Foundations of Education

In so far as the history of Ontario education during the 19th century can best be summarized as a century-long effort to guarantee a tuition-free basic education for all children in the province, then the history of Ontario education during the 20th century might best be summarized as a century-long effort to closely align schools - especially secondary schools - to the fast-paced economic growth and change that occurred throughout the century. (♾)

Most notably, economic change throughout the 20th century was demarcated by a century-long shift from an agricultural economy (at the end of the 19th century) to an industrial economy (by the mid-20th century) to a knowledge economy (by the end of the 20th century).

Up until the early decades of the 20th century, most Ontarians lived in rural communities and small villages. Farming and its ancillary industries (e.g., lumbering, milling, farm equipment manufacturing, and the construction of railways) were predominant throughout this period. Most people lived and worked in rural communities and small villages.

Selected educational implications:

• refer to the course content for Week 6 which provides a 19th century snapshot of education in rural Ontario.

The early decades of the 20th century saw a gradual shift from a largely agricultural economy to an industrial economy by mid-century. Dramatic increases in urbanization and immigration led to the growth of large industrialized city centres (such as Toronto). By the end of the first decade of the 20th century, nearly half of the residents of Ontario lived in cities. Major technological inventions (e.g., the car) and efficiency improvements in industrial processes (e.g., the assembly line) underpinned major economic and scientific progress throughout the century across a wide range of sectors. A rising middle class created new emerging markets for the development, production, and purchasing of a growing diversity of goods and services, further growing the industrial economy and a vibrant service sector.

Selected educational implications:

• new mandatory school attendance laws which required students to complete more years of schooling
• broadening of the educational skill set beyond the 3 R's (I.e., reading, writing, and arithmetic)
• a growing public sentiment that the primary role of schools was to serve the economic needs of society and prepare young people for the world of work
• new specialized school programs which equipped graduates with unique job-related skills
• construction of high schools to include speciality learning spaces closely tied to industry (see photo below)
• development of trade schools which directly prepared students for jobs in the broad-based technologies and service sectors
• development of home economics programs which taught life skills (e.g., cooking, sewing, and budgeting)

The mid-20th century invention of the transistor-powered mainframe computer, and later the smaller microcomputer, ushered in a post-industrial Information Age economy centred around the collection, processing, storage, and transmission of digitized data. In the new knowledge economy, 'data' itself became a central commodity, transforming virtually every sector of the economy, ranging from the computerization of records to the development of robotics to the deployment of fibre optics. Whole new industries emerged to support the hardware and software requirements of the ensuing personal computer revolution. The emergence of the Internet in the final decades of the 20th century led to a worldwide telecommunications transformation that continues to unfold.

Selected educational implications:

• deployment of new educational technologies to support teaching and learning in schools (e.g., televised lessons)
• use of calculators in math classes
• integration of computers, laptops, and (more recently) tablets into classrooms
• installation of computer labs and later Internet connectivity into schools
• implementation of new computer literacy programs in schools
• broadening of the literacies taught in schools to include media literacy and new media production (e.g., desktop publishing and video production)
• development of adult retraining programs for mid-career employees whose careers were disrupted by rapid economic shifts (e.g., the loss of industrial jobs to cheaper labour markets overseas)
• growth of the educational software sector

In preparation for your seminar this week, write out an answer to the following question. Your TA may call on you to share your answer in the seminar:

In preparation for your seminar this week, write out an answer to the following question. Your TA may call on you to share your answer in the seminar: