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Massachusetts Law of 1642 & 1647
1642 Ordered selectmen to find out whether parents and masters were giving their children an education and to find out what was being taught.
1647 Every town larger than 50 households were required to provide a teacher for reading and writing. All over 100 had to establish a grammar school.
Considered the first education laws in America. -
Thomas Jefferson
Proposed a "system of universal, free, public education for 3 years.
Founded the University of Virginia - planned every detail of the school - buildings, landscape, curriculum, library books, students and faculty. -
Noah Webster
Wrote many textbooks. The most important was the "Elementary Spelling Book". -
Benjamin Rush
Wanted to establish a school system in Pennsylvania and eventually the entire nation. He wanted a free school established that would prepare them for college. He was an advocate for the education of women and blacks. -
The Impact of Horace Mann
Was concerned with the substandard condition of the schools. He was also concerned with the quality of the teachers and their training. He established three schools for the professional training of teachers. -
*Most Important - Common School Movement
Our school system closer to what we know. Systems of Education were made with state control and tax to support the schools. They were publicly supported schools that could be attended by all children.
By the Working force, these schools were seen as a way their children could move up in society when the parents didn't have the money to pay for the education.
More about the Common School Movement -
The Measurement Movement
After Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon came up with a way to compare individual students intelligence to a norm, Lewis Terman developed the IQ. They found that many of the men listing for service in the military had a large number of educational deficiencies, especially illiteracy. Test were used to diagnose learning difficulties. Though the test were not used properly. -
John Dewey
He favored Child Centered Curriculum where learning came through experience, not memorization. He said that "education is most effective when it considers not only the intellectual but also the social, emotional, and physical needs of the child." -
*Most Important - Brown vs. Board of Education
This was just the beginning of the Civil Rights movement. In this case the Supreme Court ruled that "segregated educational facilities have no place in public education and generate a feeling of inferiority that affects the child's motivation to learn. This didn't stop segregation immediately. It was met with great resistance.
More about this Case -
Sputnik and NDEA
Due to the launch of Sputnik, the government passed the National Defense Education Act. This directed funding to specific curriculum - Math, Science, and foreign language. The government pushed for new curriculum in these area's. -
Lyndon B Johnson's - War on Poverty
The focus was to get people out of poverty. Johnson believed that if people had better education there would be less poverty. They put a plan in place to rid the nation of poverty by passing legislation to "subsidize low-income housing, improve healthcare, expand welfare services, provide job training and improve inner city schools. -
*Most Important - Civil Rights Act
This is a huge deal. This act prohibited discrimination against students and employment based on race, color, religion, national origin or sex. It allowed the government to withhold federal funding from the violators of this law. It also allowed federal financial assistance to schools that worked at the desegregation.
Click here for more information on the Civil Rights Act -
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965
Provided over $1 Billion in federal funds to education. -
*Most Important - Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA)
This put the rights of children in a new light. It pushed to allow EVERYONE to receive and education.
This act established the right of those with disabilities to receive a "free and appropriate education" in the least restrictive environment.
Click here for more about IDEA -
*Most Important - No Child Left Behind
This brought accountability of teachers and provided standards to be taught. As we test the kids, we can adjust our teaching as necessary.
NCLB developed standards for what every child should learn and know with test to view progress. They want every child to be 100% proficient. This put more accountability on schools.
More about NCLB
