The History of Education in South Carolina

1. The History of Education in South Carolina

2. Much of the 300-year history of our public schools is a tragic tale of fits and starts, marked at times by inspired leadership, but too often marred by problems of class, race, war, poverty and geography.

3. Assignment List five things that you believe are challenges for today’s schools. Choose at least two of the five things and write a typed, two-page essay (minimum, double-spaced) explaining why these topics are so critical and provide your ideas and opinions on how these topics must be addressed or resolved.

4. Ten Reasons for Slow Growth of the Statewide Public School System • A strong tradition brought from England that public support for education should be limited to the poor. • An accompanying tradition that education was more the responsibility of the Church than the State. • Attitudes of those outside the wealthy class that worked against a unified system; including low regard for learning, reluctance to accept charity through free tuition, and the need to keep children in the family labor force. • The extremely high cost in the 18th and 19th centuries to provide quality schools in areas outside the cities and coastal areas, where population was sparse and transportation poor. • Strong resistance to local taxation for schools until the late 1800’s.

5. (continued) 6. Interruption of a burgeoning “common school movement” in South Carolina by the Civil War and the subsequent disruption of tax base 7. Increased white resistance to the public school idea following the Reconstruction government’s attempts to open schools to all races 8. An attitude on the part of some 20th century leaders that too much education would damage the state’s cheap labor force 9. The slow growth of state supervision of the schools due to strong sentiments toward local control 10. The financial burden of operating a racially segregated system, and the social and educational impact of combining two unequal systems in the late 1960s

6. Parallels of Past and Present “We have a provincial free school paid by the public, but their salaries are insufficient to engage and retain fit men.” - Written by Lt. Gov. William Bull to this British superiors in 1779

7. 1600s – 1700s: A Century of Private Education and Pauper Schools • English settlers believe education was a private, voluntary matter • Colony leaders focused only on rudimentary learning for humanitarian reasons and for civilized behavior of lower classes • Curriculum stressed religion to drive out evil (Massachusetts Act of 1647 or Old Deluder Satan Act) • First cargo of African slaves (1671) from Barbados are brought to S. C. – received schooling by Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts • Colonial assembly approved funds for first free public schools (1710) called “common schools” • Act of 1712 – requirements set for teachers • Schools spring up along the coast and Lowcountry; few schools in Upcountry • Wealthy receive quality educational opportunities • 1779 – Bill for More General Diffusion of Knowledge (VA)

8. 1800 – 1860Rudimentary Steps to Provide Better Public Education • 1811 – Bill to Establish Free Schools throughout the State • Pauper schools open and few schools in Upcountry • 1812 – free school system gains popularity in Charleston • Unequal financing of schools begins with favoritism toward wealthier Lowcountry counties • Rural areas and pauper schools suffer the most • Teacher quality declined in mid-1800s as quantity of schools increased • 1840s – idea introduced to use local property taxes for public education • 1850s – a true public school system forms in Charleston – led by C. G. Memminger • Limited and poor teacher training in the state • 1843 – S. C. law passed that forbids the education of blacks • Civil War hinders any potential for progress

9. 1860 – 1900The Ups and Downs of the Civil War, Freed Slaves, Carpetbaggers, Reconstruction, Teacher Training • Schools in Charleston were disbanded • North sends funds and teachers for education of African Americans • 1867 – Howard School in Columbia opens – only public school in S. C. that accepted African Americans • After the war, northerners arrive to teach in black schools • 1868 – Reconstructionists write guarantee of free public school in new Constitution • Justus K. Jillson set about to create effective schools • 1873 – African American students entered what would become USC, but it was closed in 1877 and re-opened as an all white school • 1876 – nearly 57% of the voting population could not read the ballot • 1880 – first state effort at teacher training begins student funding - $2.75 whites, $2.51 blacks • 1895 – student funding - $3.11 whites, $1.05 blacks • New Constitution adopted – “Separate schools shall be provided for children of the white and colored races, and no child of either race shall ever be permitted to attend a school provided for children of the other race.”

10. 1900 – 1910A Decade of Thwarted Efforts by Education Advocates • One-third of the state's citizens were illiterate and about 85% were rural country schools • 1907 – High School Act passed • Overall poor teacher quality

11. 1910 – 1920Portrayed in the Words of Tate, Swearingen, and Clark • 1911 – Tate reported, “ The Negro school houses are miserable beyond description…” • 1913 – 1914 – student funding - $14.94 whites, $1.86 blacks • 1913 – 1914 – teacher annual salaries - $610 white males; $133 black males; $322 white females; $107 black females • 70 – 75 % of children never went beyond the 5th grade • 1921 – compulsory attendance statewide • 1916 – average class size – 37 whites; 72 African Americans • 1916 – length of school term – 171 days whites; 69 days blacks

12. 1930s Small Steps in the Right Direction for Financing, Adult Education, School Consolidation, Teaching Certificates • WWI recruits score poorly on literacy tests • Adult education classes begin • 6-0-1 Law passed by legislature • The Depression leads to cuts in school funding • 1937 – toughened compulsory attendance law • 1944 – addition of the twelfth grade • 1945 – creating of a teacher retirement system • 1945 – uniform pay and certification system for all teachers of both races

13. 1940sWorld War II Impacts South Carolina Education • Teacher supply drained • Largest number of draftees rejected in nation • School terms – 178 whites; 162 blacks • 1944 – federal court ruling that black teachers and principals be made equal to whites • 1944 – annual salaries for elementary teachers - $998 white male; $856 white female; $411 black male; $372 black female • 1944 annual salaries for high school teachers - $1433 white male; $960 white female; $600 black male; $506 black female • new certification regulations and salary schedule based on education, experience, and NTE • 1949 – student funding - $111 white; $50 black; one-teacher schools – 180 white, 799 black; transportation - $2.4 million whites, $184,000 blacks

14. 1950sSeparate but Equal, Brown vs. the Board of Education, Jimmie’s Tax, Sputnik, and More • 1951 – 3¢ sales tax dedicated to public education (Jimmie’s tax) • 1954 – Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka impacts S. C. • NAACP persuaded fourteen parents to start a court case in Clarendon County (Briggs vs. Elliot) • Plessy v. Ferguson was overturned • 1954 – first funding for special programs for students who were mentally and physically handicapped • 1957 – Sputnik is launched by Russia • 1955 – 1957 – Seniors did well with the National Merit Scholarship • 1959 – more S. C. students receive high school diplomas than ever

15. 1960sBaby Boom Generation, Integration, Civil Rights Act, Half-Day Kindergartens, Teacher In-service • 1960 – ETV received funding • 1960 – Clarendon parents file suit asking for the end of segregation in the county • 1962 – first black students enters Clemson University • 1963 – first black students enter formerly all-white public school • 1964 – Civil Rights Act passed • Private schools gain in number • 1967 – compulsory attendance law passed again • Funding for half-day kindergarten program • Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) passed • Gaps evident in spending gap between tax-rich and tax-poor districts

16. 1970sSocial Changes Mirrored in Schools • Rampant social changes – revolutions in human rights, communications, and technology; one resident parent; working mothers; drugs; television • State lobbying groups exert power • 1974 – Teacher Employment and Dismissal Act • 1977 – Education Finance Act (EFA) • 1978 – The Basic Skills Assessment Act (BSAP) passed • 1979 – Education Entrance Exam (EEE) passed

17. 1980sA Nation at Risk, Latchkey Children, Standardized Testing, Dumbed-down Curriculum, Teacher Shortages, EIA • 1983 - A Nation at Risk published • Social and family issues arise • Poor scores on BSAP tests and SAT • Decline in student motivation • Decline in number of people entering teaching as a career • Shortage of math and science teachers • Low teacher salaries • Broad range of teacher responsibilites • 1984 – Education Improvement Act (EIA) passed • 1989 – “Target 2000 – School Reform for the Next Decade Act”

18. 1990sRestructuring, Technology, School-based Management, School Choice, School-to-Work, SCCTR, Challenge for 21st Century • Restructuring of schools to promote collective improvement of schools • 1986 – South Carolina Center for Teacher Recruitment opens (targets teacher shortages and teacher quality) • Emphasis on cooperative learning, vocational training, school-to-work coursework, increased credits for graduation, frameworks for courses, use of technology • Assisting, Developing and Evaluating Professional Teaching (ADEPT) implemented

19. Much of the 300-year history of our public schools is a tragic tale of fits and starts, marked at times by inspired leadership, but too often marred by problems of class, race, war, poverty and geography.

20. Assignment List five things that you believe are challenges for today’s schools. Choose two of the five things and write a two-page essay (minimum, double-spaced) explaining why these topics are so critical and provide your ideas and opinions on how these topics must be addressed or resolved.