American Education during the Colonial period

By kyle14567900

  • American Education during the Colonial period

    1635 - The first Latin Grammar School (Boston Latin School) is established. Latin Grammar Schools are designed for sons of certain social classes who are destined for leadership positions in church, state, or the courts.

  • American Education during the Colonial period

    1635 - The first "free school" in Virginia opens. However, education in the Southern colonies is more typically provided at home by parents or tutors.

  • American Education during the Colonial period

    1636 - Harvard College, the first higher education institution in what is now the United States, is established in Newtowne (now Cambridge), Massachusetts.

  • American Education during the Colonial period

    1638 - The first printing press in the American Colonies is set up at Harvard College.

  • American Education during the Colonial period

    1642 - The Massachusetts Bay School Law is passed. It requires that parents ensure their children know the principles of religion and the capital laws of the commonwealth.

  • American Education during the Colonial period

    1690 - The first New England Primer is printed in Boston. It becomes the most widely-used schoolbook in New England.

  • American Education during the Colonial period

    1698 - The first publicly supported library in the U.S. is established in Charles Town, South Carolina. Two years later, the General Assembly of South Carolina passes the first public library law.

  • American Education during the Colonial period

    1734 – Christian Wolff describes the human mind as consisting of powers or faculties. Called Faculty Psychology, this doctrine holds that the mind can best be developed through "mental discipline" or tedious drill and repetition of basic skills and the eventual study of abstract subjects such as classical philosophy, literature, and languages. This viewpoint greatly influences American education throughout the 19th Century and beyond.

  • American Education during the Colonial period

    1751 - Benjamin Franklin helps to establish the first "English Academy" in Philadelphia with a curriculum that is both classical and modern, including such courses as history, geography, navigation, surveying, and modern as well as classical languages. The academy ultimately becomes the University of Pennsylvania.

  • American Education during the Colonial period

    1762 - Swiss-born Jean-Jacques Rousseau's book, Emile, ou l'education, which describes his views on education, is published. Rousseau's ideas on the importance early childhood are in sharp contrast with the prevailing views of his time and influence not only contemporary philosophers, but also 20th-Century American philosopher and educational reformer John Dewey.

  • American Education during the Colonial period

    1778/1779 - Thomas Jefferson authors Bill 79: "A Bill for the More General Diffusion of Knowledge," which provides "a comprehensive plan for public education . . ." It is presented in the Virginia House of Delegates several times before a revised bill titled, "An Act to Establish Public Education," is finally passed in 1796.