Sociology Now, Census Update

John Dewey (1859–1952) was a proponent of “progressive education”—

constantly updating what the schools teach to make learning relevant to people’s lives.

During the first half of the twentieth century, policy makers and employers sought to

ensure that education coincided with the country’s economic profile and employment

demands.

As education became universal, more and more scholars began experimenting

with how people learn. Was rote memorization effective? Problem solving? Practi-

cal experience? Pragmatism taught the value of practical experience—actually using

a foreign language for everyday conversations, for instance, instead of translating

passages from great works of literature. During the 1960s, affect, or feelings, became

nearly as significant in educational theory as cognition, or intellect. Students learned

self-esteem, how to recognize and handle emotions, how to manage conflict, often

to the detriment of more practical skills. A backlash in the 1980s and 1990s moved

the curriculum “back to basics,” and rote memorization returned as an appropriate

way to learn.

Before the Civil War, abolitionist Frederick Douglass (c1818–1895) stated that

learning to read and write would be the “road to liberation” for oppressed minori-

ties. Educational theorist Horace Mann (1796–1859) believed that education could

be “the great equalizer” eliminating class and other social inequalities as everyone

gained access to information and debate (Cremin, 1957). For this goal to be met, how-

ever, all citizens in the country must be educated. On the college level, the United States

is indeed the best-educated country in the world, with the highest graduation rate (one

in four adults now has a bachelor’s degree) and boasts the majority of the world’s

best universities (Economist,2005). Yet on the high school level, we have more

dropouts and underpreparedness than any other industrialized country. We are falling

behind in math, science, and problem-solving skills.

Some groups have consistently enjoyed more educational success than others.

Women received less elementary and secondary education than men through the

558 CHAPTER 17EDUCATION

Complete Formal Schooling

Americans in general place a high value on education. One’s life chances are directly related to

one’s education, as are one’s income, social group, and even one’s potential marriage partner

pool. In the United States, children are required by law to go to school until they are 16 years

of age, and according to the U.S. Department of Education, 85 percent of 25- to 29-year-olds

in 2005 had completed high school. So, what do you think?

17.1

What

do

you

think

❍Extremely important

❍Quite important

❍Somewhat important

❍Not too important

❍Not at all important

How important is it that young people should complete formal schooling?

?

See the back of the chapter to compare your answers to national survey data.