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First Public-Private School
The Boston Latin School is the oldest public school in America. It is still in operation. -
The 18th Century
The energies of the people were devoted to the formation of communities and the basis for the new country. The overarching philosophy of the time was individualism and personal liberty.
Children were educated at home, in Dame Schools, in private venture schools, religious schools and rural district schools. Some students were educated in private academies or boarding schools. Education was, like childrearing, the responsibility of the family. The family paid all costs. -
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High Points in U.S. Educational History in the 18th, 19th and 20th Centuries
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The Strange Attractors
The strange attractors fueling the development of the new educational system and the creation of the new republic were Excellence, Equality and Freedom. -
Higher Education
Nine instutions of higher education came into being between 1636 and 1769. -
The Charity Schools
Close to the end of the 18th century, charity schools were created to educate poor children. The focus of the education was on hard work and obedience. -
Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence memorialized the colonists' collective desire for fredom from a tyranical government. -
The Wealth of Nations
Adams Smith' treatise envisioned public education as a partnership between the government and individuals. He would not have espoused today's monopoly. -
The US Constitution
Protects the interests of the people in having a government that supports liberty and equality. -
The Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights codifies the strange attractors that brought about the birth of the new nation. There is deliberately no mention of educaton in the ten ammendents to the constiution -
The 19th Century and its Strange Attractors
This period saw industrialization in the Northeast and vast movements of people from farms to cities to work in factories. There were also waves of German and Irish immigrants to the major cities. These events served as the strange attractors for many events in the 19th century. -
Fraternity
Fraternity became the nation's overriding philosophy. This is a sense of national unity. -
Economic Growth and Compulsory Education
In order to prepare a fit workforce for the new factories, education became cumpulsory, tightly regulated and uniform. -
Lancaster's Monitorial Schools
The first monitorial school opened in New York. Its mission was to provide education to as many children as needed in the most efficient manner. Classrooms accommodated over 50 children. They were modeled after factories of the day and physically resembled factory floors. -
The Yale Report
This report suggested that higher education be broadened to address the needs of scientific and other professonal fields rather than being limited to classical pursuits. -
The Common School Movement
The Common School Movement was born as a result of the increases in crime and poverty that came with increase in in the size of the cities. Horace Mann led this movement in order to provide an elementary education for all white children of both sexes in a highly structured and uniform manner. It was envisioned as a way to provide a common experience for all people in order to reduce crime. -
The Sorting Machine and Fractals
The Scientific Sorting machine in education served as a kind of model for systems throughout the century. Even today we can feel the effects in education. -
"Sectarian" Schools and Riots
Public education of the time included Bible instruction using the protestant Bible. This was contrary to the teachings of the Catholic immigrants. This became the impetus for the creation of a network of Catholic Schools. -
Riots in Philadelphia and New York Between Protestants and Catholics Over Religious Issues
The Protestant Bible had long been used in American schools as a sourse of instructional material. The Irish and German immigrants of the time were predominately Catholic and the use of the Protestant Bible constituted heresy. The issue ultimately ushered in the Catholic School System in America. -
Justin Smith Morrell's Land Grant Act
Funded the establishment of the Agriculture and Mechanical colleges. The second Morrel act of 1890 expanded access and banned racial discrimination in existing land grant colleges. -
NEA Committee of Ten
This committee was appointed to report on the optimal design of a secondary curriculum. Increasing numbers of students were entering secondary schools and by the end of the century more than 11% attended school beyou=nd the elementary level. This was approximately twice as many as in 1890. -
The 20th Century
Filled with fractals, strange attractors and many reforms, the 20th century saw many changes and many constants. -
Junior Colleges
Created to serve the higher educational needs of students who were not bound for four year colleges. Expanded to offer low-cost courses and Associate's degrees and also transfr credits to four year institutions. -
John Dewey
Advocated active learning and offering students a variety of choices. -
Stanford-Binet Intelligence Test
The first measure of intelligence, the Stanford Binet was used to sort students into appropriate tracks in school - college bound, skilled or unskilled. -
The Carnegie Unit
Used as a metric for colleges to evaluate the worthiness of prospective students' educational histories. The Carnegie Foundation influenced colleges to require the units by funding faclty retirements in colleges that did so. -
Frederick Taylor
Principles of Scientific Management advocated bureaucracy, policies and procedures to bring about efficiency. Applied to business and education to prevent waste. -
Smith Hughes Act
Established that secondary schools supported both college entry and vocational education. Also provided federal funding to secondary schools. -
NEA's Cardinal Principles of Education
Called for the reorganization of the school system due to changes in society, the populations to be served and in educational theories. It put forth seven objectives including health, fundamental processes (intellectual development) home membership, vocation, citizenship, use of leisure, ethical character. -
Oregon's "Innocent" Compulsory Education Act
The state of Oregon passed this act that required all children to attend public school. The case was successfully argued by the Society of Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary. Governor Wallace Pierce, elected with support from the Ku Klux Klan, appealed the Court's decision to repeal the law, but did so unsuccessfully. -
Eight-Year Study
1933-1941 students in Dewey-esque schools with experimentation and exploration performed better than students in traditional schools. -
Inclusive Curriculum
Adm. Hyman Rickover and Arthur Bestor were noteable critics of the inclusive and broad curriculum that served ever more students. The felt that the curriculum was dumbed down and that schools lacked academic rigor on all fronts. -
Community Colleges
Junior Colleges became Community Colleges on the recommendation of the President's Commission on Higher Education. This name reflects the answer to the broader needs of the community and businesses. -
Brown v. The Board of Education
The Supreme Court ruled that separate but equal was not equal at all. It did not end racial segregation on that day, but it paved the way for events to come. -
Sputnik
Americans saw the Soviet Union forge ahead with the launch of Sputnik. Americans were threatened and saw the domestic educational system as lacking. This spawned the creation of the National Defence Education Act that funded math, science, language and vocational programs. -
Elementary and Secondary Education Act
Part of the War on Poverty, the act articulated President Johnson's position that all problems in society can be addressed by education. It provided funding and also inserted the federal government in an active way. -
Higher Education Act
This was to colleges and universities what ESEA was to K-12. -
Expansion of ESEA
The act was expanded to include grants to states to fund education for handicapped students. -
HEA expanded
Expanded to include Title IX provisions that offer equal access to women. This expansion recognises the enormous increase in womens' participation in higher education. -
Education for All Handicapped Children Act - PL 94:142
The way for this legislation was laid by ESEA and Brown v. Board of Education among other acts and events. It offered a "free, appropriate public education" to students with disabilities. -
A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform
This publication came from President Reagan's Comission on Excellence in Educationdecrying the state of Education in America. -
Individuals With Disabilities Education Act PL 101:476
Reenactment of PL 94:142, the Education for Handicapped Children's Act. -
Americans With Disabilities Act
The Act's main sponsor was Senator Tom Harkin. The law prohibits discrimination against persons based on disability. It applies to access to education, services, employment, buildings and other places and institutions. The law is to persons with disabilities what Brown v. Board of Education was to racial justice. -
Charter Schools and Vouchers
These ideas have been put forth as ways to ensure parental choice in education.
Charter schools are considered an innovation that can offer choice and variety based on ethnicity or inerest.
Vouchers are thought to offer financial support for all students to access private schools. Though small, bi=oth of these movements have gown in the past two decades. -
No Child Left Behind (NCLB) or Self-Organized Criticality
This act requires that ALL students perform at grade level and that ALL schools demonstrate Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) and that ALL teachers be Highly Qualified. The act seeks to improve education for all students while reducing the federal role in education. Critics point out that the curriculum is now merely a reflection of the test expectations.
