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The Education Of The United States Essay

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The purpose of education in the United States has been designed to meet the changing needs of society, though never quite fast enough to fully reflect those changes. In its early history, American education reinforced the religious doctrines of the Puritan settlers. During the era of our founders, the purpose of education shifted to crafting democratic citizens. During the Industrial Revolution school became more about preparing students to be future workers, punching out students on a pedagogical assembly line. Many of these early ideas persist into the 21st-century, though there is a greater diversity than ever in educational epistemology. Largely though, the perceived purpose of education in contemporary public schools is to prepare students to become future citizens who participate in the democratic process, to become skilled workers who contribute to the American work-force, and/or to help students to become critical thinkers. The purpose of schooling in the United States is and always has been political, and therefore closely intertwined with the values of Capitalism and the American economy. As a result, the prevailing philosophies of education have been reactionary and not progressive. To fully prepare students for a future we cannot foresee, education must break beyond these limited boundaries. The swift progression of technology over the past century has proven that we cannot simply teach students a set of skills to prepare them for what lies ahead. In The

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