The main purpose of the study is to draw a picture of the education system in terms of the curriculum, the physical condition of schools, the attitudes of the teachers and the perspective of the society towards education in ancient Athens and today. Education was an important issue for free Athenian citizens. Athenian children were taught at home, sometimes under the guidance of a master or a paidagogos, until they began elementary education at approximately seven years of age. At school, the children were taught how to read and write, to count and draw. In this study also the importance of the paidagogos and the family structure in the education of the primary school students is investigated. In doing so, the body of the study is based on a literature review, where available the modern sources has been supported by the ancient sources. In this study is compared the ancient times and today's education system. Many similarities and differences were observed.