Primary Sources

Assignment

Each of you will be assigned an on-line book on the Smithsonian "American Memory" website http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/ndlpcoop/moahtml/mncspeducation.html). All of these books are historical publication about education.

Your task is to read the book then write a detailed reflection on it. Specifically, I want a detailed summary of the book -- perhaps two pages, more if necessary. Then, I want a thorough discussion of what we can learn about American education from the book. Exactly what that is will vary from book to book, but I expect a wide-ranging discussion about how teaching was done, what kind of facilities were available, what kind of teaching materials were available, how schools were run (who was in charge, how was school conducted), what the connection between religion and education was, how discipline was managed, how gender issues played out, how race/ethnic issues played out, what the purposes of education were deemed to be (either explicitly or implicitly), etc., etc. You can't approach these points as a list to be followed. Rather, you will have to figure out what's in your book and critique that. I also require that you very explicitly tie your discussion to the materials in your class readings and in the lectures.

I expect your papers to be written in Standard Academic English. That means that your paper needs to follow the essay guidelines posted on the course website. This is a writing intensive course, so pay careful attention to your writing.

Your paper will be due at the beginning of the period on 2/21/08. I will not accept these late unless you have made arrangements at least 48 hours in advance. (If you are an athlete who has to be gone on that date, you must turn your paper in early. For the rest of you, you should consider the possibility that something might come up the night before the paper is due. Don't wait until the last evening to write the paper. No excuses for the paper not being ready will be accepted on the due date.)