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Horace Mann Public School

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Public School Essay, some points to consider

“The Public School is the greatest discovery made by man” by Horace Mann, considered to be the father of education, 1800’s. “No one did more than he to establish in the minds of the American people the conception that education should be universal, non-sectarian, free, and that its aims should be social efficiency, civic virtue, and character…” historian Ellwood P. Cubberley describing Mann.

Four pillars of The National Honor Society: Scholarship, Leadership, Service, Character.” Not everybody does get in, but it is available to everyone and every student to try. Throughout the thirteen years of a public school education in the city of Quincy, from full-day kindergarten to graduation from …show more content…

It defines the aspiration for all students in our school system. I would add that the best of what we see in public schools affords children of all backgrounds opportunities to explore learning in an authentic and purposeful way. Bureaucracies are constantly measuring students, teachers and schools -- how much we’ve learned, improved and how quickly and paint bleak a bleak picture of how inadequately prepared we will be for our future and how much we need to change to be better at everything.

I will agree that many aspects of public school education can be improved upon. I will argue, however, that if you subject people or processes to constant scrutiny, measurement, and benchmarking, at any point in time, you will see failure. My personal story of learning in the Quincy Public School system has been multi-faceted and is still changing. At any point in time, I have done poorly or not tested well. Perhaps if I had had more time not being measured, tested, analyzed and debriefed, I would have more time to explore my interests and overcome my insecurities. Albert Einstein said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge.” Performing arts, visual arts, engineering, robotics, media . . . …show more content…

If I were constantly being measured on my progress, however, I’d never want to try new things again. I imagine a lot of people feel that way about music or theater or sports the activities we can participate in after school. The things I’ve learned at public school during my extra-curricular activities, (the ones that aren’t tested and measured), might be some of the things that matter the most. The things I learned from public school sports and theater and music, I learned with joy and I’ll take with me when the game is over, the curtain has closed and this stage of my formal education is

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