EDF 1005 Reflection Paper #18

Jackie Lawrence
EDF 1005
Reflection Paper # 18

“In America, education has always been viewed as a vehicle for improving the society at large.” Although we have always faced an abundance of obstacles along the way, I do believe that Americans, in general, have faith in the system. There may be a plethora of flaws and always something to improve, but people wouldn’t flock to the US by the thousands if they didn’t believe opportunities were available for the taking. Additionally, our country has always been based on the idea that educated citizens are the key to producing a strong, powerful society. Since the beginning of early colonial America, our founding fathers set up private schools which operated on a laissez-faire basis. Parents decided how their children were to be educated, and paid for whichever type of school they chose accordingly. America’s first governmental schools had a firm religious foundation, with the majority in New England. Even though compulsory attendance laws didn’t exist, it was found that 96% of children in Boston were attending school by 1817. Boston ultimately became the first American city to establish a fully government-financed school system because, to the reformers, 100% attendance was necessary. In 1837, Horace Mann founded the Massachusetts Board of Education which sought to achieve social unity through governmental control of education methods. Many people fervently disagreed with Mann’s efforts, but this only further supports my belief that education has always been a key aspect of what Americans value. They may disagree about how to go about improving the system, but these disagreements stem from an underlying passion and faith in education. Many Americans today believe that democracy itself would be threatened without governmental influence in schools. Even throughout my lifetime, I have seen reform after reform within the system. And President Barack Obama is still working on it, through parental responsibility along with “retaining, recruiting, and rewarding an army of new teachers to fill new successful schools that prepare our children for success in college and the workforce.” Because of influences from my family and society, I actually felt guilty about not attending college. A huge part of what puts me in my seat today is the conviction that my life will be better with a college degree and an educated mind. And honestly, it already is.