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***Colonial Education***
The Massachusetts Law of 1642 ordered the selecment of each town to find out whether or not parents and masters of apprentices were providing for the education of their children. In five years, the Education Law of 1647 would order over town of 50+ households to provide someone who could be a teacher of reading and writing. Towns of 100+ households would would need to create a grammar school. Read more here! -
Noah Webster
Noah Webster, credited with the title of "The Father of American Education" felt strongly that U.S. needed to distance themselves from all Old English text and start fresh with American work. Webster is now typically associated with and recognized for the dictionary. Webster hoped to one day see a three-year education available to all by government funding. -
Thomas Jefferson
Jefferson's Bill for the More General Diffusion of Knowledge essentially did just that - provided large populations with basic education that would promote good government, public safety, and happiness. He als established the University of Virginia. -
Benjamin Rush
Benjamin Rush was an advocate for the education of women and actually developed one of the first female academies in the U.S. - The Young Ladies Acadmey of Philadelphia. He also advocated for education of Blacks as imperative. -
Common Schools
For the next thirty-five yeras, American Education will begin to take shape. States have control over education, and taxation is introduced to provide for a public school system. -
Horace Mann
Horace Mann is referred to as "The Father of the Common School Movement". Mann advocated for public schools as a way of creating educated and disciplined citizens. -
Early 20th Century Immigration
When the immigration rates doubled in the early 20th century, the population growth in schools rose faster than that of the nation. The number of teachers followed in line - doubling in the first few decades. -
The Measurement Movement
Terman & Thorndike, two psychologists of the time, established the IQ tests that are used today. Although initially used for placement of soldiers in WWI, IQ tests have remained and have been implemented into the Education system. -
***Brown vs. Board of Education***
Read more here!
Brown vs. Board of Education was actually a name given by the Supreme Court to represent five separate cases. These cases were responsible for questioning the constitutionality of segregation in schools. Although there were many reasons for each case, they came back to how the 14th amendment, "equal protection clause," was being violated by segregation. The Supreme Court ruled that segregation would be banned. This acted as a catalyst for the Civil Rights Movement. -
Sputnik & NDEA
The U.S. was shocked to be falling behind in the Space Race as Russia launched their satellite, Sputnik to orbit Earth. NDEA, the National Defense Education Act was the U.S. reaction to ensure our educational systems would output enough engineers and scientists. This act provided funding for low-cost student loans, targeting learning in math, science, and foreign languages. -
Civil Rights Act
Only ten years after the Brown vs. Education Board regarding segregation, this historical legislation was responsible for banning all forms of discrimination based on race, religion, national origin, sex, or color. This marked the end of racial segregation in the workplace, school settings, and other public settings. -
ESEA
ESEA, also known as the Elementary and Secondary Education Act was a result of President Lydon Johnson belief that, "full educational opportunity" should be "our first national goal." ESEA provided grants for districts with low-income students and scholarships for low-income college students in addition to other funding. -
***IDEA***
IDEA is also known as the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act. This was previously known as EHA, the Education of All Handicapped Children. This historical legislation created means whereby children who are vicitms to different disabilities can have necessary accommodations that improve their educational opportunities.
Click here to read more! -
***A Nation At Risk***
President Reagan announces that the U.S. is suffering from mediocrity in our eduction and essentially says that if another country had done to us, what we are doing to ourselves in our education, it would be means for war. This announcement has lasting effects including standardized testing, a feeling of urgency and competition between public schools, and a need to improve our foundational understandings (math, reading, etc.) among other effects. <a href='https://www2.ed.gov/pubs/NatAtRisk/ris -
No Child Left Behind
No Child Left Behind is a recent version of the ESEA. States who want to receive federal funding from NCLB must agree to the law requirements that include:
- Establishing learning standards
- Standardized Testing
- Content are proficiency levels.
- report to the public proficiency percentages based on race, income, disabilities, language proficiency, and gendger. Read more here!
