Historical Foundations of Curriculum

Historical Foundations of Curriculum Session 3

What is your Personal Philosophy

Three areas • New England • Mid Atlantic • Southern

Colonial Period • New England- The first schools were linked to the Puritan church • Their goals were: • For students to be able to read scripture to propagate the religion • For students to be able to read notices relate to civil affairs, laws, doctrines,

Massachusetts • Had same goals as the early New England colonies • Passed a law called the Old Deluder Satan Act • It required all towns of 50 or more families to a reading and writing teacher • All towns of 100 or more had to have a Latin teacher as well • Goal to prepare students to enter Harvard • To make sure there was never an uneducated lower class like there was in Europe

Middle Atlantic Colonies • Education was more difficult here because there were so many different languages • German, English, Dutch • As a result they ended up without one common system of education • They ended up with many parochial Schools and independent schools related to the different ethnic groups • Still in effect today to some extent

Southern Schools • Did not have an formal system • Wealthy landowner’s children had private tutors • Later these same people were required to provide a basic education for poor children, orphans and illegitimate children • But this system maintained the great inequity in the classes and remained that way long after the civil war

Basics of all Colonial Schools • Taught mostly Reading and Writing with some arithmetic • Taught some religion • Teachers were to be strict disciplinarians • Believed that: • Children were born in sin • Play was bad it was idleness • Children‘s talk was gibberish

Types of Colonial Schools • Town Schools • Parochial Schools • Private schools • Latin Grammar Schools • Academies • Colleges

Town Schools • Locally controlled public elementary schools • One room, with a teacher pulpit • Both boys and girls attended school • Attendance was irregular depending if the children were needed to support the family

Parochial and Private schools • Established by different religious groups for children of their own kind • Focused on reading, writing and religion • The south also had a version of these, • In the south poorer children attended “charity schools- less demanding and taught vocational skills

Latin Grammar Schools • In the early 1600's Puritan families were concerned with the thoughts that someday their trained and learned leaders would be no more. • As a result they established the Latin Grammar Schools. • For boys only at first • Major goal was to prepare them for entrance into Harvard

Latin Grammar Schools • In a further attempt to ease their fears of not having an educated ministry the Puritans founded Harvard College. • In order to enter this college one has to pass an entrance exam which demanded that they knew how to read and speak Latin and Greek. • The Latin Grammar school focused initially on English then on Latin and Greek

Colleges • Initially most colleges were for the preparation of ministers, Harvard, Yale, Cornell Based on the puritan view that ministers had to demonstrate a mastery in Latin, Greek and the classics • Other course included , logic, astronomy and math, natural sciences and metaphysics • Every religion had its own college • PA has one of the most

Academies • Based on Ben Franklin’s Idea, • Intended to offer a practical education for this not going to college • Courses included- English, grammar, public speaking, classics, writing, Practical math, history as a study of ethics • and many practical skills, including engraving, printing, painting, cabinet making, farming and bookkeeping

Textbook • Textbooks were first introduced around 1690 • One of the first was The Hornbook Primer, included Westminster Catechism and old testament • The book was made from flattened cattle horns, hence the horn book • Most books of this time taught alphabet • Focused on rote and drill

Textbook • Textbooks later written by Thomas Dillworth • he wrote a variety of books • Initially one book for all subjects • Then the books became specialized as they are now

1176-1850 • With a new government came a new mission for schools • At this time we saw the first laws to mandate the existences of schools in certain communities • Did not mandate attendance • Saw the beginning of removing religion from the schools a big push for secular ism

Benjamin Rush • Was one of the first to begin a push to remove the classics from education. • He equated learning the classics, two dead languages, ( Greek and Latin) “To amusing ourselves catching Butterflies” • Wanted school to advance democracy and explore our natural resources

Benjamin Rush • Was one of the first to outline a plan for PA to have a elementary school in every township of 100 or more families • He wanted free academies at the county level and free colleges at the university level • He wanted Tax dollars to pay for it all • His elementary curriculum emphasized reading, math and writing, his secondary curriculum had English, German, the arts, science

Thomas Jefferson • Was a farmer at heart and had faith in the agrarian society and distrusted the urban proletariats • He proposed a plan for VA that would educate the common man and the gentry at “the expense of all”- public taxes • Curriculum very similar to rush • Felt schools were needed to support the democracy

Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Rush • Both of their plans were never passed • Although both concepts helped to shape the schools that would come

Webster • Creating schools in the new country and agreeing on a curriculum was more of a problem because we had so many diverse cultures • Noah Webster felt we needed our own language as well as our own government- we needed our own cultural independence as well • He wrote several books in this effort

Webster • Some of these books were grammar books spelling books • The only book that lasted was his dictionary • The American Dictionary- helped create a sense of a US language, identity and nationality

McGuffey’ Readers • McGuffey was also a patriot and felt that although the young country owed a lot of its culture to other parts of the world, That the United States had also made some contribution to humankind • He developed a set of readers, the best selling textbook for decades • Extolled the patriotism heroism, hard work, diligence and virtuous living

European Influences • Although there was a push from people like Webster and McGuffey to develop a nationalistic American way, education was highly influenced by people like • Pestalozzi • Froebel • Herbart • Spencer

Pestalozzi • Was a Swiss Educator • Is credited for laying the basics for today’s elementary school • Wanted children to learn through their senses • He deplored rote learning • Proposed a general and special method • General method- educators provided emotional security and affection for students • Special method- dealt with dealing with senses like auditory and visual

Froebel • Had a strong belief that early education was important • Designed the concept for kindergarten • Believed that learning should be organized around play and the student’s interests- use manipulatives • Provide a safe secure environment.

Herbart • Believed in a balance curriculum • Traditional curriculum to rigid • Believe that there was two bodies of knowledge • Ethical knowledge • Empirical data, facts and theories • Needed to develop the morality • Wanted history, English, science and math integrated into all levels of education

Herbart • Believed learning was a psychological process that teachers needed students needs and interest through: • Planning- considers students previous learning • Presentation-introduce new lesson • Association-tie new material to existing material • Systemization- teach rules, principles or generalization • Application-the new ideas are tested and applied to pertinent activities ( authentic assessment)

Spencer • Opposed religion- The beginning of many • Believed that traditional schools were impractical and a luxury of the upper class • Advocated for a scientific, practical curriculum that would support an industrial society • believed that students should be taught how to think, not what to think

Spencer • Was a believer in Darwin and felt that a school curriculum should advanced a societies ability to survive and progress • Believed in a form of discovery learning and was an influence on the followers of john Dewey

In your groups • What forces do you think was the greatest influence in changing the schools

Universal schools • Schools for everyone began to be adopted in all areas of the country • The urban east, schools were always there for the upper class, but now available for the lower class as well and seen as an important opportunity • Schools were also being established in the newly settled west • Schools had many different looks and approaches

Monitorial Schools • Were run on the premise of keeping them efficient ( sound familiar) • The teacher taught the bright students and then they taught the other students • Taught the three Rs and religion

Common Schools • Forged by Horace Mann • Was the precursor to our public schools • Mann was a salesman- Sold each faction of society on how the common school would help everyone • Told Puritans that it would promote a common culture • Told business it would prepare workers • Build a better society • Told rich it was their obligation

Elementary Schools • Were in full gear by 1900 • Religion was dropped from the curriculum • Added morals/ manners instead

Secondary Schools • Although many children attended elementary schools, the secondary schools were established were not well attended till the 1930s to 1970 range

Academies • Replaced the Latin Grammar school • Designed to provide a practical curriculum • Similar to a secondary school, but had a much larger enrollment • Prepared students for not just college ( but mostly), but also for vocational careers as well • They eventually became High schools, what remained were mostly all girl schools

Secondary Schools • In 1870 courts ruled that taxes could be used to fund schools • Then state after state mandated attendance • Unlike the European models, it served all classes of students under one roof • Offered a full range curriculum

Secondary SchoolsThe curriculum offered • Algebra • Higher Arithmetic • English Grammar • Us History • Latin • Geometry • Physiology • natural philosophy • Physical geography • German • General History • Rhetoric • Bookkeeping • French • Zoology • Some vocational courses as well

School Continued to Change • As school evolved there were many unsettled questions- European philosophies versus new psychology • In 1983- The NEA formed Three committees to develop a philosophy that would guide schools • The Committee of Fifteen- Elementary School • The committee of Ten- Secondary Schools • Committee on College Entrance

The Committee of FifteenElementary School • This committee actually took a step back • It did away with Kindergarten • Thought that students needed strict discipline and strict teacher authority • Made elementary schools k to 8

The committee of TenSecondary Schools • Curriculum stayed the same, but they added four tracks • 1. Classical College bound tracks • 2. Latin Scientific • 3. Modern Languages Not college bound • 4. English

The committee of TenSecondary Schools • The Committee was somewhat political, eight of the ten members were college representatives and stated what they wanted

Committee on College Entrance • Defined what they expected students to have in High School • They strengthen the program in High School • The credits the students accumulated were measured in Carnegie Units, still used today

Harris and Eliot • Were two conservative educational reformers • Harris: Had a major impact on the schools for decades • Limited any vocational • Focused on • Focused on • work versus any play • Order versus any freedom • Effort rather than interest

Harris and Eliot • Harris focused so much on the classic, it discouraged working class students from attending school

Harris and Eliot • Eliot • Believed that elementary students could work on much higher subjects • Also supported tracking , even in elementary school • Wanted vocation al schools, but in a separate place • Later this became a common belief

Historical Foundations of Curriculum