Education ReformBen Bishop and Sally Seitz

1815-1848

“In a republic, ignorance is a crime.”

-Horace Mann (http://americanhistory.abc-clio.com)

“In its broadest definition, education is the entire process of culturaltransmission” (HOW, 452).

Horace Mann: “Father of American Public Education”

Secretary of Massachusetts State Board of Education from 1837-1848 “Education is a great equalizer of the conditions of men – the balance wheel of the

social machinery.” Made Massachusetts the state leader in “Educated America” Schools would not only help America, but would also enhance American relations on

a universal level Creation of Public Schools was an act of justice Created idea that all children are entitled to education, contrary to European theory Wanted schools to explain the government of the country the children live in Stated that “a republic with an uneducated population is a very rash action” Persistent in majority of education being free to the public and with Protestant

foundation Organized conventions in every county in Massachusetts to spread the interest of

education and to also train teachers. Favored the idea of moral education over corporal punishment Created first teacher training school in Lexington in 1839

Horace Mann:Letter to State Legislature

This was Horace Mann’s last letter to the State Legislature on the Education Board’s activities.

“Without undervaluing any other human agency, it is safely affirmed that the common school, improved and energized as easily as it can be, may become the most effective and benignant of all the forces of civilization” (http://americanhistory.abc-clio.com).

Henry Barnard Ideology similar to Horace Mann Served three terms on Connecticut General

Assembly Biggest achievement was sponsoring bill for

improvement of common schools Established State Board of Education

Commissioners, which was to be led by a State Secretary of Education

Ends up actually being State Secretary of Education Set up schools for teachers and founded and edited

Connecticut common school journal, which was also known as The American journal of Education

Superintendent of the schools of Connecticut Had many followers who agreed with his idea that

education reduced poverty

Mary Lyon:Higher Learning for Women

1837- Started one of the first Secondary School for Women Called Mount Holyoke Female Seminary Mary Lyon was first head of the college First class had 80 graduate students Taught classes such as natural science,

mathematics, “modern history,” and Latin

Started as a 3 year program, but extended to four years

Used college-level textbooks Most common professions taken after

graduating were teachers and missionaries

William Holmes McGuffey

Wrote Eclectic Reader in 1836, which taught students basic reading skills

Created idea of moving from small words to sentences and henceforth

All characters in his books were white with Anglo-Saxon traditions (very patriotic)

Religion and Education

Sunday Schools Originally started because states wouldn’t start primary school Provided reading lessons one day a week Started to teach only religion after public schools were implemented 1827- Sunday Schools were teaching 200,000 kids how to read

African American Studies Religion played an important role in African American’s schooling Teaching slaves was outlawed in most states Some masters felt a religious obligation to teach slaves Negro schools existed in Free Slave areas (not publicly supported)

Worcester vs. Georgia:Education problems with Native

Americans Georgia determined to end education of Native Americans

and expelled missionaries; sparked Supreme Court case Worcester vs. Georgia Cherokees, led by John Ross, challenged the

constitutionality of Georgia’s laws Court held jurisdiction that Cherokees couldn’t strike down

Georgia’s laws, but declared Cherokees a “dependent” nation in the case Cherokee Nation vs. Georgia

Samuel Worcester: missionary from Vermont Challenged Georgia’s extension laws John Marshall ruled against Georgia’s extension laws and that

the Cherokee were a separate, sovereign nation

Common Schools

Tuition-free, tax-supported Modeled after French system “école normale” Rural schools varied in size, but usually remained at one room; were

compliant to agricultural needs Schools brought towns together Exclusively white Knowing education marked class advancement Began to hire more women because they believed women provided

nurture and encouragement; chances for unmarried women Hinted at social acceptance of unmarried people Females still had to focus on roles of “average” woman

(cooking, sewing, etc.)

Common Schools (continued)

“The ideology of the American common schools included patriotic virtue, responsible character, and democratic participation, all to be developed through intellectual discipline and the nurture of the moral qualities” (HOW, 453).

Met statewide standards of education Had up-to-date textbooks and facilities Teachers were actually trained States assumed role of education because they promoted growth of

towns and communities Helped keep children off the street Common religion instruction and reading the bible were implemented

Secondary Schools

University of Virginia

Dartmouth College

South Carolina College

Secondary Schools before 1848

Literacy Ratesin 1840

New England: No state lower than 98% literacy; comparable to Sweden and Scotland, where Protestant programs were in effect

91% of American Whites were literate; comparable to Prussia, whose education system was also run by church

Including African American Adults, US literacy was 78%; to compare, England’s was 59%

North Carolina had lowest literacy rate at 72% (89% by 1860)

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History. ABC-CLIO, 2011. Web. 7 Nov. 2011. 6. Howe, Daniel Walker. What Hath God Wrought: the Transformation of America, 1815-

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Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2009. Print. 8. "Mary Lyon." Image. Library of Congress. American History. ABC-CLIO, 2011. Web. 7

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