Poverty, Punctuated Equilibrium, and the Un-visionaires: Educational Change in Pennsylvania from 1790 to 1838
Open Access
Author:
Tautkus, James
Graduate Program:
Educational Theory and Policy
Degree:
Doctor of Philosophy
Document Type:
Dissertation
Date of Defense:
February 21, 2024
Committee Members:
Kevin Kinser, Program Head/Chair Matthew Kelly, Outside Field Member Dana Mitra, Major Field Member David Gamson, Chair & Dissertation Advisor Mark Munn, Outside Unit Member
Keywords:
Common School Movement Punctuated Equilibrium educational change Pennsylvania education poverty and education
Abstract:
In my study on educational change in Pennsylvania from 1790 to 1838, I reexamine the history of how the state established its common school system, the predecessor to the state's public school system. In doing so, I identify a series of three leaders, argue that poverty was the primary catalyst for educational reform, and explain the nature of educational change using Gould's theory of punctuated equilibrium. In 1830, educational reformers shifted their objective from the establishment of a pauper school system to a common school system, which marked the beginning of Pennsylvania's Common School Movement.
