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Early Colonial Education
In America's infancy, schooling was neither free or public. In 1776 children only spent 82 days at school over the span of their entire educational career, only continuing on if you were wealthy. It is significant that that not all children had the same education opportunities at this time. Your level of education was largely based on your social status. This has been corrected in modern days but the struggles persisted for centuries, up to the civil rights movement. http://www.stratfordhall.org -
Jefferson, Rush, and Webster's Impact on Education
All three men contributed to the advancement of American Education. Thomas Jefferson established the University of Virginia in 1819. Benjamin Rush wrote a famous essay on the importance of educating America. Noah Webster's contribution was the Blue Back Speller, a textbook of his design that was adopted as the main book in schools across the United States at that time. -
Post Civil War Growth of Education
After the civil war, people migrated west to new areas and established their own communities. They built schools for their children and promoted the quality of their town's education to lure people to move to their town. Some school houses were in old barns, the backs of taverns, or in run down shops. There soon became so many schools that there was a shortage of teachers, which spurred a new and exciting opportunity for young women to become teachers. -
Common Schools
Originating in New England in 1837, the common school was essentially a public school, and began a major shift in education during this time. All children in the community were invited to attend regardless of financial status, religion, or gender and they were funded by the local residents tax dollars. -
Horace Mann's Impact on Education
Named the first secretary of the state board of education, he set out to took notes on their physical condition of America's schools and promoted their improvement so everyone could learn equally and effectively. Mann was a vital proponent for education and his model is still emulated today. Modern schools must pass codes and inspections and comply with laws for the safety of its students and staff. He paved the way for this to happen. https://www.pbs.org/onlyateacher/horace.html -
Sarah Roberts
Sarah was a 5 year old African American child in Boston. She was sent to the Smith School, a school for blacks, located some miles from their home. The school was in disrepair so her father filed a suit requesting that Sarah and all other black children be allowed to attend school in their own town. It was denied. An investigation of the condition of the school occurred but no action was taken to correct the problems. -
The Progressive Reform Movement
Immigrants were flocking to the United States by the thousands every day. One boat that came from England carried many children, and the day after it arrived, 125 of those children applied to the same school. The schools were very crowded and this resulted in children not being able to attend full time, and some parents chose not to send their kids to school at all because the conditions were so cramped. -
The Gary Plan
Introduced in 1907 in Gary, Indiana this revolutionary progressive form of education allowed children to work in several grades at once, obtaining lots of different kinds of skills. The work-study-play philosophy let children get hands on experience while in school in things like newspaper printing, home economics, machine building, and more. -
Impact of WW2 Through the Decades
In the early 50's the baby boomers were the bright future of America. The schools did all they could to give these kids a great education including vaccinating them, and preparing them for a future involving technology. However, there was a lot of discrimination towards women during this time. Scholarships, athletic programs, and other benefits were not offered to women, only men. -
Brown vs. Board of Education
A landmark case in Topeka, KS that highlighted the issue that separate was not equal.13 families tried to enroll their kids in schools in their communities instead of going to black schools across town. They were turned away and a suit was filed. This case is what spurred the Civil Rights Movement and helped us get to where we are today. Now as a result, both black and white children share the same schools and have the same quality of learning materials. www.uscourts.gov/educational -
Civil Rights Movement
During this time, some states complied with the decision handed down in the case of Brown vs. Board of Education, but the south did not. Discrimination and fighting had become so bad that a movement began, lead by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This movement for equal rights for black Americans has been modeled in many other movements over the last few decades and the teachings of Dr. King have continued to inspire people to fight for their rights and freedoms. www.britannica.com -
IDEA
This act changed the law to require schools to educate children with disabilities regardless of the severity or complexity of their case, and to offer the a fair and equal education. There could be no discrimination based on the fact that they were mentally or physically disabled. Before this law took place, children with disabilities were often housed in hospitals and never given the same quality of education or chances that other kids had. -
A Nation At Risk Report
President Ronald Reagan's address to the U.S. stated we were on the verge of an educational crisis due to low standards and a failure to strive for excellence. By calling on schools to compete in the market and to hold students to a higher standard, we could prove that public education was a better choice than private institutions. American schools have since been restructured to have stricter guidelines and to produce better students. https://www2.ed.gov/pubs/NatAtRisk/risk.html -
Growth of Standardized Testing
Along with tougher graduation requirements and higher standards, schools began implementing standardized testing in order to more accurately gauge how well students were learning their school material. Schools were essentially competing with each other and now in danger of being shut down if their students were underperforming. -
No Child Left Behind Act
This act requires schools to test children in reading and math in grades 3-8 every year, and once again in high school to assure that they are not falling behind. The law leaves the process and standards up to each individual state but they must comply with the law.
