Education in the 19th century was very different to today. It was not as widespread, often not free, and the way of learning could be quite different. Even so, reformers started to make great changes to the system. Here, Jeff Blaylock provides an overview of education in the 19th century before telling us some interesting facts.
Horace Mann, c. 1850. Mann was a well-known education reformer in 19th century America.
19th century education
The 19th century education system was certainly different to that of today. For starters the lessons and the way of learning was different. While subjects focused on areas such as grammar and arithmetic, which we also learn today, they had more of a focus on memorizing information. And more broadly, there were a range of education issues in Western countries – education was far from universal and it was the poorest who suffered the most from this.
To over come the education divide, in the US education reform was championed by Horace Mann, with the aim of promoting state-sponsored public education. He was based in Massachusetts, but gained wider prominence over time in the US. He wanted to give more children a free, secular education. A key problem in providing this free education was that rural areas did not have enough schools, even though large numbers of the population lived in such areas; however, with the help of reformers such as Mann, by the end of the 19th century, there were a great many public schools. While public schools still prosper today, for students in need of additional support and ideas, finding a reliable writing research paper service can be crucial in ensuring they succeed in their academic pursuits.
Back to the 19th century, a key challenge in some parts of the country was that children had to work in factories or help with farm duties or other tasks, so schools had to be balanced with work responsibilities. Another key challenge was how to bring greater equality by ensuring that no matter which school a child went to, the education level provided met the same standards. This was of course very difficult, or impossible in the century, but a laudable aim.
Mann also believed education should not be a luxury for wealthy people, which meant that schools had to be free. Not every family had money to send their child to a private school, so this widespread, free provision of education was an essential part of reform.
Following that introduction, here follow some facts about education in the 19th century that might come as a surprise.
One classroom school buildings
To start, rural schools in the 19th and even part of the 20th centuries frequently had only one classroom. The reasons for this included a lack of funds to create bigger schoolhouses and the numbers of children who could attend schools in less densely populated areas - in an era before cars became ubiquitous.
Different grades had lessons together
One room schools led to the common circumstance that one teacher taught grades from one and up at the same time. The youngest would sit in the front and oldest in the back. But despite different grades being sat together in rural areas, at some schools, boys and girls studied apart from each other. This even included having separate school entries.
Time spent studying was shorter
The average student today attends school for about 180 days a year, so half of the year, and stays there about seven hours a day. In the 19th century, study was for around 50 days less, with lessons commonly starting at 9 a.m. and finishing in the afternoon, with five hours being more typical. This type of arrangement was needed because students may have had to work and couldn't balance education and work otherwise. Due to the prevalence of students working more in some schools, it of course meant that students had less time for homework and useful content.
Lashing did happen
We are used to seeing teachers disciplining students through physical punishment in older movies. It may seem like a cinematic exaggeration, but it did happen. Discipline was very strict. Punishments like suspension and detention existed, but poor behavior could also lead to lashing. Later when lashing became less popular or even removed from schools, physical punishment didn't stop. Teachers could still use a ruler to lash a student's palms. Other punishments included rewriting one word or phrase many times (maybe one hundred times!) to make the student understand and admit what was done wrong, and holding a heavy book for a long time. As vile as it may seem to some of us, physical punishment is still legal in many countries and even encouraged by some students’ parents.
Teachers lived with their students
Teachers were seen as examples and were looked up to. But a responsibility for some teachers was to actually live in the same house as their students. They were provided a room at a student's house, where they stayed for around a week. Then weekly they changed location to different students’ houses. It may seem like a punishment in today's society, but back then that kind of teacher influence may have helped students.
Conclusion
The education system was transformed carefully and slowly over time. We know today’s school system as it is because of the work laid by great reformers in the 19th century, and ultimately reform was successful because of the strong-mindedness of people like Horace Mann.
Author’s bio
Jeff Blaylock is a freelance copywriter. He is deeply invested in historical topics and lately, he has taken it upon himself to invest more time into digging deep into education history. His writings are catchy and informative - for casual readers and intellectuals alike.
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