Idea Transcript
Historical Roots
THE CURRICULMN STRUGGLES IN LATE 19TH & EARLY 20TH CENTURY
Hayet Bensetti-Bebader NJCU- Spring 2017
The Curriculum Struggles in Late 19th and early 20th Century Kliebard (2004) outlined the chronological and historical evolution of the American educational curriculum throughout the early half of the twentieth century. A series of struggles and crises arose between traditionalists who called for returning to the basics and the reformists who focused on the learner by shifting the focus from the teacher to the curriculum (Plate, 2012). The author mentioned four movements addressing American curriculum; humanists and also called “mental disciplinarians,” social meliorists, child study developmentalists, and social efficiency movement (Pilate, 2012). According to him, the following visions that shaped the American curriculum took place based on different interest groups and changes in the society. To begin with, the ideas of the humanitarians or mental disciplinarians were the focus of education in the late 19th century. The humanitarians were tied to the Western culture traditions. During that time, the American education was led by the mental disciplinarians, who justified that the mind is a muscle and can be strengthened through drill, practice, discipline, and recitation. These academics were mostly lead by reformist C.W Elliott, advocating the concept of reasoning power based on the belief that good reasoning power would lead to the betterment of society. At that time, American education was characterized by poorly trained/ educated teachers who rely on the standardized textbook as the standard for the curriculum (Kliebard, 2004). The early attention to curriculum ideology was first demonstrated in the 1828 Yale Study report through the defense of traditional education by Day and Kingsley supporting that education has two roles. They were the reinforcement of the mind and packing the mind with contents (Kliebard, 2004, p. 5). Later on, between 1856 to 1864 Wells divided schools into grades with distinct courses of study for each particular subject at each grade level (Kliebard, 2004, p. 2, p.
5). In additional, this period was marked by a significant change in society. There was an emerging public awareness of social transformation due to the unprecedented growth of journalism including both magazines and newspapers. The major railroad construction that connected the east to west of the country allowed for an efficient, easy, accessible, and affordable method of transportation for American people (Kliebard, 1999). As school enrollment rose dramatically and new unconventional jobs demanded a better-equipped worker, education needed to change (The Struggle for the American, n.d). When Eliot was appointed the chair of National Association committee (Committee of Ten) in 1892, he was optimistic about human capabilities and believed that the right education could raise citizens of all classes. He differed from most mental disciplinarians at that time in that he was not as restrictive. Three other reformers groups made a case against the Humanitarians in each of their distinct approaches. Following this period in educational reform came the era of the Social Meliorists. This time was characterized by the change from a society of agriculture to a society of manufacturing. It shed light on the new social role of the school that eventually caused the failure of “the mental discipline” movement. The social changes became apparent to a greater extent in the 1890’s which dedicated new attention to the institution of schooling (Kliebard, 2004, p. 24). This movement aimed to convey justice and equity through social changes, to consider education as a means of reforming society and creating change for the better. Led by Lester Frank Ward in 1883, he believed that social progress depends on a well-constructed, nondiscriminatory education where students’ destiny has nothing to do with his/ her race, gender, socioeconomic status, or any other factors (“Curriculum Theory,” n.d). By 1895 the Committee of the Fifteen, under William Torrey Harris was charged to report on the elementary school’s curriculum. Through disassociating himself from the mental discipline movement, he emerged as a great
defender of humanistic studies in the curriculum. He was known as conservative in regards to his position toward the vocational training and his disinclination to study child approach. John Dewey, a member of the National Herbart and a distinguished educational leader who brought the concept of “context.” He suggested a broader curriculum where skills are learned in the context they are used (Kliebard, 2004, p15 -16). Harris found new ways to attack Herbartian’s practice about the correlation of studies in elementary schools. This conflict between Harris and Herbatians pronounced the shift in American curriculum. The developmentalists’ child-study movement as headed by G. S. Hall proposed that the instinct line of learners’ development must be the decisive source of the curriculum. In 1904, he argues with the findings of the Committee of Ten that was led by C.W. Elliott on the following: a) Students should not ALL be taught the same way (differentiation), b) College Prep education is not for everyone, and c) Not all subjects are equally valuable (The Struggle for the American, n.d). In the same circumstance, as in 1905, The Douglas Commission of Massachusetts witnessed the beginnings of vocational education considering the decline of the apprenticeship system. The reformers group of “social efficiency” such as such as Thorndike, Taylor and R. Bobbitt were looking for a “social usefulness” curriculum. It is geared toward vocational education, standardization, and social rebuilding. This led to the apparition of both the vocational and junior high schools to initiate the curriculum conceived throughout tasks in direct relation to learners’ social future (“Curriculum Theory,” n.d). Also, the application of Taylorism in education was initiated, with the idea of people needs to be controlled for everyone's good that leads to the scientifically constructed curriculum as known today under the name of packaged/seeded curriculum (Kliebard, 2004). As one of the leaders of the Social Efficiency
movement, in 1912, Joseph Mayer Rice suggested the necessity to define and measure goals clearly. A good example of the combination of Social Efficiency and Developmentalist philosophies is the Junior High in Berkeley, CA created in 1910. The influence of the developmentalists is evident in keeping preadolescents away from post-adolescents because of their development differences (Ehewitt99, “The Struggle for the American,” n.d) Although no one reformer group ever got total dominance in current curriculum, many ideas such deriving from these groups influenced the final product of what is called today the American curriculum.
References Curriculum Theory | K12 Academics. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.k12academics.com/education-theory/curriculum-theory Kliebard, H. (2004). The struggle for the American curriculum, 1893-1958. New York, NY: Routledge. Retrieved from https://blackboard.njcu.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-432812-dtcontentrid3405719_1/courses/2076EDTC807Spr2017/The%20struggle%20for%20the%2 0American%20curriculum%20REFERENCES.pdf Plate, R. (2012). The Evolution of Curriculum Development in the Context of Increasing Social and Environmental Complexity. Creative Education, 3, 1311-1319. doi: 10.4236/ce.2012.38192. Retrieved from http://www.scirp.org/journal/PaperInformation.aspx?paperID=25629 The Struggle for the American Curriculum 1893-1958. (n.d). Ehewitt99 [web timeline].Retrieved from http://www.timetoast.com/timelines/the-struggle-for-the-american-curriculum-1893