Foundations and Assessment of Education/Edition 1/Foundations Table of Contents/Chapter 6/6.6.2

What is the Purpose of Public Schools?

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If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be… Thomas Jefferson From a letter to Colonel Charles Yancey, January 6, 1816

Learning Target

• Student should be able to describe the function of public schools as it relates to social reform.

Introduction

In order to determine the purpose of public schools today, we must first examine the evolution of the school system in the United States. The purpose of public education has been affected by major changes in American society. These changes include religious and economic transformations as well as the expansion of civil rights, which have had enormous effects on what goes on in the classroom. Other factors include population growth, immigration, and technology (The Story of American Public Education, 2001, p. 2).

Early History of Public Education (Religious)

The most preliminary form of public education was in existence in the 1600s in the New England colonies of Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire. The overriding belief of educating the children was more due to religious reasons and was easy to implement, as the only groups in existence were the puritans and the Congregationalists. However, the influx of people from many countries and belonging to different faiths led to a weakening of the concept. People refused to learn only in English and opposed the clergy imposing their religious views through public education. By the middle of the eighteenth century, private schooling had become the norm (Thattai, 2001).

After the Revolutionary War (Political)

In the aftermath of the Revolution, a newly independent America came face-to-face with one of its most daunting challenges: how to build a united nation out of thirteen colonies with little in common. Many citizens like Thomas Jefferson and Horace Mann believed that education held the key. They and other leaders of the time launched a crusade to create a common system of tax-supported schools that would mix people of different backgrounds and reinforce the bonds that tie Americans together (The Story of American Public Education, 2001).

Public education was viewed as the fundamental way to prepare children from diverse ethnic, religious and class backgrounds to live as responsible citizens in a democracy. From mega essays

After the Industrial Revolution (Immigration)

Between 1890 and 1930, nearly three million immigrant children arrived in the United States. For them, public schools offered a golden opportunity: a chance to be part of the American dream. During this time of massive immigration, child labor laws, and the explosive growth of cities, school attendance was fueled (The Story of American Public Education, 2001).

Our city contains immigrants from every nation in the world, who speak many different languages. If we were to create special schools for each group that wants to preserve its cultural heritage, it would be the end of the historic ideal of public education as a common training ground for future citizens (Ravitcb, D, 2007).

Equality (Discrimination)

From 1950 till 1980, this era was when public schools became a major battleground in the fight for equality for minorities, women and the handicapped. In spite of the belief that public education should be available to every child irrespective of race, gender, economic status or physical ability this was not happening in reality. Discrimination in schools on the basis of race, gender and physical ability has always persisted. Girls were not admitted in schools until many years after the establishment of schools, and even then, they were not taught the same subjects as boys. Since the 1950s, public policy toward education has addressed discrimination issues in education more than educational issues. The federal government has especially been concerned with issues of equality in school districts. In 1954 the Supreme Court unanimously ruled in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. Despite vigorous resistance for many years by many southern states, by 1980 the federal courts had largely succeeded in eliminating the system of legalized segregation in southern schools. Women have been equally discriminated against in American schools. The emergence of the women’s rights movement during the 1960s was a boost against sexual discrimination. Title IX of the 1972 federal Education Amendments prohibited discrimination on the basis of sex in education institutions that received federal aid (Thattai, 2001). People with disabilities have also been discriminated against until The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act was passed by Congress in 1975 which ensures that all children with disabilities have available to them a free appropriate public education (Heward W, 2008 p. 18).

Technology (Assessment)

In 1983, a report launched by the Reagan Administration called A Nation at Risk, shattered public confidence in America’s schools and sparked a new wave of education reform, all with the goal of meeting tough, new academic standards (The Story of American Public Education, 2001). In 2001, President Bush introduced and Congress passed the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). The intent of NCLB is to improve the achievement of all students, with a particular emphasis on children from low-income families (Heward, W. 2008 p. 30). Today’s technology has also changed the classroom for teachers and students alike. Technology demands that teachers utilize new strategies in the classroom to ensure that students receive the best public education possible.

Conclusion

The history of public schools has shown that its purpose has had different priorities that has adapted to the different times. It started out in the New England colonies as a method of advancing religious beliefs. Then after the American Revolution as a new nation we used it as a common system to take people of different backgrounds and reinforce the bonds that tie Americans together. During our Industrial Revolution, at the turn of the century millions of immigrants looking for the American dream brought their children to America and this fueled school attendance. In the second half of the century public schools were the vehicle for equality and the need to stop discrimination. Finally as we enter the twenty-first century with most of our social problems under control we have turned to the new technology to educate our students as well as assessing that education. So the purpose of public schools our history has shown, has been primarily social reform and until recently only secondary in quality of education.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In history, which philosophy is most closely associated with public schools?

• A. Cost per student
• B. Educational curriculum
• C. Social reform
• D. Student and teacher relationship

2. What was the primary reason for schools in the original 13 colonies?

• A. Advance equality in schools
• B. Advance religious beliefs
• C. Teach students to develop a trade
• D. Teach students to think independently

3. After the American Revolution, why was it felt the new nation should have tax supported public schools?

• A. That was what the revolution was about
• B. The parents voted for it
• C. To give children a place to go during the day
• D. To help the new democracy succeed

4. What is the best reason that schools wanted to stop discrimination?

• A. To help African Americans
• B. To help people with disabilities
• C. To help women
• D. To help women, African Americans and people with disabilities succeed

Answers to Quiz

1)C, 2) B, 3) D, 4) D

References

Heward, W (2008). An Introduction to Special Education (9th ed) The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. Retrieved September 20, 2008. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson and Merrill

Lott, J. (February 23, 2008). The Surprising Origin of America's Public Schools. In Freedomnomics. Retrieved September 16, 2008, from http://vox-nova.com/2008/02/23/the-surprising-origin-of-americas-public-school/.

Ravitcb, D. (May 15, 2007). School of blog. In The purpose of public education. Retrieved September 16, 2008, from http://theschoolofblog.blogspot.com/2007/05/purpose-of-public-education.html.

Staff Writer. (2001). The Story of American Public Education . In What is the purpose of public education?. Retrieved September 16, 2008, from http://www.pbs.org/kcet/publicschool/get_involved/guide_p2.html

Thattai, D. (2001). A History of Public Education in the United States. In aidman- ejournal/publications. Retrieved September 17, 2008, from http://www.servintfree.net/~aidmn-ejournal/publications/2001-11/publicEducationInTheU....

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