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Settlers aimed to develop a system of schooling that paralleled the European system.
Primary classes - focused on basic education.
- If they conducted formal education, it was only for essential skills in reading, writing, arithmetic, and religion.
Secondary classes - marked the beginning of formal education.
- Focused on advanced studies such as classics and other scholarly subjects.

Teachers had limited training and qualifications.
Often had only basic reading and writing skills.
Local teachers were preferred but not available, leading to the recruitment of untrained individuals for teaching positions.

Colonial schools varied based on geographical location and community values.
The majority focused on religious training.
Children of wealthy families received the training necessary to continue their legacy.

Dame Schools:
- Offered instruction for young children.
- Often the first instruction for many children.
- Children learned in the homes of women or local widow's schools.
- Focused on reading, writing, and basic arithmetic.
- Girls learned domestics skills and social decorum.
Grammar Schools:
- Supported by local governments and wealthy patrons.
- Provided education that went beyond what the Dame schools taught.
- Exclusively for boys, focusing on Latin, Greek, and philosophy.

Mandated education laws established that parents are responsible for their children’s education.
Massachusetts Act of 1642: mandated that each town ensure that its children could read and write.
Educational reformers like Puritans and Quakers decided education could no longer be left to chance.
Massachusetts Act of 1647: mandated the establishment of schools in towns of a certain size.

Focus on schools began to decline.
The country’s need for literate citizens and civil responsibility influenced educational reform.
Public schools were established which:
- Focused more on secular knowledge than religious doctrine.
- Had a broader curricular scope than religiously affiliated schools.
State-Supported Schools:
- Defined as schools funded by government revenues.

A common school: defined as a free, state-supported school that provides basic educational opportunities to all children.
- Supported by grants from the governments and local fundraising.

Criticism included:
- Belief that they would undermine private schooling.
- Fear that they would lead to state interference in education.
- Concern about the uniformity of education imposed by the state.
- Supported by figures such as Horace Mann.

Normal schools: institutions aimed at training teachers for pedagogy.
- The concept was proposed in the 1830s.
- The first one opened in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1839.

The Morrill Act passed in 1862 provided federal funds that states could use to establish colleges for agriculture and mechanical arts.
Offered land grants for each senator and representative in the state.
Set a precedent for federal involvement in education.

Schools were segregated by race from the early 18th century until the mid-20th century.
The Supreme Court case Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) upheld the doctrine of separate but equal for educational facilities.

Compulsory education: education that is mandatory and regulated by the state.
By 1900, ___ states had enacted compulsory education laws, with full enactment taking until 1918 for all states.
From 1880 to 1900, U.S. population grew by 75% while high school enrollment grew by 3,000%.

Defined as “an environment where children learn through play”.
First established in Germany in 1837; the first U.S. kindergarten opened in Watertown, Wisconsin in 1856.
Initially developed as privately-run facilities, exemplified by training schools for kindergarten teachers.

After the Civil War, schools for African Americans opened throughout the Southern states.
Funded and operated by the Freedmen’s Bureau.
Supported educational development efforts including adult education, children's education, and vocational training.

The late 1800s witnessed professional organizations such as the National Education Association (NEA), created in 1857.
American Federation of Teachers (AFT) formed with aims to improve working conditions and increase teachers’ salaries and respect.

The Committee of Ten: recommended graduate-level curricular standards for high school education.
The Committee of Fifteen: focused on elementary school standards and best practices for educational excellence.

The Progressive Era (1890-1920) emphasized education focusing on children’s needs and capabilities.
The movement aimed to create educational systems reflecting democratic values and integrative community involvement.
Advocated for less academic rigidity and more student-centered methods.

Progressive education faced decline around 1930, as public belief shifted to demanding more structure in educational systems.
The push for stricter academic standards arose.

WWII led to an expansion of federal educational programs.
The GI Bill provided funding for education to veterans returning from military service.

Tensions characterized the era, leading to a significant push for STEM education to compete with the Soviet Union.

Reflected in Brown v. Board of Education (1954) which ruled segregation in public schools as unconstitutional.

Focus on the idea that teacher effectiveness could elevate educational outcomes, leading to various reforms aimed at teacher training and evaluation.