The Science and Art of Teaching: Pedagogy and the Roots of the School of Education, 1879-1921
by Stephen Mucher
The University of Michigan has a long and rich history working with public schools to address enduring educational problems. In many ways, the focused purpose of the School of Education today draws heavily from a mission established in the decades before its founding in 1921.
James B. Angell
As early as 1858, University faculty members from a variety of disciplines offered a "Teacher's Course" for prospective schoolmasters. Such courses reflected an early interest in identifying the unique preparatory needs of teachers. These needs became more evident after 1871 when the University instituted an innovative and controversial new admissions policy. The Michigan Diploma Plan required faculty members, including such notables as English professor F.N. Scott, philosopher John Dewey, historian Charles K. Adams, and University President James B. Angell, to make annual visits to secondary schools. These inspectors assessed whether high schools throughout Michigan and much of the Midwest adequately prepared students for admission to the University.
Burke A. Hinsdale
Routine high school inspections highlighted significant
problems in nineteenth century secondary schools, most notably the
common deficiencies found in teachers. Concerns rising from these observations
help explain why the University of Michigan, in 1879, became the nation's first
college to hire a permanent Chair of Pedagogy. The new position,
first held by William H. Payne (followed by
Burke A. Hinsdale), was lodged within
the Department of Literature,
Science, and the
Arts
(LS&A). These men worked collaboratively with LS&A colleagues
to
construct a program for teachers that emphasized strong subject matter preparation
along
with
study in the "Science and Art of Teaching."
In addition, widespread interest in better articulating the relationship between secondary schools and the university helped spawn the Michigan Schoolmasters Club in 1886. Initiated by a group of University professors, high school leaders, and normal school officials, the Schoolmasters Club met annually in Ann Arbor for discussions on curriculum, college admissions, the state of the teaching profession, instructional problems, and developments in various subject area disciplines. John Dewey was a co-founder and early vice president of the Schoolmasters.
Despite these pioneering efforts, pedagogy as a field of academic inquiry remained a relatively small endeavor throughout the nineteenth century. However, beginning about 1900, the exponential growth of high school enrollments began to reshape the mission of universities in relation to secondary education. Unable to continue faculty-led accreditation visits to this growing number of secondary schools, the University added a full-time inspector to assist the Chair of Pedagogy.
Alan S. Whitney
By 1903, Alan S. Whitney, the individual chosen to coordinate and conduct these inspections, had become the de facto chair of a two-man department. Four years later, Whitney received authorization from the University Regents to rename his department "Education." The Department of Education grew quickly in the early century, attracting undergraduate and graduate students to the bourgeoning field of professional education. The new name reflected an interest in educational issues that went beyond the education of teachers. The Department of Education soon offered courses in school administration, educational testing, research methods, child study, and school law.
Citing the growing size of the department, trends in other universities, and the importance of increased curricular autonomy, Whitney and his departmental colleagues began calling for a distinct School of Education. Their ambitions were realized soon after World War I when the Michigan Legislature authorized funding for new classroom facilities and a training school. The School of Education, with Whitney at the helm, formally opened its doors in 1921.
Today, the University of Michigan School of Education continues to reflect many of the purposes that were first propounded by the nineteenth century Chairs of Pedagogy and their LS&A colleagues. Despite the changes over the past century that have added important new roles to the School of Education, the institution today makes a concerted effort to organize its research, service, and preparatory purposes around teaching and learning. Like their predecessors, faculty members in the School of Education today recognize that classroom teachers and their students should be central to any effort aimed at improving American education.
March 2003
About the author: Stephen Mucher completed his dissertation on the history of teacher preparation at the University of Michigan. He studied in the Educational Foundations and Policy doctoral program .
