Society, Politics, and Education 1945-1950

1. Society, Politics, and Education1945-1950 A Theoretical Analysis of the Post-WWII Educational Environment

2. I. Situating American Education • Evaluation of Higher Education • Congressional Hearings on Education, 1945 -unequal educational opportunities -educational disparity between North/South, urban/rural -inequalities in racially segregated schools -inadequate school physical plants -understaffed; underpaid; ill-prepared instructors • Harlan Logan, Look Magazine • Evelyn Bell, Guidance Coordinator (Vidor Rural High School; Vidor, TX) -Progressive Ed. Informs the population; good citizens

3. (cont.) • Death of Progressive Education? • Post-war conservatism • New technologies • John DeBoer, Pres. American Educational Fellowship • Purpose of Secondary Schooling • Debate concerning General Education

4. II. Harry S. Truman1945-1952 • Liberalism • Congress • Civil Rights Legislation • -1948 Election, “racial and religious minorities must have the right to live, the right to work, the right to vote” -Howard University, 1952 Commencement Address -Truman and Civil Rights: Journal of Blacks in Higher Education, 1999—Army Integration

5. Debate from the “Great Books” and “Great Ideas” Schools Robert Hutchins, Uchicago (also GI Bill) Rosecrance, Northwestern Univ. Mortimer J. Adler,philosopher General Education -increased access, diversified curriculum Reaction from Progressive Educators -Vivian Thayer, Teacher’s College, Columbia -Dexter Keezer, Reed College III. Curriculum Debate: Secondary school trends affecting Higher Education

6. Robert M. HutchinsUniversity of ChicagoTime Magazine, Nov. 1949

7. IV. The GI Bill, Civil Rights, and Education • Skeptics, critics, proponents (before and after 1946) *Grandfather Kerzekowski, Pacific • Gunnar Myrdal, “The Negro Social Structure” -optimism for social change in post-WWII world • Charles S. Johnson, Fisk University • GI Bill and African American Opportunity • Hilary Herbold, Univ. Maryland • Tim Wise, Znet (Affirmative Action for the majority)

8. The Serviceman’s Readjustment Act: The GI Bill

9. V. US Education and Post-WWII Responsibility • Education in Occupied Germany -Wegner, UWisconson -Tent, UWisconson • US Education Mission to Japan -Gen. MacArthur -Brinkman, teacher in Occupied Japan -Rinjiro, Hosei University, Tokyo

10. VI. Dominant Interpretations and Conclusions • Progressive Education was in decline by the end of the 1940’s, yet some level of Democratic Education was necessary in a post-war society. • Secondary Education was necessarily evolving to meet social and emotional needs. • Pres. Truman, a proponent of liberal democracy, and a sympathizer towards Civil Rights lacked Congressional sway to effect significant Educational Reform. • The GI Bill was one the greatest educational experiments in the 20th century. • A Generation was affected by the Education offered in the Bill, more so than Institutions of higher learning. • The social effects of the GI Bill have caused limited achievement across generations of minorities.

11. (Cont.) • The work of American Educators in Germany and Japan mirrored domestic efforts to democratize the curriculum and classroom; Dominant Interpretation was that these efforts were initially scatterbrained but largely commendable, particularly in Japan(*primary source material).