Education of Harriet Tubman

Harriet Tubman is remembered as one of the most courageous and determined figures in American history. Born into slavery and rising to become a conductor of the Underground Railroad, she helped guide dozens of enslaved individuals to freedom. While much has been written about her bravery and humanitarian work, Tubman’s education both formal and informal offers deeper insight into how she developed the wisdom, resilience, and leadership skills that shaped her legacy. Though she had no access to traditional schooling, Harriet Tubman’s life was filled with powerful lessons learned through observation, experience, and deep faith.

Early Life and Lack of Formal Education

Harriet Tubman was born Araminta Ross around 1822 in Dorchester County, Maryland. Like most enslaved people in the southern United States during the 19th century, she was denied any form of formal education. Enslaved individuals were generally prohibited from learning to read or write, as education was considered a threat to the institution of slavery. Slave owners feared that literate enslaved people could forge documents, plan escapes, or even organize revolts. Therefore, Tubman never attended school, never sat in a classroom, and never learned to read or write in the traditional sense.

Experiential Learning from a Young Age

Although she lacked formal education, Tubman began learning from the moment she could walk. As a child, she worked alongside her mother in the household of her enslavers, performing domestic tasks and watching how others behaved. By the time she was five or six, she was rented out to work for other families, where she endured grueling labor and cruel treatment. Through these experiences, she learned endurance, observation, patience, and survival all of which would be essential to her future missions.

Knowledge Gained from the Environment

Tubman’s education also came from the world around her. She learned how to navigate terrain, recognize the changing seasons, and understand natural signs that could guide her movements. Growing up in rural Maryland, she developed a keen understanding of local geography, plant life, and waterways. This knowledge would later prove critical during her Underground Railroad journeys.

Skills That Replaced Traditional Education

• Tracking and navigation: Tubman learned to travel by night using the North Star as her guide.
• Camouflage and concealment: She mastered the art of moving silently through woods and hiding in plain sight.
• Resource gathering: Her survival skills allowed her to live off the land when necessary.

Oral Traditions and Spiritual Education

In the absence of books, Harriet Tubman learned through oral storytelling, songs, and spiritual teachings. These forms of education were common among enslaved people and played a crucial role in preserving history and culture. Spirituals, in particular, served dual purposes offering comfort and sometimes doubling as coded messages among those planning to escape.

Faith as a Form of Education

Tubman was deeply religious. Her Christian faith gave her strength and direction throughout her life. She believed her visions and dreams were messages from God, which influenced many of her decisions. Her spiritual life taught her about justice, sacrifice, and the power of hope lessons that shaped her unwavering determination to lead others to freedom.

Learning Through Resistance and Experience

As Tubman matured, her real-world education expanded through acts of resistance and leadership. Her first-hand experiences taught her about risk, strategy, and courage. Escaping slavery herself in 1849, Tubman used the skills she had developed to make it safely to Philadelphia. Her self-liberation was a profound educational journey, teaching her how to avoid capture, navigate treacherous paths, and build relationships with allies along the way.

Lessons from the Underground Railroad

Between the early 1850s and the onset of the Civil War, Tubman returned to the South nearly 13 times to help enslaved people escape. With each journey, she learned more about timing, secrecy, and leadership. She also learned how to read people gauging whom to trust and how to inspire courage in those she guided.

Wartime Intelligence and Strategy

During the Civil War, Tubman served as a nurse, scout, and spy for the Union Army. This phase of her life added a new layer to her informal education. She learned military tactics, led a raid that liberated over 700 enslaved people in South Carolina, and worked closely with soldiers and officers. Though she never studied warfare in books, she grasped the principles of strategic planning and execution better than many formally educated individuals.

Post-War Advocacy and Continued Learning

After the war, Tubman dedicated her life to helping formerly enslaved people, women, and the elderly. She advocated for civil rights and women’s suffrage, often speaking publicly even though she could not read or write. She worked with others who helped transcribe her words into letters, speeches, and documents. Tubman’s continued engagement in advocacy demonstrated her capacity to learn, adapt, and lead well into her later years.

Collaboration and Communication

Even without literacy skills, Tubman found ways to communicate effectively. She developed relationships with educated allies who assisted her in her activism. She instinctively understood how to convey emotion, urgency, and vision, making her a powerful orator and influential figure in social justice movements.

Legacy of Informal Education

Harriet Tubman’s life challenges traditional notions of education. Though she lacked formal schooling, she cultivated a deep, practical intelligence that enabled her to lead, teach, and inspire. Her story underscores the value of experiential learning, emotional intelligence, and spiritual depth. Her legacy continues to influence education today, particularly in discussions about alternative learning pathways and the importance of lived experience.

Lessons for Modern Educators

• Education is not limited to classrooms or textbooks.
• Life experience can teach resilience, creativity, and problem-solving.
• Faith and moral values play a powerful role in shaping character.
• Oral traditions are vital forms of cultural and historical transmission.

While Harriet Tubman never had the opportunity to receive a formal education, her life was an extraordinary classroom filled with lessons of strength, survival, and leadership. She learned from the land, from people, from hardship, and from her unshakable faith. Tubman’s story serves as a reminder that education comes in many forms and that the wisdom gained through lived experience can be just as powerful as academic learning. Her journey continues to inspire generations of learners who strive for freedom, justice, and empowerment through knowledge and courage.