History of American Education & Policy Midterm Exam
Please respond to one of the following prompts. Your response should be between 3-5, font 12, Times New Roman double spaced pages. Please read the following carefully:
a. Before beginning read the choices carefully & make sure that you understand what the prompt is inviting you to respond to – there are no trick questions.
b. If you use external research to support your point, you must cite it- giving credit for external sources is essential. You may use whatever citation style you like (APA, MLA etc.).
c. Do not include direct quotes; these take up valuable space and this is a very short essay
d. Please ensure that your response is uploaded to Canvas, by:
Midnight, Thursday, November 14th.
2. “There is a philosophical link between the agenda of the Redeemers, during Reconstruction, and the inability of education policy to deliver on the Promise of the Brown decision”: Please evaluate the validity of this statement.
3. African American scholar and Harvard law professor, Derek Bell wrote that the Brown decision was a “magnificent mirage.” What do you think that he meant by that, and was he correct, why or why not?
4. Given the philosophical foundations of the American Revolution (John Locke, the fear of a strong central government etc.) combined with the power of the 10th Amendment to the US Constitution, was the common school movement a logical school system for the United States to adopt? Why or why not?
5. Chapter three of the course text addresses the education & the early national era. I opened the chapter by asking a reflective question “why are we spending so much time thinking about 18th century policy makers”, having read the chapter, and worked through over half of the course, what is your response to this question?
6. What is Classic Liberalism & how does it impact an individual’s view of American education policy?
7. How has the concept of individualism (beginning with the southern colonies) worked to influence how American society views the impact of poverty and educational inequity?