"The History of Education" Episode 1 Reflection

I think the documentary did a good job of detailing the evolution of the American public school system and the various changes it underwent before reaching the 20^th century.  It seems as though it was understood that “public education” should be available to every person, and not dependent upon social class, race, gender, or religious affiliation.  However, America struggled to execute this non-discriminatory system throughout the 19^th century and even into the 20^th century.  For example, it was a common belief that “separate could be equal” and that African American students had different needs than white children.  It was also believed for a long time that girls required a different kind of schooling than boys, and for a while, they were only allowed to attend school for a maximum of three years.  Immigrants and Native Americans also faced a difficult time when it came to being accepted into “mainstream” public schools, further proving that America did not accept new demographics into its school system with open arms.

A couple individuals that most stood out to me when watching this episode were Horace Mann and Catharine Beecher.  Horace Mann’s Common School Movement and the belief that every student deserved equal opportunity led to a reform of Massachusetts schools and eventually schools outside the state. Katharine Beecher is someone I would like to learn more about; I think it awesome that she made teaching a “respectable” profession for middle class women, encouraging them to leave their homes to travel out west, live on their own (board), and teach in the new schools.  Such a lifestyle must have brought newfound independence to many young women in the late 19^th and early 20^th century.  I do not, however, like the stereotype that teaching was “women’s work” and that these women would never get very far beyond the walls of the classroom.