Special Section: The Impact of Sputnik on American Education

American educational historiography seems to be moving in the direction away from a preoccupation with the Progressive era to events that took place during the mid to late twentieth century. This change means focusing on topics such as the Cold War, Sputnik, the National Defense Education Act, the Coleman Report, the establishment of the U.S. Department of Education, and the overall growth of the federal government’s role in educational reform.

This special section of AEHJ certainly continues this trend in historiography. The essays included provide fascinating accounts of how the Cold War in general and Sputnik in particular came to have a profound impact on American education in a variety of ways—including the way schools are funded, the subjects that take precedence in the curriculum, the way students with special needs (for example gifted students) are taught, and the question of what role a federal Department of Education should play in school improvement. All of these topics, and many others, are explored in the works that follow. The editors of AEHJ hope that you find them informative, insightful, and provocative. If you run across an essay that you think is particularly interesting, we encourage you to contact the author and begin a conversation.