Education 245: History of American School Reform
Winter 2013
T/TH: 1010-1155AM
Willis 114
Professor Jeffrey Snyder
Willis 108
jsnyder@carleton.edu, X4008
Office Hours: M: 1-230PM; W: 11AM-1230PM; and by appointment
Course Description
“We have long pinned our hopes on education,” says educational historian David
Labaree. “It’s the main way we try to express our ideals and solve our problems.” Is he
right? This course examines the history of American education as a long series of reform
cycles, from the genesis of the public school system in the mid-nineteenth century to the
passage of the No Child Left Behind Legislation in 2002. Drawing on both primary and
secondary sources, we will focus on the origins, development and legacies of four key
school reform movements—the Common School movement, progressive education,
school desegregation and accountability.
Course Readings
Patterson, James T. Brown v. Board of Education: A Civil Rights Milestone and Its
Troubled Legacy. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.
Ravitch, Diane. The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing
and Choice Are Undermining Education. New York: Basic Books, 2011.
* All additional readings will be available on Moodle *
Course Requirements
Assignment
Due Date
Participation (15%)
Every class
Group Presentation (20%)
Tuesdays, starting January 15
Two Analytical Essays (20% each)
Rolling Deadlines, no later than 1159PM on
Friday, January 25 AND Friday, February 22
Final Research Paper (25%)
1-page proposal due by 1159PM on Friday,
February 15
Paper due by 5PM on Saturday, March 16
EDUC 245
Winter 2013
Course Outline
INTRODUCTIONS
TH, January 3
•
course syllabus (print out and read in advance of class)
T, January 8
•
•
Richard Elmore and Milbrey McLaughlin, “Reform Redux”
David Labaree, “Public Goods, Private Goods: The American Struggle over
Educational Goals”
THE COMMON SCHOOL MOVEMENT
TH, January 10
•
•
•
Edward Ayers, “Antebellum Era”
Carl Kaestle, “Social Change and Education
in the American Northeast” and
“The Common-School Reform Program”
Catharine Beecher, “An Essay on the Education
Of Female Teachers for the United States” (1835)
T, January 15
•
•
•
Kaestle, “The Ideology of Ante-bellum
Common-School Reform”
Horace Mann, 12th Annual Report (1848)
William Holmes McGuffey,
McGuffey Readers, excerpts
Group Presentation
TH, January 17
•
•
•
Kaestle, “The Legacy of Common Schooling”
Labaree, “Founding the American School System”
David Tyack, “Schools for Citizens”
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PROGRESSIVE EDUCATION
T, January 22
•
•
•
Robert Crunden, “Progressive Era”
Diane Ravitch, “The Educational Ladder” (skim) and “A Fork in the Road”
John Dewey, “The School and the Life of the Child” (1903)
Group Presentation
TH, January 24
•
•
•
Tyack, “Inside the System: The Character
of Urban Schools, 1890-1940”
Adele Marie Shaw, “The True Character
of the New York Public Schools” (1903)
Mary Antin, Promised Land (1912), excerpt
*Friday, January 25: Analytical Essay No.1 due by 1159PM*
T, January 29
•
•
•
Herbert Kliebard, “Scientific Curriculum Making”
Cardinal Principles of Secondary Education (1918)
Franklin Bobbitt, The Curriculum (1918), excerpts
Group Presentation
TH, January 31
•
•
Kliebard, “The Search for Meaning in Progressive Education”
Labaree, “The Progressive Effort to Reshape the System”
SCHOOL DESEGREGATION
T, February 5
•
•
•
•
Raymond Arsenault, “Civil Rights Movement”
Patterson, Brown v. Board of Education, chs.1 (“Race and the Schools Before
Brown”) and 2 (“The Grass Roots and Struggling Lawyers”)
Erik Eckholm, “Black Schools Restored As Landmarks”
W.E.B. Du Bois, “The Forethought” and “Of Our Spiritual Strivings” (1903)
Group Presentation
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EDUC 245
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TH, February 7
•
•
•
•
•
Patterson, Brown, chs.3
(“The Court Decides”) and
4 (“Crossroads, 1954-55”)
Fourteenth Amendment,
Section 1 (1868)
Brown ruling (1954)
Newspaper headlines (1954)
Zora Neale Hurston,
“Court Order Can’t Make the Races Mix” (1955)
T, February 12
•
•
Patterson, Brown, chs.5 (“Southern Whites Fight Back”) and 8 (“Stalemates”);
skim chs. 6 (“Striving for Racial Balance in the 1960s”) and 7 (“The Burger
Court Surprises”)
Daisy Bates, Long Shadow of Little Rock (1962), excerpt
Group Presentation
in class: watch Eyes on the Prize (Fighting Back: 1957-1962)
TH, February 14
•
•
Patterson, Brown, chs.9 (“Resegregation?”) and 10 (“Legacies and Lessons”)
Linda Greenhouse, “Justices Reject Diversity Plans in Two Districts”
*Friday, February 15: Research Paper Proposal due by 1159PM*
ACCOUNTABILITY
T, February 19
•
•
Ravitch, Death and Life of the
Great American School System,
chs.1 (“What I Learned About School Reform”),
2 (“Hijacked! How the Standards Movement
Turned into the Testing Movement”),
3 (“The Transformation of District 2”) and
4 (“Lessons from San Diego”)
A Nation at Risk (1983)
Group Presentation
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TH, February 21
•
•
Ravitch, Death and Life, chs.5 (‘The Business Model in New York City”), 6
(“NCLB: Measure and Punish”) and 8 (“The Trouble with Accountability”)
No Child Left Behind, Title I “Statement of Purpose” (2002)
*Friday, February 22: Analytical Essay No.2 due by 1159PM*
T, February 26
•
•
Ravitch, Death and Life, chs.9 (“What Would Mrs. Ratliff Do?), 10 (“The
Billionaire Boys’ Club”) and 11 (“Lessons Learned”)
Bill Gates, Speech to the National Conference of State Legislatures (July 21,
2009)
Group Presentation
RESISTANCE TO REFORM
TH, February 28
•
•
Labaree, “Organizational Resistance to Reform” and “Classroom Resistance
to Reform”
Tyack and William Tobin, “The ‘Grammar’ of Schooling: Why Has it Been
so Hard to Change?”
WHAT’S NEXT?
T, March 5
•
Readings TBD
Informal Presentations
TH, March 7
•
Readings TBD
Informal Presentations
*Saturday, March 16: Final Research Paper due by 5PM*
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EDUC 245
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Course Assignments and Grading
Participation, 15%
“Be Prepared.” The Scout motto sums up the crux of participation. Because this course
places a premium on classroom and small-group discussions, students are expected to
come to every class on time with the assigned readings completed, ready to participate
meaningfully in all class activities. I will often send out guiding questions for the
readings over email. I expect that you will bring notes to class based on these questions.
Speaking up, while important, is not the only hallmark of participation. Active listening
and engaging with others’ ideas respectfully are also key components of participation.
*Air-time* is less important than the relevance and sincerity of your contributions.
Please *power-down* your electronic
devices—laptops, cell-phones, etc.—
before the start of class (and, yes, we can
still see you when you are surreptitiously
texting under the table).
Group Presentations, 20%
Tuesdays, starting January 15
Working in small groups, you will be responsible for leading the first 45 minutes of a
single class session. In addition to guiding discussion for the topic at hand, each group
will prepare a short presentation using materials that are not on the course syllabus. The
goal is to present relevant information that goes beyond the course texts. Each group will
create a class handout with a 250-word summary of the key information along with a
short bibliography (citing a minimum of three scholarly sources). You will be evaluated
on the quality of your presentation and handout as well as on your ability to facilitate a
thoughtful and engaging conversation. Each group should meet with me in advance to
discuss their ideas and plans. I highly recommend that all groups practice their
presentations before class.
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Two Analytical Essays (1,000 words), 20% each
Rolling deadlines, no later than 1159PM on Friday, January 25 (#1) AND Friday,
February 22 (#2)
Each analytical essay will present a critical reading of a course text. Your essay should
have a central argument that focuses on what is most significant, provocative or
problematic about the text. Concentrate your energies on developing your own original
analysis—deepening or complicating our understanding of the text—rather than on
summarizing the text. Please see the Guidelines for Critical Reading below.
*Revision Option*: You may revise ONE of your analytical essays based on my
feedback. If you choose to do so, you will need to hand in the revised paper along with a
1-paragraph description of how you addressed my comments. Revisions are due a week
after I return the papers to you. The final grade for the essay will be the average of the
original and revised essay grades.
Final Research Paper (2,000 words), 25%
1-page proposal with your topic, research question and an initial bibliography due on
Friday, February 15 by 1159PM
Final Paper due on Saturday, March 16 by 5PM
The goal of this paper is to synthesize the historical scholarship on a research topic of
your choosing. Over the course of the term, you will have the opportunity to identify a
topic as well as formulate and refine a specific historical research question. Your essay
will:
1. draw on at least five secondary sources (academic journal articles, book chapters
and/or books)
2. provide a brief overview of your topic
3. pose a specific research question
4. answer your research question by weaving together the work of multiple scholars
5. explain the significance of your analysis
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The Fine Print
Attendance:
Given the importance that all Educational Studies classes place on learning with peers
through classroom discussions, students are expected to come to every class session.
After two unexcused absences from class, each subsequent absence will result in the
lowering of your course grade by a third (e.g. from an A to an A-).
Guidelines for Written Assignments:
1. All written assignments should be double-spaced and written in 12-point Times
font
2. Include a word-count at the top of each assignment
3. Use a standard format (APA, Chicago, etc.) for all citations
4. Submit all of your assignments using the dropboxes on Moodle
5. No late assignments will be accepted without prior approval from the instructor
The Writing Center:
Please note that the Writing Center (located on the 2nd floor of Scoville) has peer writing
consultants who can work with you during any stage of the writing process, from
brainstorming to final proofreading. Walk-ins are welcome, although writers with
appointments have priority: https://apps.carleton.edu/campus/asc/writingcenter/
Guidelines for Critical Reading:
As a critical reader of a particular text, you should use the following four questions to
guide your reading:
1. What are the author’s main claims? This is the analysis issue—what is the
author’s angle?
2. Who says? This is the validity issue—what is the author’s evidence?
3. What’s new? This is the value-added issue—what does the author contribute that
we don’t already know?
4. Who cares? This is the significance issue—is the text worth reading?
Academic Honesty:
Sharing ideas with friends is central to the academic enterprise at Carleton. So too is
availing yourself of the ever-expanding universe of print and digital resources available
through the Library. In your written work, of course, it is imperative that the words you
present as your own are in fact original to you. When you borrow somebody else’s ideas
or words, make sure to cite the original author. For more on academic honesty at
Carleton, including a helpful overview of citations, see:
http://apps.carleton.edu/campus/doc/honesty/
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Disability Services:
Carleton is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to students with
disabilities. Students seeking accommodations should contact the Coordinator of
Disability Services, Andy Christensen, at 222-4464 or anchrist@carleton.edu, to begin
the process.
Bibliography:
Primary Sources
Antin, Promised Land excerpt (1912). In James Fraser (ed.), The School in the United
States: A Documentary History. New York: McGraw Hill, 2001, pp.145-53.
Bates, Daisy. The Long Shadow of Little Rock (1962). In School in the United States,
pp.273-77.
Beecher, Catharine. “An Essay on the Education of Female Teachers for the United
States” (1835). In School in the United States, pp.61-66.
Bobbitt, John Franklin. The Curriculum. Cambridge: Riverside Press, 1918.
Commission on Reorganization of Secondary Education. Cardinal Principles of
Secondary Education. Washington, DC: Bureau of Education, 1918.
Dewey, John. The School and Society. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1900.
Du Bois, W.E.B. The Souls of Black Folk. Chicago: A.C. McClurg, 1903.
Fourteenth Amendment, 1868.
Hurston, Zora Neale. “Court Order Can’t Make the Races Mix” (1955). In Waldo E.
Martin, Jr. (ed.), Brown v. Board of Education: A Brief History with Documents.
New York: Bedford, 1998, pp.209-212.
Mann, Horace. 12th Annual Report (1848). In Lawrence A. Cremin (ed.), The Republic
and the School. New York: Teachers College, 1957, pp.79-112.
McGuffey, William Holmes. McGuffey Readers.
National Commission on Excellence in Education. A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for
Educational Reform. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, 1983.
No Child Left Behind, Statement of Purpose, 2002.
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Winter 2013
Shaw, Adele Marie. “The True Character of the NY Public Schools” (1903). In Nancy
Hoffman (ed.), Woman’s “True” Profession: Voices from the History of
Teaching. New York: Feminist Press, 1981.
Secondary Sources
Arsenault, Raymond O. “Civil Rights Movement.” In Paul S. Boyer (ed.), The Oxford
Companion to United States History. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001.
Ayers, Edward L. “Antebellum Era.” In Oxford Companion to United States
History.
Crunden, Robert M. “Progressive Era.” In Oxford Companion to United States
History.
Eckholm, Erik. “Black Schools Restored as Landmarks.” New York Times, January 14,
2010.
Elmore, Richard F. and Milbrey Wallin McLaughlin. Steady Work: Policy, Practice and
the Reform of American Education. Santa Monica: Rand, 1988.
Greenhouse, Linda. “Justices Reject Diversity Plans in Two Districts.” New York Times,
June 28, 2007.
Kaestle, Carl F. Pillars of the Republic: Common Schools and American Society, 17801860. New York: Hill and Wang, 1983.
Kliebard, Herbert. The Struggle for the American Curriculum, 1893-1958. New York:
Routledge, 1995.
Labaree, David. “Public Goods, Private Goods: The American Struggle over
Educational Goals.” American Educational Research Journal 34 (Spring 1997):
39-81.
_____. Someone Has to Fail: The Zero-Sum Game of Public Schooling.
Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2010.
Patterson, James T. Brown v. Board of Education: A Civil Rights Milestone and Its
Troubled Legacy. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.
Ravitch, Diane. Left Back: A Century of Battles Over School Reform. New York:
Touchstone, 2000.
_____. The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing
and Choice Are Undermining Education. New York: Basic Books, 2011.
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Winter 2013
Tyack, David. The One Best System: A History of American Urban Education.
Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1974.
_____. Seeking Common Ground: Public Schools in a Diverse Society. Cambridge:
Harvard University Press, 2003.
Tyack, David and William Tobin. “The ‘Grammar’ of Schooling: Why Has it Been so
Hard to Change?” American Educational Research Journal 31 (Autumn 1994):
453-479.
Images Credits:
“The Red Schoolhouse”: Winslow Homer, 1873; “A Class in the Condemned Essex
School”: Jacob Riis, New York City, c.1890s; “High Court Bans”: Corbis Images;
President George W. Bush Signs No Child Left Behind: Tim Sloan, 1/8/2002; “Before I
read”: Danny Shanahan, New Yorker, 9/11/2000.
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