"As American as Public School Reflection"

1900-1950: "As American as Public School" Reflection

Based on the 1900-1950, the education system for the most part was biased. The purpose of attending school in America was to pursue a better future, intellectually. I agree that every child should continue their academic progress so they can live a better life than their parents. It was an advantage that allowed them to get a secure job. Even though, school was sought as a training facility instead of a cognitive practice. John Dewey, a philosopher at University of Chicago laboratory school, was known for his approach that fixated on children’s interest and social life. He stated, “Learning by doing” (Dewey 67), which initiated career tracking. In the 1940’s, educators came up with accommodations for attendees in their curriculums to teach relevant lessons to daily life. It was a great way to encourage unmotivated students to achieve “life adjustment education” (Mondale 68). Students were able to become well-rounded which would benefit themselves and other people.

Investing in the lives of students to develop skills and motives in the real world was reassuring, but for all students. The “Gary Plan” was not an efficient approach. I disagree with William Wirt, American educator, who created the progressive plan known as the “work-study-play”, as well. It separated worker roles in the system. Riots occurred because parents did not approve of the schools determining where their children would be prepared to work, either a factory, or desk job. It was not a well regulated facility that parents did not approve.



IQ tests, created by Lewis Terman, were used to determine a student’s intelligence, but I assumed it was a reliable source for understanding each individual. “There was this sense that I.Q, tests could be used to determine the quality of people by ethnicity, by race, by class,” says historian James Anderson (101). This was not an accurate representation of how to measure student's intelligence. It undermined the capacity of gaining knowledge. These tests were written in English, and it was a way to choose the most favorable people with the highest scores. Quality over quantity could of been taken into consideration, even today. There is more potential in discovering someone's distinctiveness based on how they may impact others.



I personally aspire that the school system looks for a different method that will be convenient for every type of student. As well as to allow the children's voices to be heard to expose their interests and needs. Not everyone is taught the same way nor likely to absorb information in a timely manner. Many students are capable of becoming something that one test can not be able to predict. It is an improvement that still needs to be taken into account, regardless, of an unmotivated student. There is a way to be inspired if there are projects that are focused on their individuality and skills. Equality plays a huge role, but that is still a work in progress. It just involves the right group of people who are willing to make a change for the better in a restricted and simple minded society.

Reference

Streep, M. Tyack, D. B., Bernard, S. C., Mondale, S., & Patton, S. B. (2001). School: The Story of American Public Education. Boston: Beacon Press.