内，教育是精英阶层的特权。春秋战国时期（公元前770年——公元前221年）的儒家教育，其课程主要是基于“四书五经”。在中国古代封建社会，“四书五经”是被公认儒家文化课程。“四书”是指《大学》、《中庸》、《论语》和《孟子》，而“五经”则包括《诗》、《书》、《礼》、《易》、《春秋》。
Confucianism probably is the biggest influence（影响yǐngxiǎng） in education of China throughout the entire Chinese history. Later in Han dynasty, a form of public education system was established. Not only elites from upper class families can study in school, common man can also use education as a path to become a better man, known as gentleman.
贯穿整个中国历史，儒家思想恐怕是对中国教育影响最大的学说。在后来的汉代，一种公学教育制度被建立起来。不仅仅只有来自上流阶层的精英可以在校学习，普通人也可以利用教育这一途径成为更优秀的人，也就是我们所知的“君子”。
In Confucianism, a gentleman (Chun Tzu) considers what is right, when the peasant considers what will pay. A gentleman trusts in justice and the peasant trusts in favor. A gentleman is generous and fair, when the peasant is biased and petty. A gentleman looks within for guidance and the peasant looks unto others. A gentleman is easy to serve, and hard to please. The peasant is hard to serve, and easy to please. A gentleman is to know what we know, and know what we do not know. The basic concept of gentleman in Confucianism often emphasizes the different behaviors between the gentleman and the peasant. A peasant in ancient Chinese society can be better described as today’s common man or average citizen. As a result, not everyone can be a gentleman in ancient Chinese society. In fact, studying Confucianism itself was limited to very few people in ancient China. Most of them are from ruling and upper class families. They were the group of people in need to educate in the classics and understand morality. They needed to understand why things have to be done as they had the duty to their families, ancestors and the empire（帝国dìguó）. Gentleman with knowledge will then carry out Chinese cultural traditions or even set rules of society for others.
