-
Founding of Jamestown
Established in 1607 as the first permanent English Colony in the New World. Jamestown was named after King James of England who wanted to spread the religion of Protestantism by converting the Native population. -
Period: to
The Colonial Period
Schools during the Colonial Period mirrored class and gender distinctions common in Europe at the time. For this reason, formal education was only for wealthy white males and ignored others. -
The Boston Latin Grammar School Established
The first American high school serving only the colonial elite. A college-preparatory school designed to help boys prepare for the ministry or a career in law. -
Period: to
The Evolution of the American High School
-
Founding of Harvard College
Harvard is the United States' oldest institution of higher learning, established in 1636 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. -
Old Deluder Satan Act
Also known as the Massachusetts Act of 1647 established the legal foundation for public support of education. It required that all towns of 50 or more families to provide an Elementary School, where teachers were required to teach reading, writing, and the Bible. Towns that held 100 or more families were required to have Grammar Schools. The idea of this law was to produce citizens who could understand the Bible and resist the evil temptations of sin. -
Founding of the College of William and Mary
Founded in 1693 by a royal charter establishing "a perpetual College of Divinity, Philosophy, Languages, and the good arts and sciences" in the British Colony of Virginia. It was named for the reigning joint monarchs of Great Britain, King William III and Queen Mary II. -
Founding of Yale University
Chartered by Connecticut Colony, the "Collegiate School" was established by clergy in Saybrook Colony to educate Congregationalist ministers. It moved to New Haven in 1716, and shortly after was renamed Yale College in recognition of a gift from British East India Company governor Elihu Yale. -
Academy of Philadelphia Founded
Founded as a secondary school by Benjamin Franklin in 1751 free from religious influence. The school hat focused on Math, navigation, astronomy, bookkeeping, logic, and rhetoric for both both boys and girls. -
Education in the Southern Colonies
Education in the Southern Colonies was for the wealthy through private tutors, boarding schools, or private schools. No public schools existed as this was an agricultural based society. -
Education in the Middle Colonies
Education in the Middle Colonies was difficult as these colonies were too culturally diverse. Education was through Parochial Schools in native languages and based on local religious beliefs. -
Education in the New England Colonies
Education in the New England Colonies was based on the Puritan belief that education made people more righteous, industrious, resourceful, and thrifty. Common schools were formed more easily because of the shared beliefs of the community. -
Period: to
Early National Period
-
Land Ordinance of 1785
The ordinance divided land west of the Original 13 colonies into townships consisting of 36 one-square-mile sections, with the income from one section reserved for support of public education. Although not directly involved in governing or operating schools, the federal government provided monetary support for schools and education, a tradition that persists to this day. -
Ratification of the Constitution
The Constitution removes formal religion from the schools and establishes state responsibility in education. -
Period: to
Common School Movement
The Common School Movement made education accessible to the common person. -
First English Classical School Established
Founded in Boston in 1821, the school was a free secondary school designed to meet the needs of boys not planning to attend college. It offered studies in English, math, history, science, geography, bookkeeping, and surveying, and to reflect its practical emphasis. -
Creation of Normal Schools
2-year institutions that were intended to improve the quality of the Common School system by producing more qualified teachers. The schools targeted women as potential teachers and attempted to provide both content background and pedagogical training beyond the high school level. -
Horace Mann
Horace Mann was Secretary of the Massachusetts State Board of Education from 1837 to 1848. He was an outspoken advocate for public education, whose most important legacy was the idea that public education, in the form of tax-supported elementary schools should be a right of all citizens -
Compulsory Attendance Act of 1852
The compulsory attendance act of 1852 enacted by the state of Massachusetts required mandatory attendance for children between the ages of eight and fourteen for at least three months out of each year, of these twelve weeks at least six had to be consecutive. The penalty for not sending your child to school was a fine not greater than $20.00 -
Tuskegge Institute Founded
Founder by Booker T. Washington in 1881 for African Americans in the South. He believed that hard work, practical training, and economic cooperation with whites were the keys to success. -
Committee of Ten
The Committee of Ten was a working group of educators that, in 1892, recommended the standardization of American high school curriculum. -
W E Du Bois
First African American in the United States to receive a PhD. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
United States Supreme Court decision upholding the constitutionality of state laws requiring racial segregation in public facilities under the doctrine of separate but equal . -
Junior High Schools Created
Toledo, Ohio establishes the first Junior High School (grades 7,8,9) in the United States. -
The Cardinal Principles of Secondary Education Report
The commission proposed the idea of comprehensive high schools with different tracks for different students. -
Projectors and Filmstrips used in schools
Allowed teachers to show still photographs in classes, sometimes with accompanying narratives, -
Overhead Projector First Used in Schools
Technology that required information to be placed on transparent plastic for projection. -
Period: to
The Modern Era
-
First Middle School Established
Middle School targeted grades 6 to 8 and designed to meet the unique social, emotional, and intellectual needs of early adolescents, -
VCR First Used in Schools
VCRs and VHS tapes were used to bring the outside world into the classroom. -
Programmed and Computer-Based Instruction First Used in Schools
Programmed instruction focused on forming behavioral objectives, breaking instructional content into small units, and rewarding correct responses immediately and frequently. -
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka
United States Supreme Court case in which the Court declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students to be unconstitutional. -
National Defense Education Act
Passed by Congress during the Cold War, it was designed to enhance “the security of the nation” by improving instruction in math, science, and foreign languages. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
Outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. -
Head Start Program Established
Established in 1965, Head Start is a federal compensatory education program designed to help 3- to 5-year-old disadvantaged children enter school ready to learn. -
Title I
A federal compensatory education program that funds supplemental education services for low-income students in elementary and secondary schools. -
Hand Held Calculators First Used in Schools
Introduced by Texas Instruments, these large and initially bulky tools paved the way for the sophisticated calculators used in today’s classrooms. -
Title IX
Designed to eliminate gender inequalities in education. -
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
An Act that ensures students with a disability are provided with Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) that is tailored to their individual needs. -
Creation of the Department of Education
The primary function is to establish policy for, administer and coordinate most federal assistance to education, collect data on US schools, and to enforce federal educational laws regarding privacy and civil rights
