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Northwest Land Ordinance
This created a responsibility for citizens to fund education. This began financial support for education -
Jefferson, Webster
Jefferson was influential in creating free educational opportunities while Webster created a textbook to help students spell. -
Common School Movement
In the 1830's the common school movement began. Horace Mann was influential in created a tax-funded system that enabled highly trained teachers into the profession.This movement began in Massachusetts and spread across the country. This began shaping how are schools are organized today.
http://study.com/academy/lesson/horace-mann-education-reform-contributions-philosophy-quiz.html -
The Committee of Ten
The Committee of Ten recommended students stay in school longer. They recommended 8 years of elementary education and 4 years of secondary education. It also recommended a new structured curriculum. This recommendation helped shape the format of our education today.
https://www3.nd.edu/~rbarger/www7/neacom10.html -
Secondary School Movement
A rapid increase of secondary schools began to be created. As a result the secondary enrollment increased dramatically -
The Progressive Reform Movement
A push to change pedagogy and curriculum to satisfy the desires of society -
The Impact of John Dewey
Dewey is credited for the idea of educating the "whole child". -
The Measurement Movement
The concept that students could be tested to determine intelligence was created. This was then used to measure students against one another. This still affects decisions made in education today. We still base our educational success largely on comparisons of other countries.
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/1999/06/16/40pioneers.h18.html -
Brown V. Board of Education
This is the MOST important event in our educational history. This case determined that "separate but equal" did not work. Schools were required to desegregate. This was the beginning of the major diversity found in schools today that reaches well beyond race.
http://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/educational-activities/history-brown-v-board-education-re-enactment -
Sputnik and NDEA
The Soviet Union launched a satellite into space before the U.S. This created a sense of failure on the part of our education which led to the enactment of the National Defense Education Act. -
Elementary and Secondary Education Act
This Act provides federal funds to schools to help decrease the achievement gap by providing equal opportunities for all students. -
Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act
This Act was enacted to ensure students with disabilities would receive a free and appropriate education. The Federal Government originally promised a certain amount of support through funding, but has never even met 50% of what they originally promised. This uses a larger portion of our funding today but has helped improve our society by helping more kids succeed.
http://www.parentcenterhub.org/repository/idea/ -
A Nation at Risk Report
This report stated that our educational system was mediocre. It made recommendations that our school system make improvements in 5 areas: content, standards and expectations, time, teaching, leadership and fiscal support. -
The Standards Movement
This movement began partly as a result of the "A nation at risk report". As a result we have created high academic, content, and performance standards. -
The Growth of Standardized Testing
Over the last decade or more we have seen a steady increase in high-stakes standardized testing. It is controversial because of the validity and reliability of this kind of testing and the burden it puts on students and schools.
