1. The economy has and likely always will play a major role in education as a generationally consistent goal for the youth is to be able to step into careers that are both beneficial to them and the greater whole.
1.1. The exploitation of cheap labor in this country further divided its people as competition for low wage jobs consistently led to major influxes of immigrants throughout its convoluted history.
1.1.1. While these periods have created hugely beneficial periods for this country, there have been equally as important backlashes to the new citizens, resulting in racism, discrimination, and unequal treatment in every aspect of daily life, including schooling.
1.2. This was never truer than the early days of this country and its educational system, when children were sent to school to learn the trades that their parents practiced.
1.2.1. This was to maintain the status quo and ensure compliancy, productivity, and patriotism, which were so heavily valued in the early days.
1.2.2. Contrary to this all for one and one for all mentality, the shifting views on professional development have more recently focused on individuals pursuing careers of their choice and passion as opposed to those that would allow the continued exertion of social control.
1.3. A vast public schooling system led to the industrial revolution, which enabled the U.S. to become a major world power and exemplar for educational systems for all, granted there were very clear injustices taking place and groups being excluded.
2. Not only is the U.S. education system highly political, but it is also heavily rooted in religion, war, and territorial expansionism.
2.1. Manifest Destiny, while closely intertwined with religion and war, is more of a cultural phenomenon worthy of individual examination
2.1.1. The belief that it was a divinely ordained right to spread American influence into the western territories was revolutionary in many ways, but in terms of schooling, it had no bigger influence than the shift towards women teachers.
2.1.1.1. While not ideal in the underlying reasons for the shift occurring, namely cheaper pay and women being better with children, it was still a profoundly important transition.
2.2. The moral obligation to spread God's word and therefore intertwine religion into the curriculum has been deeply rooted in the American education system from the very beginning.
2.2.1. This allowed for the easy implementation of social order as fear, discipline, uniformity, and duty to God and country were ever-present.
2.2.2. Any challenge to this system via other religions or non-sectarianism was met with heavy resistance.
2.2.2.1. This division ultimately led to the creation of new systems of schools, namely private Catholic in regards to the Irish, in the spirit of placing education most paramount for a free society.
2.3. War, while seemingly unrelated to schooling, has had huge repercussions on education in this country, just as education has hugely influenced war.
2.3.1. The spoils of war tend to normally focus on the acquisition of land, but a potentially more influential repercussion is the acquisition of its people.
2.3.1.1. New citizens integrated into American society are generally greeted with alienation, racism, discrimination and disdain. This is highly evident in the schooling systems, or lack thereof, that they've been absorbed into in their new nation.
3. Color Key
3.1. Religion
3.2. Politics
3.3. Economy
3.4. Inequities
3.5. Democracy
3.6. Social Control
3.7. Individual Growth
3.8. White Privilege
3.9. Civil Rights
3.10. Expansionism
4. Democracy, as evidenced in education to this day, was one of the major values instilled by the founding fathers.
4.1. It was considered hugely important to have an educated citizenry to ensure a healthy and fully-functioning democracy capable of surviving any and all challenges presented.
4.1.1. While not entirely equitable from the beginning, the intent was to provide a voice to all people.
4.1.1.1. Power would ideally be granted to the majority with the influence to enact social and political reform as is justly required to balance competing interests.
4.1.1.1.1. History has always been open to change and with that, the possibility of liberation.
4.2. The early educational system was heavily rooted in so-called 'American values'.
4.2.1. Early educational leaders and reformers wanted to distinguish the new country from their predecessors and therefore systematically removed English textbooks in favor of their own newly minted ones reflecting these new values.
4.3. As a government of the people, by the people, for the people, there has always been significant political pull within the educational system.
4.3.1. Big money has always played a role in how school systems are run, who is allowed to go, what curriculum is in place, etc.
4.3.2. Public schools are meant to be public, free, and non-sectarian. The interpretation of these values, however, has been loosely applied throughout the years with religion heavily interlaced and only certain groups allowed or able to attend based on social or economic status.
5. The history of the U.S. educational system cannot be accurately represented without drawing attention to the inequities enforced upon its marginalized groups.
5.1. From the beginning, it has been the white, upper-class citizens that have been afforded the luxury of consistent, quality education.
5.1.1. While other white groups have been alienated due to their religion, accent, and country of origin, it is not nearly to the extent that other races have experienced.
5.2. Fair access to education for blacks, latinos, native americans, asians and pacific islanders in this country has been fiercely fought by the ruling white class for centuries.
5.2.1. This is not for a lack of fierce opposition by the likes of W.E.B. Du Bois and Frederick Douglass who stated that the people must "agitate the existing social order," and "knowledge will set you free," respectively.
5.2.1.1. Countless brave souls have stood up to these injustices by illegally becoming literate, fighting for freedom in war, forming their own school systems, protesting and organizing sit-ins, and taking issues of discrimination to courts at the expense of their money, time, and pride to ensure that they can and will empower the powerless.
5.3. When it was determined that all people deserved the right to a free and fair education, further inequities were put in place via segregation.
5.3.1. This is well-documented in the Plessy v Ferguson court case where 'separate but equal' first took foothold in this country.
5.3.1.1. While this was ultimately overturned by Brown v the Board of Education, the lasting effects were already in place and too much damage had occurred to remedy the situation in any meaningful way.
5.3.2. This led to a thwarted freedom that resulted in people of color fairly questioning the intent of the educational system with concern and suspicion.
5.3.2.1. While blacks and native americans were provided funding for their own separate schools, latinos and asians were left on the periphery due to their smaller numbers at the time.
5.3.3. Jim Crow laws fostered racism and hate that further alienated the very people that had recently fought for and gained their freedom.
5.3.3.1. It was ingrained into the culture and therefore into schooling, with de facto measures of discrimination leading to unequal facilities and resources for the few that were now attending school.
5.4. While race and religion tend to be at the forefront of these discussions, and rightly so, the issue of classism has also separated groups in regards to schooling.
5.4.1. The matter of where money for public schools is to come from has been hotly debated from the beginning with taxes being seen as an injustice in the early days and wealthy people generally opting for 'higher quality' education in private schools.
5.5. A major goal to equalize all people in the realm of education is to 'make the strange familiar and the familiar strange'.
5.5.1. This can take root by focusing on social empowerment prior to mastery of technical skills, in addition to rewarding learning as opposed to knowledge.