From Legends to Legacy 15schools. We must remain hopeful for the future of multiple assessments in helping us
measure a broader array of “intelligence”.
- A “COMMON”AND DEMOCRATIC SCHOOL
Life is about relationships. Why then, are we together? What is our purpose?
Margaret Wheatley, 1992.The great ‘hero” of American education has to be Horace Mann.... a person we have all
probably studied or heard about, and whose ideas are so appropriate in these magnet-voucher-
choice-elitist-faith-based, times in American public education (Mann et al., 1867). He helped
establish the first public normal school in Lexington in 1839 after “self educating” himself by
reading at the Franklin Town Library in Massachusetts, and apprenticing with an itinerant
schoolmaster. No cause was closer to his heart than the education of the people, particularly
the relationship between education, freedom and a republican form of government. He
believed that the “common school” would be the ‘great equalizer’ in that it would be available
to all AND equal for all, as part of their American birthright, whether rich or poor. According
to Cremin the main goal of his common school was “social harmony.” (Cremin, 1957).
Serving as an attorney, state legislator, Congressman, Antioch College President, and the
first Secretary of Education in Massachusetts, Mann left a legacy of the free, public school as
one of the characteristic features of American life. Mason-King labeled him as a “wellspring”
of freedom, and a ladder of opportunity for millions”. (Mason-King, n.d.) Just two months
before he passed away he delivered his final address at Antioch College where he was quoted
by Cremin (1957) as saying:
“I beseech you to treasure up in your hearts these parting words: Be ashamed to die
until you have won some victory for humanity.”Those are fine words for an educator who was highly “progressive” for his time. Now
there is a word, “progressive,” often fraught with controversy throughout the history of
American education. Over the past century in fact, the term “progressive education” has been
part of a larger movement in America to implement the ideals of Jefferson, Mann and Dewey
(among others), for a well-educated citizenry, and thus a way to create a more democratic
society. It means more active engagement by all citizens in political, economic and social
decisions that will affect their lives, including two key components: (a) A respect for
diversity, meaning that each individual should be recognized for his or her own abilities,
interests, ideas, needs, and cultural identity, and, (b) The development of critical, socially
engaged intelligence, which enables individuals to understand and participate effectively in
the affairs of their community in a collaborative effort to achieve a common good. This seems
a far cry from contemporary conceptions of schooling which seem to emphasize cultural
uniformity rather than diversity, and to educate dutiful, not critical citizens in this ever-
expanding corporate, industrial economy where meritocracy, failing schools, and vouchers are
becoming the watchwords under NCLB types of legislation throughout the 50 states.
I must note the pioneering work of an immigrant from Estonia, the late, great Hilda Taba
(1932; 1962), who believed that education for democracy was a major element of modern
schooling and curricula, and that it needed to be “experiential”, where children learned to
solve problems and resolve conflicts together. She was a powerful presence when I heard her
speak in San Francisco in 1967. She had a great deal of positive and powerful influence in