These days, we take public education for granted, with schools across the country offering free or close to no-cost education from kindergarten all the way to 12th grade. What you might not realize is just how new public education is, its unusual origins, and how America approached education uniquely.
The Origins of Public Education in America
The story of public education in America started during the colonial period with the establishment of the Boston Latin School in 1635 in Massachusetts. This boys’ secondary school, whose students included John Hancock and Samuel Adams, emphasized Latin and Greek to prepare students for colleges like Harvard. The focus on Latin came from a law in the Massachusetts Bay Colony that towns with 100 families must have Latin schools, a product of the Puritan wish to enable children to read the Calvinist Bible.
Education in the other colonies varied: the middle colonies used church-supported education, and the southern colonies, with their low population densities, often used homeschooling or tutors.
After the American Revolution, a demand for a typically American education system independent of British influences took hold. During the 1830s, Horace Mann, the first secretary of education in Massachusetts, crusaded for free, tax-supported “common schools” that shifted their emphasis from theology to the “three R’s”: reading, writing, and arithmetic. It established the basis for current public education.
To provide teachers for these schools, the first normal school to prepare teachers was established in Lexington, Massachusetts, in 1839, which eventually called for standardized qualifications. In 1852, Massachusetts enacted the first law requiring education, mandating primary education in all towns, solidifying the foundation for a standardized, open public educational system.
The Impact of Urbanization and Industrialization
The founding of teachers’ schools and common schools laid the bedrock for public education, but a lot happened in America between the mid-1800s and 1900s. First, there was the Civil War, which resulted in large numbers of freed slaves who needed an education.
While the end of the Civil War brought about a new education system in the South, it also led to segregation in education. Institutions like the Rosenwald School in South Carolina were set up to educate African Americans with help from wealthy northern benefactors. This school and others aimed to teach basic arithmetic, reading, writing, and grammar. Unfortunately, examples like this were few and far between during the repressive Jim Crow era.
In the north, where cities were growing rapidly and the education system struggled to keep up with the influx of people. In New York, the Board of Education was established to increase the number of schools, and by 1874, New York had passed a law requiring children aged 8 to 14 to attend school for at least 14 weeks per year. 14 weeks may not seem like a lot, but at the time, child labor was still prevalent.
The idea of child labor in the 1800s may bring about images of Dickensian images of young Oliver Twist in the workhouse. Although the “almshouses” or “poorhouses” did exist for a long time, by the late 1870s, it was recognized that these often filthy places were less than ideal for children (or anyone, for that matter) who were shifted into foster homes or orphanages where education was more accessible.
Modern Developments in the American Education System
After the relative chaos of the 1800s, the American education system needed some stability to flourish. The common school movement laid solid foundations for education across the states, and by the turn of the century, most states had enacted compulsory attendance laws, requiring children to attend school for a set number of weeks per year and years overall.
Although school curricula in the US are not standardized to this day, movements started in the late 1800s to guide what schools should be teaching. The National Educational Association met in 1892 and determined that English, mathematics, and history or civics should be taught to every student every academic year in high school. The need to teach skills like numeracy and literacy reflects the growing need for an educated workforce, while the shift from religion to history and civics seems fitting in a country founded on religion but now driven by law.
The late 1800s and early 1900s saw record numbers of immigrants arriving on our shores year after year, many of whom needed to learn English, prompting the creation of the first English language centers and increased emphasis on civics to promote social cohesion.
Current State of Education
Since the No Child Left Behind Act in 2002, we have standardized testing across the country for reading and math proficiency every year at certain grades. The Scholastic Assessment Test, also known as the SAT, is widely used across the country for college admissions. So, although states decide their own curriculum, standardized tests guide what you get taught across the country.
Large shifts have happened at colleges where now, thanks to technological advancements, we’re able to study completely online with the option between Rockhurst University online degrees and plenty of other higher education institutions.
American colleges, which consistently rank among the highest in the world, have also changed a great deal since their inception. In the 1800s, college was expensive. Very few people got degrees; today, 44% of Americans over 25 have a degree.
The Future of Education: Innovations and Predictions
New technology is being used across the board to enhance education, from online testing to AI and remote learning. It started small in colonial times, but grew into today’s world-leading system thanks to public schools, leaders like Horace Mann, and laws making kids go to school. Now, AI can make learning personal, help teachers with boring tasks, and improve lessons.
But it’s not always smooth sailing. New technology raises issues about privacy, fairness, and keeping teachers relevant. Trendy new tech like virtual reality and online classes could make learning fun and open to all. If we use tech in a positive way, education can get better and help everyone to learn regardless of location, income or age.
Featured image credit: DepositPhotos.com
