Image: “Here Are Your Test Results” by Drazen Zigic, sourced from Freepik, is used under the Freepik license.

Overview

This week, you will be introduced to the developments in U.S. Education from the Colonial Period through the 1890s.

Learning Outcomes

After completing this module, you should be able to:

• Identify and Describe Key Contributions: Explain the contributions of key figures, significant events, and landmark court cases in the history of American education from the colonial period through the 1890s.

• Analyze the Role of Native American Boarding Schools: Recognize and critically analyze the assimilationist goals and practices of Native American boarding schools in the U.S. education system.

• Demonstrate an understanding of course structure and tools for engagement: Students will demonstrate an understanding of the course structure, including individual and group work, and become familiar with the tools and platforms used throughout the course, preparing them for future collaborative and individual assignments. 

• Apply Effective Note-taking Strategies: Use a study guide to enhance your note-taking and learning while watching educational videos about U.S. education history.
  
  

Learning Activities 

• Assignment # 2: Historical Persona & Present-Day Applica!on

• Weekly Journal: Self-Care for Future Educators: Make Taking Care of Ourselves a  Priority

• After-Class Reflection

Learning Activities 

Assignment 2: Historical Persona & Present-Day Application 

Goal

This assignment helps you connect the historical foundations of American education with today’s issues and your own philosophy. You will research and embody a historical perspective, then consider how it applies to present times.

Instructions

Step 1: Choose Your Historical Persona

Select ONE option from the lists below (or propose another with instructor approval).

Historical Figures:

• Noah Webster

• Thomas Jefferson

• Horace Mann

• Frederick Douglass

• Catharine Beecher

• Bishop John Hughes

• Emma Willard

• Booker T. Washington

• Optional adds: John Dewey, Maria Montessori
  
  

Educational Concepts/Institutions:

• Common Schools

• Native American Boarding Schools

• Dame Schools

• African American Education Post-Civil War
  
  

Educational Materials/Approaches:

• McGuffey Readers

• New England Primer

• Lancaster Method
  
  
  

Step 2: Write Your Paper (1000–1200 words)

Part 1: Historical Context & Contributions (300–350 words)

• Provide key biographical or contextual details.

• Explain major contributions to American education.

• Describe their philosophy or approaches

• Include at least one direct quote with citation.
  
  

Part 2: First-Person Educational Statement (300–350 words)

• Write in character as your persona (e.g., “I, Emma Willard, believe…”).

• Express educational philosophy and vision.

• Describe teaching/learning methods and the purpose of education.

• Address an educational challenge of their time.
  
  
  

Part 3: Present-Day Application (300–350 words)

Now shift into your own voice (not the persona):

• How do this person’s ideas or approaches show up in today’s schools or debates?

• Which of their values or practices do you think are still relevant?

• Which do you believe should be challenged or changed?

• Connect their philosophy to one current educational issue you care about (e.g., equity, curriculum design, testing, access, inclusion, technology).
  
  

Part 4: Personal Reflection (100–150 words)

• What did you learn by exploring this historical perspective?

• How did the assignment shape your own thinking about teaching and learning?

Note: Here is an example paper for you to review if you are unsure of how to complete the paper. 

Weekly Journal Self-Care for Future Educators: Make Taking Care of Ourselves a Priority

Teaching is deeply meaningful work, but it can also be emotionally, mentally, and physically demanding. One of the most important professional habits you can build now, as a future educator, is the ability to care for yourself with intention. Sustainable teaching begins with sustainable you.

Why Self-Care Matters in Education

As teachers, we support students through academic challenges, emotional stress, life transitions, and moments of growth. To do this well, we need to nurture and protect our own well-being. Self-care is not indulgent; it’s an essential part of ethical and responsible teaching. When you care for yourself, you:

• Strengthen your resilience and emotional regulation

• Model healthy habits for your students

• Improve your creativity, patience, and decision-making

• Build longevity in the profession
  
  

Your Self-Care Journal 

Throughout the module, you are invited to keep a simple Self-Care Journal. Make a copy of this Google Document and download the copy. Your journal’s purpose is to record one activity that you are doing to take care of yourself each week. We need to develop habits of self-care so that it can become part of our practice. The suggested prompts are provided to help you get started. If you are doing something else than the suggested activity, then add it to your journal. In your After-Class Reflection, report what you are doing each week as a self-care practice. 

Week 2–After Class Reflections

Goal: The goal of this activity is to gather feedback on your understanding of concepts each week and address any questions you may have related to the content and instructions. This is considered a form of formative assessment. 

Instructions: Please complete the survey.