Exploring the History and Development of Public Education in America

This essay delves into the historical evolution of public education in America, starting from the 17th century with the establishment of the Boston Latin School and the Massachusetts Bay Colony's compulsory education law. It highlights the influence of the Puritans and the early focus on religious instruction, transitioning to the Common School Period in the 19th century, where reading and math became central. The essay discusses the significant contributions of Horace Mann in advocating for common schools and educational reforms, addressing obstacles such as taxpayer resistance and religious concerns. It also touches on modern assessment tools like the National Report Card and the role of the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education in promoting academic excellence and equal opportunities. The essay concludes by emphasizing the unifying role of public education in shaping the United States and fostering democracy, underscoring its continuous evolution and reforms to ensure accessible education for all.

Running Head: THE PUBLIC EDUCATION IN AMERICA
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Student Name
Institution Name
The Public Education in America

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The Public Education in America
A long time ago, learning in America happened at homes as parent had the responsibility
to teach their children. Some families were capable of paying tutors for their children. Education
was both formal and informal from the 17th century up to the 21st century. The early schools
taught religion, culture and family skills. This essay is going to explore the story of the American
public education from over a hundred and fifty years ago up to today.
In the 17th century, the 13 colonies opened the first public school in America; the Boston
Latin School in the year 1635. It is the oldest public school in the history of America. The
Massachusetts Bay Colony was the one who came up with law of compulsory education. The
school attendance was free and all children were allowed to join. The Puritans were the founders
of this school and their main aim was to spread their beliefs and values. The Americans were
interested to learn how to read in order to understand the Bible. After one year; the Harvard
College was founded in order to train preachers as religion was the main pillar of the Americans
in their life. Those who were lucky to attend the college got the opportunity to further learn about
the religious instructions.
By the 19th century, the public schools started teaching reading and math. This
was referred as the Common School Period. The Massachusetts ordered every town to have a
school by 1826. Horace Mann took charge of ensuring the idea of a common school was well
spread. He campaigned for the common schools and emphasized that they were the key to
solving people’s problems in the society.

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Education faced a lot of harsh and terrible obstacles during the period of the American
public school. The tax payers protested against government funding public education as they
feared that their money would land in wrong hands and be used by the rich to fund their own
education. The middle working class people were against it as they also feared that taxes would
be increased in order to fund the public education system.
Another obstacle that was faced was from the church. The church was against the public
education as they feared that religion would be abandoned as those migrating to America were
against the Catholics. There were also insufficient reading materials and the environment was not
conducive for learning. According to the video on America Public Education produced by Sarah
Mondale, the content of the reading materials were awful. Teachers were not well trained also
and they used to turn over often. Male teachers often beat the students in school, the buildings
were ill built and the desks were uncomfortable for the students.
Horace Mann introduced the education reforms as he was the Americas greatest advocate
of the public common schools. He even recommended the use of black boards and use of chairs
with backs to ensure that the students were successful in their academics. Mann travelled to
Europe in order to understand their system of education and he was later able to start the
common school movement that advocated for equal treatment of children in public schools.

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The National Report Card is a board that assesses how student performs in subjects like
science, math, reading and writing. It provides measurement of student achievement. Parents,
teachers and principals, policy makers and researchers use NAEP to weigh progress in students
and come up with ways of bringing improvement in the education sector. The NPC then release
the results of NAEP assessments.
The Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE) is a body that deals with
promoting excellence in academic sector. It also enhances equal education opportunities and
ensures equality for all students in America. The OESE also provides good leadership which is a
key to improving teaching qualities in the education of American children. It is through such
body that there is legislation in the education sector.
In conclusion, the public education sector in America has undergone numerous reforms
since education was introduced. The Americans have been able to give education to all the
children without discrimination. Institutions have been created to make sure that education is
affordable to everybody. Common education has been able to promote national unity in the
United States from over a hundred years ago up to now. It is through education that a one united
nation was created; the United States of America and it is through education that democracy was
fought for and achieved.

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References
Office of Elementary and Secondary Education.(2019). Retrieved from
https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oese/index.html
School: The Story of American Public Education (TV Mini-Series 2001– ). (2019). Retrieved
from https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL00795BC38B4368D4