Reading Log One
Education, and the importance of education, is not the same today then it was in the nineteenth century. Education, especially post-secondary education, is a fundamental aspect of our current lives. It is so fundamental, that when we evaluate the past through our lens of the present day, we have a hard time understanding why education was not prioritized as it is today. The answer to this question is that families simply had different needs in the nineteenth century then they do now. In the article “Hidden Workers: Child Labour and the Family Economy in Late Nineteenth-Century Urban Ontario” by John Bullen describes why that is by analyzing the shift into urbanization and the work life of children in lower class families. Mullen articulates why children who came from poor families often missed school because they were contributing economically to their households by working or helping out around the house. The thought of young children working instead of attending school may sound absurd to us now, but the reality was that it was considered normal during this time period. The idea that “children should be self supporting”[1] was abundant in society during the period of urbanization and industrialization in Canada which was definitely a contributing factor to this acceptance of missing school.
This lack of education children were missing might seem concerning, but it did not affect the careers of these lower class children. “Harvey Graff claimed that for many children the achievement of education brought no occupational mobility”[2] to their lives. Interestingly, by the next century this statement has made a complete 160 degree shift. In the article “Why aren’t these youngsters in school? Meeting Canada’s Charter obligations to disadvantaged adolescents” by Sonja Grover the detrimental effects of not attaining some form of education is duly noted. In paragraph three Grover states that “…the failure to mandate compulsory secondary school education to completion or age 18 has a disproportionately detrimental effect upon minority groups in Canada…”[3]. In the nineteenth century the lack of primary education, let alone secondary education, seemed to have no affect on the occupational future of children. But yet one hundred years later the completion of at least secondary school is now essential in order to have any sort of future.
Education takes a seat behind economical stability in the nineteenth century, and completely turns around to being the crucial factor in order to be economically stable. There is a relationship between the economy, society, and education within these three articles. The importance of education appears to lay in the hands of the economical standpoints during the time period. When free education was first introduced in the maritimes, it was because education was deemed important, but only because people needed to be literate to stand up for their economical situation. In the article “Reform, Literacy, and the Lease: The Prince Edwards Island Free Education Act of 1852” by Ian Ross Roberston this relationship is shown once more.
“It was the central role of the lease, the nexus between landlord and tenant, which made access to primary education a matter of pressing urgency…”[4]. This act did not come from the utter desire for knowledge and literacy having a high value, but from the “necessary means of self-help”[5] of those entering into a land tenure.The perspective surrounding the idea of education has changed completely over the decades. The underlying influencing factors that effect this change in education and the value of education requires intense analyzation and research. The topic of why the value of education has changed so dramatically over time is incredibly fascinating that more historians ought to seek the answer to this rousing question.
Bibliography
Bullen, John. “Hidden Workers: Child Labour and the Family Economy in Late Nineteenth-Century Urban Ontario.” Labour / Le Travail 163. (1986): 163-187.
Grover, Sonja. “Why aren’t these youngsters in school? Meeting Canada’s Charter obligations to disadvantaged adolescents.” The International Journal of Children’s Rights 10. (2002):1-37.
Robertson, Ian. “Reform, Literacy, and the Lease: The Prince Edward Island Free Education Act of 1852.” Schooling in Transition. (2012): 56-71.
[1] Bullen, John, “Hidden Workers: Child Labour and the Family Economy in Late Nineteenth-Century Urban Ontario,” Labour / Le Travail 163, JSTOR Journals (1986), p.180
2 Bullen, John, “Hidden Workers: Child Labour and the Family Economy in Late Nineteenth-Century Urban Ontario,” Labour / Le Travail 163, JSTOR Journals (1986), p.183
[3] Grover, Sonja, “Why aren’t these youngsters in school? Meeting Canada’s Charter obligations to disadvantaged adolescents,” The International Journal of Children’s Rights 10: 1-37, (2002), p.2
[4] Robertson, Ian, “Reform, Literacy, and the Lease: The Prince Edward Island Free Education Act of 1852,” Schooling in Transition, 56-71, (2012), p.66
[5] Robertson, Ian, “Reform, Literacy, and the Lease: The Prince Edward Island Free Education Act of 1852,” Schooling in Transition, 56-71, (2012), p.66