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Horace Mann
Mann established the first American school to train professional teachers. He pointed the way to our current teacher accreditation and standards. He advocated for free, universal nonsectarian education including the teaching of reading. "Mann spearheaded the Common School Movement, ensuring that every [MA] child could receive a basic education funded by local taxes." This funding system is still used today. http://www.pbs.org/onlyateacher/horace.html -
Friedrich Froebel
Froebel coined the word "kindergarten" to describe a center he founded for preschool education. He developed a curriculum for preschoolers which included singing, dancing, and games. He designed and created manipulatives and taught skills that are found in kindergartens today. Froebel's concept that children learn through play is widely accepted. Kindergartens are now incorporated into public schools. -
John Dewey
Dewey founded the Laboratory School at the University of Chicago. Dewey was a progressive American educational reformer who believed schools should help students realize their full potential. His writings advocated for experiential education, and problem-based learning, methods that are still popular today. He suggested that teachers should love learning and seek to instill that attitude in their students. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Dewey#On_education_and_teacher_education -
Maria Montessori
Opened her first preschool in Rome. The Montessori method emphasizes respect for children, sensory learning materials, a prepared environment and collaborative play. Montessori believed children can educate themselves when given the proper materials. Montessori schools in the US use her theory, method and materials. The Montessori Accreditation Council of Teacher Education offers an Early Childhood Certification Program http://montessorilive.org/academics/early-childhood-certificate-program -
Jean Piaget
Piaget's theory of cognitive development describes how children construct a mental model of the world. He said qualitative differences in thinking evolve based on the interaction between biological development and the environment. Today educators agree with Piaget and arrange classrooms for 1) active learners, who 2) learn individually and collectively, 3) learn through mistakes and 4) learn material at their level of cognitive development. https://www.simplypsychology.org/piaget.html -
Erik Erikson
Published writings on the psychosocial theory of personality development. Erikson described the major conflict individuals face during each of 8 stages of development. Consistent love, care and education facilitate successful resolution of these conflicts. Today we accept his theory that emotional, social and cognitive development are interrelated. Daycare rooms are divided by age and address these issues https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erikson%27s_stages_of_psychosocial_development -
Head Start Program
The Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 included federal funding for the Head Start Program. It is a research driven, community based comprehensive program designed to break the cycle of poverty and meet the emotional, social, health, nutritional and psychological needs of preschool children from low-income families. https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ohs/about/history-of-head-start Today Head Start and Early Head Start programs serve over a million children a year. https://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/hs/about -
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
Congress passed the Education of All Handicapped Children Act (EAHC) which mandated free public education for all children with disabilities. The program was reauthorized in 1990 and renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). IDEA has been reauthorized twice providing children with Free Appropriate Public Education in the Least Restrictive Environment often with an IEP or an IFSP https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Individuals_with_Disabilities_Education_Act#Appropriate_Evaluation -
Early Head Start
The 1995 Head Start Reauthorization broadened the Head Start mandate by establishing Early Head Start for low-income pregnant women and families with infants and toddlers. The program provides early assessment for at-risk children and engages with families through a relationship-based practice. https://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/tta-system/ehsnrc
