19th Century Public Schooling A Uniformity of Purpose Review From 1620 to ca. 1820, schooling had been Local Varied Privately supported Widespread Purpose: Universal literacy For getting on in the world For reading the Bible; i.e., getting on the next world Review Reason for this commitment to elementary schooling: Colonists were English Colonists were Protestant (Results would have been very different if the successful, culture-defining colonists had been Spanish Catholics) Review This background is important to keep actively in mind English Protestant Committed to schooling for universal literacy Very important that all these things are in place as big decisions are made in the 1st half of the 19th Century Historical Background The time between 1754 and ca. 1820 was a time of Upheaval Disruption Confusion Survival Historical Background 1754-1765 The French and Indian War 1765-1776 Conflict with Parliament over questions of governance 1776-1783 1783-1789 1789 -1790 1790-1800 France 1800 1803 Revolution Articles of Confederation Constitution First presidential administrations, conflict with Hotly disputed election Louisiana Purchase Historical Background 1804-1806 Lewis and Clark expedition 1812-1814 War with England 1817 1824 1828 Panic Disputed election Election of Andrew Jackson Historical Background The period up until about 1830 was dominated by war, internal political conflict, and questions of survival By around 1830, Americans had enough peace and security to start thinking about what it meant to be an American. This is manifested in politics, philosophy, theology, art, music, and literature Washington Irving: “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” is published in 1820 Andrew Jackson (1829-1837) personifies a new “democratic man” in politics Historical Background Noah Webster publishes the American Dictionary of the English Language in 1828 Ralph Waldo Emerson publishes “The American Scholar” in 1837 Henry David Thoreau moves to Walden Pond in 1845 Highlights of what is becoming a uniquely American way of seeing, thinking, and acting Historical Background Two examples of self-conscious American-ness: What then is the American, this new man?...He is an American, who, leaving behind him all his ancient prejudices and manners, receives new ones from the new mode of life he has embraced, the new government he obeys, and the new rank he holds. He has become an American by being received in the broad lap of our great Alma Mater. Here individuals of all races are melted into a new race of man, whose labors and posterity will one day cause great changes in the world. Americans are the western pilgrims. (from "Letter III," 1782) Hector St. Jean Crevocoeur Historical Background “We will walk on our own feet; we will work with our own hands; we will speak our own minds.” Ralph Waldo Emerson, “The American Scholar Historical Background In politics, the result was a commitment to democracy. This was not inevitable We should not take it for granted It was grounded in a belief in the ability of “common man” to make choices for himself and for the polity Historically, this was not only peculiar, it was unique There was no model to follow; we had to make it up We had to “walk on our own feet; work with our own hands; and speak our own minds.” Historical Background This commitment to democracy would have far-reaching consequences; important to keep actively in mind Just as one example, we are committed to the “comprehensive” high school, because we believe that it is the “democratic” approach to secondary schooling; no other developed nation does it this way So we have two defining phenomena occurring during the period, 1820-1860: The development of a self-consciously American way The commitment to democracy as an essential component of the American way American Schooling in the 1st Half of the 19th Century The question about democracy is always, “Can the ordinary person make wise choices for himself and for the polity, or will he succumb to naked self-interest or be seduced by demagogues?” Even as late as the late 18th Century, most people would have picked the second possibility as being much more likely “Democracy” was derided by most as “mobocracy” The shift came in this way: “The ordinary person is not currently capable of making wise decisions but can become so through education.” American Schooling in the 1st Half of the 19th Century Education, then, became a public good. Remember the two reasons for widespread schooling in the colonies: getting on in the world and getting in to the next; both are private goods Now the purpose of schooling has shifted to the creation of a democratic polity What is necessary? Reading, writing, and figuring But also much more American Schooling in the 1st Half of the 19th Century First, schooling had to become Universally available, and Well done Good schoolhouses Good textbooks Well-prepared teachers Carefully developed curricula And the key to all this was public funding During this period, all states commit to using tax revenue to fund schools Schooling had been a private enterprise in the colonies but was now public schooling American Schooling in the 1st Half of the 19th Century Purposes beyond ‘readin, ‘ritin’, and ‘rithmetic A commitment to the principles of republican democracy Virtue Balanced government liberty A commitment to Protestant Christianity Moral training would produce virtuous, well-behaved citizens Discipline Sacrifice simplicity A commitment to capitalism American Schooling in the 1st Half of the 19th Century Notice two things: First, that these reformers saw the role of the school as one of formation (not as fostering “development”) Second, that they believed whole-heartedly that the proper formation meant convincing students of the superiority of Protestant Christianity in religion Republican democracy in politics Capitalism in economics American Schooling in the 1st Half of the 19th Century Schools were meant to effect a revolutionary change in how people were involved in politics The history of the world had been one of control from the top The obvious thing to do would have been to adopt some version of this Americans chose the democratic experiment They believed that a proper education could raise all persons to the point where they could participate wisely in the democratic polity American Schooling in the 1st Half of the 19th Century But only if the schools were committed to forming young people in ways that were consistent with the preservation and extension of the democratic way They believed that this meant Universal schooling Publicly funded Aimed at achieving public purposes Inculcation of virtue so that the free citizen would act to preserve order Inculcation of self-reliance so that all would take responsibility for their own lives American Schooling in the 1st Half of the 19th Century This meant teaching Republican democracy Protestant Christianity Capitalism In the “common school” Open to all Well-funded With well-prepared teachers With well-developed curricula Where one learned to be an American