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Beginning of Education
Education was a great concern for early American colonists. As the population continued to grow and community conditions began to change, colonists across America began to establish both fee and free schools. However, when the puritans established the New England colonies they displayed eagerness for providing education and literacy in order to defend their population from religious and cultural decline. The Boston Latin Grammar opened along with the founding of the Harvard College. -
Old Deluder Satan Act of 1647
Some puritan leaders felt the urgency to provide education for children. This act did not require attendance, however the Massachusetts General Court mandated that towns with 50 or more families were to provide instruction for reading and writing, and that communities of 100+ households had to have grammar schools established in order to prepare boys for entry into Harvard College. Although noncompliance would result in a fine, not all towns met the requirements of the enactment. -
A Bill for the More General Diffusion of Knowledge
Thomas Jefferson proposed this two tract educational system with two different tracks: for the laboring and the learned. He offered scholarships that would allow a very few of the laboring class to advance. -
Public Schools
In 1820 the first public high school opened in Boston English. Later in 1827, Massachusetts passed a law making all grades of public school open to pupils free of charge. With the industrial revolution and the amount of immigrants that entered the U.S in the 1800s, owners of industry needed a docile, obedient work force and expected public schools to provide it. Thus in 1851, Massachusetts passed the compulsory law to make sure that children of poor immigrants become "civilized". -
Age Grading
Before the mid of the 19th century, students of all ages were taught together in one-room school houses. However, Horace Mann, a well traveled U.S educator, knew that students were segregated by age and introduced "age grading" for students in Massachusetts. It was so successful that is quickly became the norm in public education across the U.S. -
End of the Civil War
With the legal end of slavery, African Americans began to mobilize in order to bring public education to the South for the first time. They made alliances with white Republicans pushing for political changes which included rewriting a state law to guarantee free public education for all. -
Plessy v. Ferguson
Plessy had bought a first-class ticket and boarded a "whites only" car. Plessy's lawyers argued that Plessy's rights had been denied under the 13th and 14th amendment, which provided for equal treatment under the law. However, the Supreme Court ruled that the State of Louisiana has the right to require "separate but equal" railroad cars for black and whites. This decision made segregation officially legal, resulting in southern states passing laws for segregation in public schools. -
Brown and the Board of Education, Topeka
Oliver Brown filed a class-action suit against the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, after his daughter was denied entrance to Topeka's all-white elementary school. Brown claimed that schools for black children were not equal to white schools and segregation violated the rights under the 13th and 14th amendment. Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation of children in public schools was unconstitutional, which helped establish that "separate but equal" services were not equal at all. -
Serrano v. Priest
Serrano was a parent of one of the students of LA County public schools who claimed that the CA finance system disadvantaged students in lower income districts. Parents filed a lawsuit against the CA State treasurer, Baker Priest. The Supreme Court found the system in violation of the Equal Protection Clause because there was too great of a difference in the funding provided for various districts. Ir provides equal educational opportunities for students of lower income families. -
Title IX
Congress passed the Educational Amendments. Title IX was one section of this law that was co-authored and introduced by Senator Birch Bayh and signed by President Richard Nixon. Title IX is a federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in any federally funded education program or activity. It enabled equal treatment for women in public schools. -
Goss v. Lopez
9 students from Central High School in Ohio had a 10 day suspension for destroying school property and disrupting the learning environment. Although the law required parents to be notified within 24 hours, they could not appeal to the Board of Education if they were suspended, only if they were expelled. This law was seeing as a violation of students' right to due process of law. The Supreme Court ruled that a public school must conduct a hearing before subjecting a student to suspension. -
Education for All Handicapped Children Act
It is a four part piece of American legislation. Congress enacted the EAHCA to support states in protecting students with disabilities and their families. This act protected their rights, met with their individual needs and improved their educational development. It ensures that students with disabilities are provided with Free Appropriate Public Education that fits their individual needs. -
Plyler v. Doe
The State of Texas withheld state funds for educating children who were illegal immigrants in the U.S. and allowed local school districts to deny enrollment to these students. However, the Supreme Court ruled this policy as a violation of the 14th amendment because unauthorized immigrant children are people and their rights must also be protected. This allowed for illegal immigrant children to be provided free, equal education in the U.S. -
Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier
Students in Hazelwood East HS were responsible for writing and editing the school's paper. The HS principal thought of some subjects in the paper as inappropriate for school and students filed a lawsuit claiming that the principal's editing of such subjects was violating their right to freedom of speech. The Supreme Court ruled that the First Amendment rights of student journalists are not violated when school officials prevent the publication of certain articles in the school newspaper.