I have been dedicating Tuesdays to in depth analysis of single topics. Being a teacher, education is a near and dear topic. In two previous posts I looked at the history of America's public education system from colonial times to the present, focusing on the role of government. For the next few weeks I want to look specifically at curriculum or what is taught. These two historical threads will provide the background for a look into the myriad of problems, as I see it, in our modern public school system.
Colonial America
Education in Colonial America (1607-1790) was greatly influenced by region, religion, gender and culture. Unlike today there was no compelling belief that all young people were entitled to an education. The Puritans came closest to such an ideal, but even in New England schooling was not mandatory. By education, Colonial America primarily referred to the ability to read, have basic writing skills, and a rudimentary understanding of basic math, essentially the "three Rs"--reading, writing, and arithmetic, in that order of importance. For many communities emphasizing what we would call public education had the primary purpose of giving one the skills to read the Bible. There was no formal curriculum beyond the three Rs with the selection of materials and methods largely being left to the teacher's discretion. Most teachers were recent college graduates seeking to pay the bills until a more monetarily rewarding career came along. Most teachers were men.
Where people lived and their faith had a significant effect on what was taught in schools. While New England was strongly influenced by Puritans and later Unitarians, the middle and southern colonies differed. The strong Anglican influence in the South did not change the focus on the three Rs but materials in terms of vocabulary development and readings reflected the values of the Church of England (Anglican). The middle colonies (New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania) were more diversified religiously and ethnically. This diversity is reflected in schools which tended to cater to the language needs of their communities--German, French Huguenots, a small Jewish group, Quaker, etc. In all cases though the communities' religion was the dominant force over curriculum.
Colonial America's definitive gender roles can be seen in education. In many cases, girls were not formally taught to read or write and were not welcome in schools. The proper education for girls was domestic, learning to sew, cook, behave like a lady, and in some cases (particularly New England) be taught to read. During the Revolutionary period from 1776 to 1790, this exclusionary practice slowly began to change, setting the stage for girls' inclusion in public schools during the 19th Century.
Finally, the many ethnicities and cultures which made up colonial society left their unique imprint on education. America developed a unique folklore that combined cultural elements and values of the English, Danes, Scot-Irish, Dutch, Germans, French, and others along with a sprinkling of marginalized groups like Native American and African Americans. This folklore became the fodder for much of the curricular material used in colonial times and into the early 1800s.
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