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Period: to
Colonial America
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First Latin Grammar School set up in Boston
These schools were set up for young men of certain social classes to learn leadership skills in assume future roles in the church, state, and the courts. -
Harvard College Established
Harvard Collge becomes the first higher educational insititution in Newtowne (Cambridge), Massachusetts. -
John Locke Publishes "Essay Concerning Human Understanding"
John Locke states in his book that we are all born with a tabula rasa, or a blank slate, where experiences shape and grow our mind instead of innate ideas. Locke's views go on to greatly influence the structure of education as well as other events in American History. -
The First New England Primer is Printed in Boston
The New England Primer is an eighteenth-century American textbook intended to teach literacy and Puritan theology. It became the most widely used schoolbook in New England and has never been out of print. -
John Locke Publishes "Some Thoughts Concerning Education"
John Locke's Some Thoughts Concerning Education is published, describing his views on educating upper class boys to be moral, rationally-thinking, and reflective "young gentlemen." His ideas regarding educating the masses are conveyed in On Working Schools, published in 1697, which focused on the importance of developing a work ethic. -
Benjamin Franklin establishes the "English Academy"
Benjamin Franklin helps to establish the first "English Academy" in Philadelphia with a curriculum that is both classical and modern, including such courses as history, geography, navigation, surveying, and modern as well as classical languages. The academy ultimately becomes the University of Pennsylvania. -
Bill 79 is Passed
Thomas Jefferson authors Bill 79: "A Bill for the More General Diffusion of Knowledge," which provides "a comprehensive plan for public education . . ." It is presented in the Virginia House of Delegates several times before a revised bill titled, "An Act to Establish Public Education," is finally passed in 1796. -
Noah Webster writes "A Grammatical Institute of the English Language"
Because of his dissatisfaction with English textbooks of the day, Noah Webster writes A Grammatical Institute of the English Language , consisting of three volumes: a spelling book, a grammar book, and a reader. They become very widely used throughout the United States. In fact, the spelling volume, later renamed the American Spelling Book and often called the Blue-Backed Speller, has never been out of print! -
Young Ladies Academy Opens in Philadelphia
The Young Ladies Academy opens in Philadelphia and becomes the first academy for girls in the original 13 colonies/states. -
Connecticut Asylum at Hartford Opens
This school is the first permanent school for the deaf in the United States. In 1864, Thomas Gallaudet's son, Edward Miner Gallaudet, helps to start Gallaudet University, the first college specifically for deaf students. -
Period: to
19th Century Education
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Boston English High School Opens
One of the first public high schools in the United States opens. -
Mount Holyoke Female Seminary Opens
Eighty students arrive to become the first group of women to attend college sepcifically designed for their educational needs. -
The African Institute Opens
The Instittude for Colored Youth opens in Cheyney, Pennsylvanaia and is noe the oldest insitutution of higher lerning for American Americans. -
The first "Normal Schools" open
These schools under the reform of Horace Mann are the first state funded schools specifically for teacher education. -
The First Mandatory Attendance Law is passed
Massachusetts enacts the first mandatory attendance law. By 1885, 16 states have compulsory-attendance laws, but most of those laws are sporadically enforced at best. All states have them by 1918. -
Charles Darwin's "The Origin of Species" is published
Charles Darwin's The Origin of Species is published on November 24, introducing his theory that species evolve through the process of natural selection, and setting the stage for the controversy surrounding teaching the theory of evolution in public schools that persists to this day. -
The Department of Education is created
The Department of Education is created in order to help states establish effective school systems. -
Howard University is established in Washington, D.C.
Howard University is established in Washington D.C. to provide education for African American youth "in the liberal arts and sciences.” Early financial support is provided by the Freedmen's Bureau. -
The Civil Rights Act of 1875 is passed
The Act called for the ban on discrimination in public transportation and accommodations. This legislation guaranteed equal access to all Americans to schools, churches, shops, and railroads. Additionally, the legislation prohibited exclusion of African American citizens from jury duty. This act extended the protections under the 14th amendement. However, Congress deemed the act unconstitutional in 1883. -
Jane Addams founds the Hull House
Jane Addams and her college friend Ellen Gates Starr found Hull House in a Chicago, Illinois neighborhood of recent European immigrants. It is the first settlement house in the U.S. Included among its many services are a kindergarten and a night school for adults. Hull House continues to this day to offer educational services to children and families. -
Plessy V. Ferguson
Homer Plessy, a 30-year-old African American, challenges the state of Louisiana's "Separate Car Act," stating that requiring Blacks to ride in separate railroad cars violates the 13th &14th Amendments. The U.S. Supreme Court upholds the Louisiana law stating in the majority opinion that the14th Amendment "had not been intended to abolish distinctions based on color." Thus, the Supreme Court ruling in the case of Plessy v. Ferguson makes "separate but equal" policies legal. Including education. -
Association of American Universities is created
The Association of American Universities is founded to promote higher standards and put U.S. universities on an equal footing with their European counterparts. -
Period: to
20th Century & Beyond
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Pavlov's Theory on Classical Conditioning is introduced
Ivan Pavlov reads his paper, The Experimental Psychology and Psychopathology of Animals, at the 14th International Medical Congress in Madrid, explaining his concept of the conditioned reflex, an important component of classical conditioning. -
The Carneigie Foundation is Founded
It is charted by an act of Congress in 1906, the same year the Foundation encouraged the adoption of a standard system for equating "seat time" (the amount of time spent in a class) to high school credits. Still in use today, this system came to be called the "Carnegie Unit. -
Jean Piaget's "The Conception of the World" is Published
Jean Piaget's The Child's Conception of the World is published. His theory of cognitive development becomes an important influence in American developmental psychology and education. -
The Great Depression Begins
The Great Depression greatly impacts education by cutting the govenrment funding on hundred of schools and also causing many of them to close its doors. -
The Truman Report changes Higher Education
The Truman Commission Report, is issued in 1947 and recommends sweeping changes in higher education, including doubling college enrollments by 1960 and extending free public education through the establishment of a network of community colleges. This latter recommendation comes to fruition in the 1960s, during which community college enrollment more than triples. -
Brown V. Board of Education
On May 17th, the U.S. Supreme Court announces its decision in the case of Brown v. Board. of Education of Topeka, ruling that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal," thus overturning its previous ruling in the 1896 case of Plessy v. Ferguson. Brown v. Board of Education is actually a combination of five cases from different parts of the country. It is a historic first step in the long and still unfinished journey toward equality in U.S. education. -
"Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives" is Published
The Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: The Cassification of Educational Goals; Handbook I: Cognitive Domain is published. Often referred to simply as “Bloom’s Taxonomy” because of its primary author, Benjamin S. Bloom, the document actually has four coauthors (M.D. Engelhart, E.J. Furst, W.H. Hill, and David Krathwohl). -
Lev Vygotsky's book "Thought and Language" is Introduced in the US
Vygotsky's ideas regarding the social nature of learning provide important foundational principles for contemporary social constructivist theories. He is perhaps best known for his concept of "Zone of Proximal Development." -
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is passed
This ended segregation and prohibits such in programs and activities which recieve federal financial assistance such as schools. -
The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) is passed
Part of Lyndon Johnson's "War on Poverty," it provides federal funds to help low-income students, which results in the initiation of educational programs such as Title I and bilingual education -
The Rehabilitation Act becomes Law
Section 504 of this act guarantees civil rights for people with disabilities in the context of federally funded institutions and requires accommodations in schools including participation in programs and activities as well as access to buildings. Today, "504 Plans" are used to provide accommodations for students with disabilities who do not qualify for special education or an IEP. -
Public Law 105-332, the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act is passed
The goal of increasing the quality of vocational-technical education in the U.S. It is reauthorized in 1998 and again in 2006 as the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act (PL 109-270). -
Jacqueline and Martin Brooks' In Search of Understanding: The Case for Constructivist Classrooms is published
One of the many books and articles describing constructivism, a view that learning best occurs through active construction of knowledge rather than its passive reception. Constructivist learning theory, with roots such as the work of Dewey, Bruner, Piaget, and Vygotsky, becomes extremely popular in the 1990s. -
The Improving America's Schools Act (IASA)
Signed into law by President Bill Clinton on January 25th. It. reauthorizes the ESEA of 1965 and includes reforms for Title I; increased funding for bilingual and immigrant education; and provisions for public charter schools, drop-out prevention, and educational technology. -
No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) is Signed into Law
The controversial No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) is approved by Congress and signed into law by President George W. Bush on January 8, 2002. The law, which reauthorizes the ESEA of 1965 and replaces the Bilingual Education Act of 1968, mandates high-stakes student testing, holds schools accountable for student achievement levels, and provides penalties for schools that do not make adequate yearly progress toward meeting the goals of NCLB. -
IDEA is Reauthorized and Modified
Changes, which take effect on July 1, 2005, include modifications in the IEP process and procedural safeguards, increased authority for school personnel in special education placement decisions, and alignment of IDEA with the No Child Left Behind Act. The 2004 reauthorization also requires school districts to use the (RTI) approach as a means for the early identification of students at risk for specific learning disabilities. -
Common Core State Standards Initiative
"a state-led effort coordinated by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) and the Council of Chief State School Officers," is launched. It is expected that many, perhaps most, states will adopt them. -
President Obama signs bipartisan budget bill
President Barack Obama signs the 1.1-trillion dollar bipartisan budget bill on January 17. The bill restores some, but not all, of the cuts to federal education programs that resulted from sequestration. It is the first budget to be agreed to by our divided government since 2009!
