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Horace Mann, Father of the Common School, assumed secretary of the newly established state board of education. He believed that every child should receive education funded by local taxes and thought universal education would lead to stability and harmony. Read more: Only A Teacher: Schoolhouse Pioneers. -
The first public normal school in America was founded in Lexington, Massachusetts when it opened in 1839. This normal school was meant to train elementary-level educators for public schools. This provided adults enough education to teach the nation's youth and begin the spread of primary education. Find out more about the purpose of the first "normal schools" at What is a Normal School. -
The committee formed in 1892 to establish a standard curriculum. The group was to distinguish if school should teach for college-bound or terminal students. They decided school was to prepare all students to do well in life, contributing to themselves and society, and to prepare some students for college. The first standards are reviewed in Committee Of Ten Develops First National Standards. -
The rise of secondary school began in 1910 when high school was implemented for the youth in their teenage years. The movement helped raise the amount of 18-year olds in school from to 19% to 71% and aided the graduation rate. -
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled, with a 9-0 decision, that racial segregation in schools was a violation of the Fourteenth Amendment. It rejected the "separate but equal" doctrine. Learn more about the years it took to end segregation in schools in just a few minutes in Brown v. Board of Education Crash Course or read more at Brown v. Board of Education. -
This program was created by the United States Department of Education to fund schools and school districts with many students from low-income families. It correlates with the ESSA of 2015. See how the two acts relate at Bridging Education to Employment -
The Higher Education Act provided “Educational Opportunity Grants” to colleges admitting students with financial need. The Higher Education Act also established the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP), which allowed banks and private institutions to provide loans to students.
Learn more in the History of Student Loans. -
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a law that increased the availability of free appropriate public education to students with disabilities and ensures special education and other services to those students. Understand the Act at Individuals with Disabilities Education Act: Explained. -
The Nation at Risk report brought new attention to education. The 1983 report put out by the Reagan administration went into detail on how America's educational system was failing to educate students well. American students seemed to be plummeting academically.
The education in our country today compares to the education years ago in A Nation at Risk: 30 Years Later. -
This law held schools accountable for the way students learned and achieved. It was slightly controversial, penalizing schools who failed to show improvement. This encouraged schools to focus more on disadvantaged students.
Learn more at No Child Left Behind: Explained & Summarized.