CHAPTER 3 Collin College EDUC 1301 An Overview of Schooling in America History and Philosophy

 Consider: Role of wealth, privilege, & social capital Effect of geographic location on access Goals of education Effects of immigration Transmission of values & beliefs Roles of local, state, federal governments

 Old Deluder Satan Act (Mass., 1647):  Why was it called that? A town of 50 households: Must appoint & pay a teacher of reading & writing 100 households: Must offer a grammar school  Result: The spread of Latin grammar schools Forerunner of American high school Run by town board Financed by students’ families

New England Mostly Puritan, taught Scripture Town and district schools –First forms of public schools Middle Colonies Diverse population Private venture schools –Earliest vocational education South Lack of formal education for many –Dispersed population –Social-class, racial distinctions Private tutoring for wealthy Copyright by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved

 Congress set aside land for public schools  One-room schoolhouses, multi-age class  Common schools: Public, tax-supported elementary schools (1820s)  Academy: Private secondary school Broader, practical curriculum with electives For rich, some open to girls

 Jefferson, Franklin, Mann: Democracy needs informed citizens & an education system that promotes meritocracy  Immigration in 1830s-1840s created new tasks for schools: Workforce training Assimilation of “morally dubious” immigrants into dominant culture

 Two-year programs in educational philosophy & teaching methods (1830s) Catherine Beecher: Train women teachers Booker T. Washington: Train African American teachers

Selected video excerpts from this history of the teacher in American public education Copyright by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved

 Take the Philosophy Test  11 M/C Questions  No wrong answers  Score with Chart on page 3 Copyright by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved

Subject- Centered PerennialismEssentialism Child- Centered ExistentialismProgressivism Copyright by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved

 Core knowledge is essential to person’s life in society, so schools should teach it A.k.a. “back-to-basics,” the “three Rs” Math, science, literature, history America should have a common culture “Teacher knows best”  Views mind as central element of reality  Learning happens through contact with physical world and reasoning from observations

 Active learning through problem solving, projects, hands-on experiences  Knowledge must be constantly redefined and rediscovered to keep up with constant change in the world School = laboratory driven by student curiosity Integrate subject matter & make connections to real life experience Teach students to collaborate  School should be democratic

 Single core curriculum focused on the enduring ideas of the great thinkers A.k.a. the “Great Books”, timeless classics or “great ideas”  Focus on classic Greco-Roman literature, history, art, philosophy, moral instruction Curriculum inflexible and unchanging Emphasizes Socratic method  Purpose of life is to search for constant, changeless truth

 Goal: Improve society by transforming oppressive systems through education Social reconstructionism: Curriculum promotes social reform Critical theory (Paulo Freire): Students should challenge oppression Existentialism (Søren Kierkegaard): Truth lies within individual, so students should choose subjects & learning methods

 Stresses freedom and the responsibility to choose  Needs and interests of the individual student are more important than those of society  Learning is self-guided and self-paced  Curriculum is led by child’s curiosity, rather than set by teachers and is foundation for gaining personal freedom Emphasizes humanities, liberal arts De-emphasizes science Copyright by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved

 People learn from the consequences of their actions and those of others  Behavior that is rewarded is more likely to be repeated  Behavior that is punished or not rewarded is less likely to be repeated  Curriculum should be based on clearly defined behaviors which students are rewarded for achieving Copyright by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved

 Knowledge must be constructed in the mind by each learner, rather than transmitted  Learners constantly reconstruct their mental knowledge as new information becomes available  Curriculum should involve students in real situations that let them use and reconstruct prior knowledge as new information is presented Copyright by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved

 An ongoing process  Requires reflection and experience  Eclecticism is not an excuse for sloppy thinking Copyright by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved

 Write Your Philosophy of Education  Guidelines are in the lab manual  Due March 22  USE NAME OF A PHILOSOPHY! Copyright by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved