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The Secular Mandate
Separation of church and state. Our founding father's original intent was to "support the free exercise of religious faith for all by banning any state-sponsored religion."
I chose this because it has "laid the foundation for our system of free, common, public, tax-supported, nonsectarian schools that endures to this day." -
The Cardinal Principles Report
I chose to include this in my timeline because it changed how courses were to be taught. Instead of requiring all students to follow the same traditional academic course of study, which was believed to increase educational inequality, The report recommended that high schools incorporate vocational development, citizenship education, liberal arts, and physical activities. This report opened the path for students to follow their own academic interests and plans. -
Brown v Board of Education
This unanimous ruling that "separate but equal" was "inherently unequal", banned school segregation, and allowed African Americans into white schools.
I felt that this was a monumental event that affected educational history. This also paved the way several years later for a law to be passed that would grant "free and appropriate public education" for children with disabilities. -
No Child Left Behind Act
This act made "each state, district, and school accountable for the academic achievement of minorities, low income, English language learners, and disabled children." The reason I chose this is because it was a fore runner of what led to the Common Core Standards. The No Child Left Behind Act has taken the focus off of the individual child's learning development and aimed more at the school as a whole to be evaluated to see if they can make the grade. -
The Common Core Standards
The reason I felt this should be included in my timeline is because this is what seems to be the focus today. This was initiated by National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and the Council of Chief State School Officers. It had good intentions to "provide K-12 schools a clear and consistent framework about what students are expected to learn for after graduation." However, teachers were not given instruction on how to teach and much confusion has been made over the "new math".
