111 School & Society: Chapter 8 National School Reform: The Early Cold War Era Chapter Eight National School Reform: The Early Cold War Era (c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e

222 School & Society: Chapter 8 National School Reform: The Early Cold War Era The Cold War Era Robust post-WWII economy depended on continued military buildup Threat of communism provided justification for the “Cold War”  Containment  Doctrine of first use McCarthyism Truman endorses the “American way of life” (c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e

333 School & Society: Chapter 8 National School Reform: The Early Cold War Era The Cold War Era Domestic unrest  The civil rights movement  Integration battles in education and housing Progress and technology support link between centralized expertise and public well-being “Big government” and the military- industrial complex (c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e

444 School & Society: Chapter 8 National School Reform: The Early Cold War Era Conant’s Legacy Fostered culture of expertise at Harvard Established standardized testing (SAT) as measure of academic potential Helped form Educational Testing Services Endorsed meritocratic structure of education (c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e

555 School & Society: Chapter 8 National School Reform: The Early Cold War Era School Reform and Social Stratification Postwar debate questions: who should be educated, and for what purpose? Conant’s vision  The importance of experts  Social mobility  The value of labor  Schools as sorters The American comprehensive high school (c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e

666 School & Society: Chapter 8 National School Reform: The Early Cold War Era School Reform and Social Stratification Mortimer Smith and Arthur Bestor encourage intellectual training; schools’ purpose to challenge educational handicaps Hyman Rickover’s endorsement of accelerated programs for gifted students “Life adjustment” curriculum under attack (c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e

777 School & Society: Chapter 8 National School Reform: The Early Cold War Era The American High School Today Originated as Carnegie Corporation proposal to study gifted high school youth Could the comprehensive high school deliver? Conant looked for evidence of identification and development of academically talented students and social integration of college-bound and vocational students Finding supported the status quo; recommended elimination of small schools and increased concentration on gifted students (c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e

888 School & Society: Chapter 8 National School Reform: The Early Cold War Era Slums and Suburbs Conant’s study of urban and elite schools Concluded that vocational education was appropriate for slum schools; foreshadowed his commitment to junior colleges to ward off social unrest in the 1960s Endorsed continuing focus on academics for suburban youth Overlooked the role of segregated schools and unequal opportunities in contributing to “social dynamite” (c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e

999 School & Society: Chapter 8 National School Reform: The Early Cold War Era Concluding Remarks Conant’s allegiance to meritocracy and higher education Opposed liberal education for all on the grounds of maintaining social order School’s focus became the “national interest” School’s contribution was preparation of students for a Cold War world (c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e

10 School & Society: Chapter 8 National School Reform: The Early Cold War Era Developing Your Professional Vocabulary community college Educational Testing Service containment life adjustment education John Birch Society “provisional freedom” Scholastic Aptitude Test Senator Joseph McCarthy Slums and Suburbs Sputnik The American High School Today the GI Bill (c) 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Tozer/Senese/Violas, School and Society, 5e