Brief History of Vocational Education in America
The apprenticeship system during the colonial times can be considered the first system in the history of vocational education. The Old Deluder Satan Act of the Massachusetts Bay Colony is the first education law made and passed in the history of America. This law defined the master-apprentice relationship. Moreover, it provided specific requirements o the role of masters in teaching their apprentices with academic and vocational skills.
African-Americans after the civil war made a contribution to the history of vocational education in America. The founder of Hampton Institute, Samuel Chapman Armstrong is regarded as the father of African-American vocational education. Booker T. Washington, a student of Armstrong, was an African-American educator who took the same philosophical views on the vocational education programs for African-Americans as his former mentor.
The history of vocational education in America was also marked during the creation of First Morrill Act, this the first land-grant college provisions enacted on July 2, 1862 by the US Congress. It was a statute that stipulated the appointment of public lands to the state. This was based on the state's representation in US Congress in 1860.
Vocational education during the early twentieth century became a prominent topic of discussion among educators in America and the American politics. This had something to do from the shift of economic base in America from agrarian to industrial. Schools during this time struggled to meet the demand in labor force. There were urgencies for school reforms especially the need of vocational training in American public schools.
The Smith-Hughes Act of 1917 is one of the important highlights in the history of vocational education in the United States. This made vocational education especially agricultural education a federal program. Senator Hoke Smith and Representative Dudley Mays, two Georgian lawmakers, were mainly responsible for the historic bill. The act had certain provisions. It helped in forming distinct vocational education state boards.
The Smith-Hughes Act of 1917 had been very influential in the creation of the 1963 Vocational Educational Acts. This made the vocational educational system in America firmly established.
The 1968 Amendments to the Vocational Education Act is included in the timeline in the history of vocational education of modern America. One of the provisions of the stature is the increased opportunities for students with special needs to obtain vocational education. Funding is also integrated in that law for quality improvement of vocational program.
There are various changes, additions, new trends and issues in the vocational education system of America. Changes may occur in vocational education system in parallel to the changes in economic trends.
