The American School

This comprehensive history of American education is designed to stimulate critical analysis and critical thinking by offering alternative interpretations of each historical period. In his signature straightforward, concise style, Joel Spring provides a variety of interpretations of American schooling, from conservative to progressive, in order to spark the reader’s own critical thinking about history and schools.

This eleventh edition of The American School follows the history of American education from the seventeenth century to the integration into global capitalism of the twenty-first century to the tumultuous present political landscape. In particular, Spring frames current developments within the historic debate about how morality and religion should be reflected in school instruction, the role of civic and patriotic instruction, gender equality, and civil rights. A brand new Chapter 16 covers the Trump and Biden era from 2017 to the present, exploring meritocracy in education, book bans, the elimination of diversity, equality, and inclusion efforts, and the controversy about gender identity, LGBTQ+ rights, and racial justice.