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McGuffey’s First Eclectic Reader was a series of books widely used in schools across the country. It taught moral lessons along with reading, spelling, and other subjects. -
Horace Mann led the fight for government support for public schools.
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Horace Mann served as the first secretary of the State Board of Education in Massachusetts.
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Friedrich Froebel, a German educator, developed the idea for kindergarten. He believed that young children learned best through play.
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Horace Mann established the first school ( Normal School ) for teacher education in the United States.
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Most children were educated at home or in small country schoolhouses where one teacher taught all grades. Teachers in these schools were paid by community members.
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During this period in history, great changes were made in public schooling in nearly every state of the union.
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This act gave federal land to establish colleges in every state. These colleges were to provide practical education in agriculture, home economics, and other useful professions to people from all social classes. -
In the 1870’s , public schools began to offer kindergarten programs.
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A second Morrill Act expanded the system. It required states to establish separate Land-grant Institutions for Black students or demonstrate that admission to the 1862 Land-grant was not restricted by race.