Education in the Progressive Era
John Dewey
Goals of Progressive Education
Education in 19th Century America
- John Dewey was one of the most prominent philosophers of the 20th century and was the leader of the Progressive Education movement.
- He worked as a Child Psychologist and through his studies of psychology and philosophy, he came to the conclusion that to learn something is not by passively observing it but by actually experiencing it. He also believed that in order for a democracy to function, citizens must be taught from a young age to parcticate in the government.
- The Progressive Education movement started as a counter-movement lead by John Dewey to the popular national movement to give most children vocational education (i.e. BOCES) only and limit academic education to a few.
- Progressive Education had two essential principles: RESPECT FOR DIVERSITY and CRITICAL, SOCIALLY ENGAGED INTELLIGENCE. This was based on Dewey's philosophy and was the opposite of the industrial education philosophy of the time.
- Besides reforming the curriculum, the movement also focused on increasing attendance.
- By the 1830's, public schools had become common in every state. However, there was never much money invested in public education, as it was a common tradition that education be reserved for the rich.
- Even by the 1900's, a high portion of American children (more than half in the South and in rural areas) did not attend school, and those that did usually only attended for four months of the year and just a few grades. Secondary education was essentially exclusive to private schools in urban areas.
- Learning was through repetition and observation, and the curriculum in most schools was generally limited to reading, writing, and arithmetic.
Successful or Unsuccessful?
William Torrey Harris
- By raising educational awareness and getting compulsory attendance laws passed, the attendance rate increased dramatically and high schools were incorporated into most districts, and with more Americans being educated, the literacy rate rose past 90%. In this endeavor the movement of successful.
- Arts, Music, P.E. and Home Economics were added into most curriculums.
Bibliography
- However, the main goal was not achieved.
- Dewey and his supporters set up many experimental schools that were highly successful, and by the 1940's his philosophy did seem to be the way of the future. Unfortunately, the Cold War and the 1950's era of cultural conservatism saw the dissolution of the movement. Presently, America's education policy is only getting further away from the Progressive view.
- William Torrey Harris was the first major figure of the Progressive Education movement.
- Harris taught for many years and served as Superintendent of St. Louis Schools from 1868 to 1880. He was the U.S. Commissioner of Education from 1889 to 1906.
- While Superintedent, he incorporated German Idealism ("Hegelianism") and made St. Louis schools the best in the country, specifically by making it the first U.S. school system to have kindergarten and mandatory secondary school. He also added the fine arts and sciences into the curriculum.
- As Commissioner, he was influential in getting other urban districts to follow his model, but was not able to make Hegelianism the official U.S. education policy due to its association with Marxism.
- American Pagent 11th Edition
- The Encyclopedia Brittanica
- www.uvm.edu/~dewey/articles/proged.html
- http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/progressive-era
- www.marxists.org/reference/archive/hegel/help/rossi.htm