Chapter 2: The States Take Responsibility for Teacher Preparation

In the early nineteenth century, the formal educational experiences of young people in the United States were neither consistent nor cohesive, but could be characterized as a mismatch of encounters. Imbalances and inequities in the schooling that children received stemmed from differences in how much instruction was allowed or reliably offered, the quality of school buildings and materials, and the availability of teachers and resources. As a result of these differences, there were increased calls for uniform and centralized educational experiences for children. Appeals for schools that would be common for all students multiplied.

At the same time there was increased pressure to develop an educated citizenship in the United States to support a growing nation following the war with England in the late 1700s. The evolving common school structure, precursor to the contemporary public school system in the United States, was viewed as the channel to develop this learned citizenship. The significant concern about the mixed academic experiences that young people were receiving in their schooling, coupled with recognition of the important role of education in developing a strong nation, drew attention to the need to prepare high quality teachers who would educate students in the new common schools. This chapter explores the seminal roles of the state normal schools in preparing effective and dedicated teachers for a young, developing, and expanding nation.