Education Reform

Goals

Provide every child a tax-funded education

Create ideal and educated citizens
Produce educated voters
Promote moral, patriotic, and religious
values to the new generation of America

Horace Mann
Father of the Common School
Advocated the common school with the
belief that political stability and social
harmony depended on education
Influential in the development of teacher
training schools

Josiah Holbrook
A teacher and lecturer
Advocated lyceum movement
First lyceum was founded in 1826 in
Millbury, Massachusetts, by Josiah
Holbrook

Williams Holmes McGuffey

Opened a private school in Paris, Kentucky after
leaving Washington College due to a lack of
funds
He was later offered a job at Miami University in
Oxford, Ohio where he taught moral philosophy
and languages
Advocated teaching through preaching
Wrote McGuffeys Readers which sold millions of
copies and taught lessons about morality,
patriotism, and idealism

Godeys Ladies Book

One of the most popular ladys books of
the 19th century
Each issue contained poetry, beautiful
engraving and articles by some of the
most well known authors in America
Published by Louis A. Godey in
Philadelphia

Schools of the North

More funds and teachers were available
Students were more likely to stay in
schools throughout the year
Newer educational tools were available
and these schools were more up to date

Schools of the South

Schools were not as common and they
were distanced
Blacks were not openly enrolled in schools
until later in the movement
There was a lack of funds, which lowered
the quality of the learning environment
Attendance was not always stable due to
the need of labor on farms during harvest
times

Achievements
Literacy rate improved throughout the
country
The need for a tax-funded education was
being recognized throughout the nation
Created a new generation of educated
citizens
Blacks benefited greatly from this because
they were being educated, which allowed
them to be better assimilated into
American society

Change over Time

The educational reform movements led to
the use of tax-funded education
throughout the nation, as well as a more
literate population.

 http://www.pbs.org/onlyateacher/horace.ht
ml
http://www.ameshistoricalsociety.org/w_mc
guff.htm
http://www1.assumption.edu/ahc/Lyceum
%20Site/JosiahHolbrook.html