An emphasis on efficiency among public school superintendents did not emerge full-blown at the end of the nineteenth century, as Callahan argues, but was a basic tenet of earlier public school development and reform. This interest in providing economical and socially efficient institutions is crucial to understanding American education. (IS)

Every era of deep social change in U.S. history has produced incessant calls for social improvement through the reform of the public schools. This fastback sketches some common themes and recent discontinuities in the history of school reform. It focuses on three aspects of change during key eras of reform: the sources of education change, the…

Who holds the ultimate authority for the education of U.S. children--teachers or parents? Although the relationship between home and school has changed dramatically over the decades, this book argues that it has always been a political one. The book also uncovers how and why the balance of power has shifted over time. Starting with parental…

The educational policy for the schools of the black noncitizen group residing within the Canal Zone is the subject of this study. The time period examined covers roughly the first half of the twentieth century. In the first chapter the significance, relevance, and limitations of the study are discussed. The second chapter describes the…

This article emphasizes the following points concerning policies of the Detroit Board of Education: (1) conflicts over religion and education have been part of politics since 1842; (2) these conflicts were political rather than consitutional; and (3) until 1948 decisions regarding religion were based on "institutional" considerations…

Presents a historical perspective on school restructuring, looking at New York City's unique reform; policy discourse and trends in practice; late nineteenth-century diversity; reorganization from 1900-50; challenging basic assumptions in the 1960s; back to basics in the 1980s; long-term structural trends in public schools; and education reform…

Discusses stated federal goals for education and poverty reduction from the 1960s to President Bush's 1990 State of the Union message and the continued failure to meet these goals. Observes that educational innovations of the past quarter century have done little to stimulate achievement. (DM)

Using the 1897 reform of the Atlanta public schools as an example, the authors conclude that class conflict is not a necessary condition for urban reform, and that the sources of progressive reform are more complex than the class conflict model has often implied. (IS)

Examines the institutional history of public schools in the United States in the context of gender, and investigates gender practices and policies in the context of formal education. There was far less gender segregation in classrooms under the control of teachers than in informal groups of children outside adult supervision. (BJV)

It has been assumed that colonial schooling systems were always poor quality reproductions of the educational system in the colonizing (metropolitan) power. This paper compares the structures and curricula of colonial and metropolitan schools, finding not a reproduction, but a hierarchy, with the metropolitan school on top. (SJL)

On September 7, 1929, the Hon. Harvey Parnell, Governor of the State of Arkansas, addressed a request to Dr. William John Cooper, United States Commissioner of Education, asking that the United States Office of Education "... make or cause to be made, under its supervision and direction, a survey of the State-supported institutions of higher…

This book interprets the framework of political ideas and beliefs that structure individual and collective thinking about educational policies and give them meaning. The analysis begins with the state of education in the mid-19th century and brings up to date the prospective reforms of the early 1990s. The study argues that, from its foundation,…

This paper reviews the development of infant schools, day nurseries, kindergarten, nursery schools, and Head Start, and discusses the implications of these services for present-day policy. The philosophy and pedagogy of infant schools, their origins, and their development in North America, are described. Also discussed are the origins of day…

The purpose of this bulletin on child care and parenthood education is to show the present trends of parental education as reported by the home economics departments of the various elementary and secondary schools and institutions of higher education located in different sections of the United States. The policies and practices described are those…

This essay examines the relationship between economic and educational developments in the United States in the decades prior to the Civil War. Early industrialization in the United States began during the first half of the 19th century and seems to coincide with common school expansion and reforms. Yet the link between economic and educational…