Chapter 21, Section 4: Public Education & American Culture

Main Idea: The growth of public education was closely

linked to other changes in American culture.

A. Educating Americans Before 1870, less than ½ of US kids went to

school, & those who did went to a 1-room schoolhouse with 1 teacher for all students.

Public SchoolsPublic Schools Better schools were needed as industry grew. North: Compulsory education laws required kids

to attend school (usually through 6th grade) South: Segregated schools. Freedman’s Bureau. Schools helped immigrant children to assimilate

more quickly by teaching English & citizenship.

The School DayThe School Day From 8 - 4: the “3 Rs”- reading, ‘riting, &

‘rithmetic McGuffey’s Eclectic Reader taught morals, ethics

& values while students learned to read & write Schools emphasized discipline & obedience.

Sit up straight with hands folded in front, etc.Punishment was swift & severe: cuff up side head, paddling. *This is biggest change over last 100 years!

Higher LearningHigher LearningBy 1900, there were over 6,000 high schools in the US. (compared to 36,000 now)This lead to more colleges & universities opening across the nation as well. (there are around 4,500 2- & 4-year schools today)Trade schools opened to train workers for specific jobs in business & industry

Carpentry, plumbing, electrician, etc.

Family LearningFamily LearningChautauqua Society

Started in 1874 as a summer school for Methodist Bible teachers

Opened to public the next year for spiritual guidance & self-improvement (art, politics, philosophy)

In 1903, they began traveling to other towns.

Chicago Manual Training School

B. A Newspaper Boom Newspapers became more popular as cities

grew larger and people became more educated. They helped people stay informed, overcome cultural differences (immigrants) & provided cities with a sense of community.

Two Newspaper GiantsTwo Newspaper Giants Joseph Pulitzer – New York World

1st mass-circulation newspaper – slashed prices & added comics. Used “scare” headlines about crimes & political scandals on front page to increase sales

William Randolph Hearst – New York Journal Competed with Pulitzer by featuring scandals, crime

stories & gossip to attract readers away from World.

Led to yellow journalism – exaggerating news to sell more papers (less news, more scandal)

Women as Readers & ReportersWomen as Readers & Reporters Newspapers added sections to attract females

fashion, society, health, homemaking & family

Nellie Bly (World) – famous female reporter

C. New Reading Habits

Magazines become popular – Ladies’ Home Journal, Harper’s Monthly, The Nation

Dime novels – low-priced paperbacks: usually adventure stories about “Wild West”

Horatio Alger – wrote children’s books about “rags-to-riches” stories that promoted hard work, honesty, integrity, etc.

D. New American WritersRealistsRealists

Authors that wanted to show life as it was (harsh) Stephen Crane – The Red Badge of Courage

(Civil War) & Maggie: A Girl of the Streets (slums) Jack London – wrote about miners & sailors

risking their lives to do backbreaking work Kate Chopin – women in non-traditional roles Paul Laurence Dunbar – 1st professional African

American writer/poet (“We Wear the Mask”)

Mark TwainMark TwainReal name was Samuel Clemens (ties to Elmira)Used local color in his writing (captured speech patterns of southerners who lived along the Mississippi River). His characters were “home-spun.”The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is his most famous work. Story of a boy who befriends an escaped slave as they travel down the Mississippi River together. Then, it was banned in many schools and libraries (claimed to be a bad influence on kids). Now, it is considered an American classic.

E. Painting Everyday Life

Winslow Homer – New England coastal scenes

Thomas Eakins – human anatomy & surgeries

Henry Tanner – black sharecroppers

Ex-patriots Americans that moved to other

countries. Many authors & artists chose to leave the U.S. and live & paint in Europe.

Henry Tanner, James Whistler, Mary Cassatt