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Higher Education
Harvard College, the first higher education institution in what is now the United States, is established in Newtowne (now Cambridge), Massachusetts. -
First English Academy
Benjamin Franklin helps to establish the first "English Academy" in Philadelphia with a curriculum that is both classical and modern, including such courses as history, geography, navigation, surveying, and modern as well as classical languages. The academy ultimately becomes the University of Pennsylvania. -
Grammar in schools
Noah Webster writes A Grammatical Institute of the English Language, consisting of three volumes: a spelling book, a grammar book, and a reader. They become very widely used throughout the United States. -
James Pillans invents the modern blackboard.
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Mandatory Attendance
Massachusetts enacts the first mandatory attendance law. By 1885, 16 states have compulsory-attendance laws, but most of those laws are sporadically enforced at best. All states have them by 1918 -
School for the disabled
Pennsylvania begins funding the Pennsylvania Training School for Feeble-Minded Children, a private school for children with intellectual disabilities. -
The Department of Education
The Department of Education is created in order to help states establish effective school systems. -
The typewriter
Christopher L. Sholes first introduced the typewriter which also debuted the QWERTY keyboard which is still used on modern day devices and computers used to enhance classroom learning. -
Junior High school
In order to improve high school graduation rates, the Columbus Ohio School Board authorizes the creation of junior high schools. Indianola Junior High School opens that fall and becomes the first junior high school in the U.S. -
The radio
schools begin to use radios to broadcast lessons to other schools using a specific radio station. -
SAT
The Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) is first administered. It is based on the Army Alpha test. -
Computers begin to appear in schools
The computer age begins as the Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer (ENIAC), the first vacuum-tube computer, is built for the U.S. military by Presper Eckert and John Mauchly. -
Segregation in Schools
On May 17th, the U.S. Supreme Court announces its decision in the case of Brown v. Board. of Education of Topeka, ruling that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal," thus overturning its previous ruling in the 1896 case of Plessy v. Ferguson. Brown v. Board of Education is actually a combination of five cases from different parts of the country. It is a historic first step in the long and still unfinished journey toward equality in U.S. education. -
Projectors
Project Head Start, a preschool education program for children from low-income families, begins as an eight-week summer program. Part of the "War on Poverty," the program continues to this day as the longest-running anti-poverty program in the U.S. -
Special Education Testing
The case of Diana v. California State Board results in new laws requiring that children referred for possible special education placement be tested in their primary language. -
Ebooks
Michael Hart, founder of Project Guttenberg, invents the e-Book. -
Calculators
Texas Instruments introduces the first in its line of electronic hand-held calculators, the TI-2500 Data Math. TI becomes an industry leader known around the world. -
Personal Computers
Apple Computer, now Apple Inc., introduces the Apple II, one of the first successful personal computers. It and its offspring, the Apple IIe, become popular in schools as students begin to learn with computer games such as Oregon Trail and Odell Lake. -
Equal Protection Clause
In the case of Plyler v. Doe, the U.S. Supreme Court rules in a 5-4 decision that Texas law denying access to public education for undocumented school-age children violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The ruling also found that school districts cannot charge tuition fees for the education of these children. -
The start of Windows
Microsoft Windows 1.0, the first independent version of Windows, is released, setting the stage for subsequent versions that make MS-DOS obsolete. -
Online schools
The University of Phoenix establishes their "online campus," the first to offer online bachelor's and master's degrees. It becomes the "largest private university in North America." -
The Smart Board
The smart board (interactive white board) is introduced by SMART Technologies. -
Whiteboards
Whiteboards find their way into U.S. classrooms in increasing numbers and begin to replace the blackboard. -
No Child Left Behind
The controversial No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) is approved by Congress and signed into law by President George W. Bush on January 8, 2002. The law, which reauthorizes the ESEA of 1965 and replaces the Bilingual Education Act of 1968 -
Common Core
The Common Core State Standards Initiative, "a state-led effort coordinated by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) and the Council of Chief State School Officers," is launched.