History of Education 1600's-1820's

  • John Locke

    Stated that education was important to build a strong mind and body so that one could serve his country
    The goal of education should build a morally strong man, above a scholarly strong man.
    1632-1704
  • Boston Latin School

    The very first school building in the US, as said in the name, it was built in Boston Massachusetts in 1635.
    This school taught religion, Latin, and literature free of charge to boys, while girls received very limited education from their homes
  • Harvard University is founded

    The oldest university in America dating all the way back to 1636. It was first established in Massachusetts.
    John Harvard donated money and books to the school.
  • Hartford Public Highschool

    Hartford Public High School, in Hartford, Connecticut, was founded in 1638. It is the second-oldest public secondary school in the United States, after the Boston Latin School
  • Massachusetts Bay School Law

    the first law in the New World requiring that children be taught to read and write
  • Old Deluder Satan Act

    This act required all towns of 50 citizens or more to have a hire a schoolmaster to teach the children. This now shifted the responsibility of education from parents to a teacher
  • Essay Concerning Human Understanding

    work by John Locke concerning the foundation of human knowledge and understanding. He describes the mind at birth as a blank slate filled later through experience.
  • New England Primer

    The very first widely spread textbook.
    Was published in Boston in 1690 as Puritan families decided that they wanted their children to read the Bible. This textbook was meant to increase literacy rates in students.
  • Benjamin Franklin

    Was the founder of many libraries and schools, one of the most famous being the Philadelphia Academy Secondary School
    Believes in student centered teaching
    Advocated for women and African Americans
    His views were not accepted by religiously centered thinkers as he did not include God in his views on education
    1706-1790
  • Ursuline Academy of New Orleans

    One of the first schools for girls in the country and the oldest catholic school.
    This school offered the first convent and the first retreat center for ladies
  • Jean Jacques Rousseau

    He thought that children learn best to their ability and full potential as long as they are not restrained.
  • Thomas Jefferson

    Had the basic belief that all people had a right to education
    Children should receive a minimum of three years of education and should have basic writing, reading, and arithmetic skills
    An Act to Establish Public Education: first come up with by Jefferson, this was passed in 1796. This bill called for widespread public education
  • American Spelling Book

    commonly known as the “blue backed speller” due to its blue cover, and was one of the most popular spelling books since its first publication in 1783. The speller was followed by a book on grammar in 1784 and a reader in 1785.
    1783-85
  • Blackboard

    In 1801 the modern blackboard is invented by James Pillan who hangs a large piece of slate on the wall to write on.
  • Connecticut Asylum at Hartford for the Instruction of Deaths and Dumb Persons open

    Fully known as the Connecticut Asylum at Hartford for the Instruction of Deaf and Dumb Persons.
    This was the first ever permanent school for students with mental handicaps.
  • School Slate

    A thin flat piece of rock that was encased in a wooden border
    The exact origin of this tool is not known
    Sometimes, multiple slates were bound together and had straight lines to create a guide for handwriting