Probably no single movement so greatly affected colonial America as the Protestant Reformation. Most of the Europeans who came to America were Protestants, but there were many denominations. Lutherans from Germany and Scandinavia settled in the middle colonies along with Puritans and Presbyterians. The Reformation was centered upon efforts to capture the minds of men, therefore great emphasis was placed on the written word. Obviously schools were needed to promote the growth of each denomination. Luther's doctrines made it necessary for boys and girls to learn to read the Scriptures. While the schools that the colonists established in the 17th century in the New England, southern and middle colonies differed from one another, each reflected a concept of schooling that had been left behind in Europe. Most poor children learned through apprenticeship and had no formal schooling at all. Those who did go to elementary school were taught reading, writing, arithmetic, and religion. Learning consisted of memorizing, which was stimulated by whipping. The first "basic textbook", the New England Primer, was America's own contribution to education(Pull

With the removal of the Pledge of Allegiance from the daily rite of school curriculum America had made a drastic statement to element any reference to any God, any religion and this sent a message to every household in America that receiving an education would not include any word or association with any God. However, our society will always have a multitude of beliefs and opinions on whether or not it is a responsibility of the educational system to teach respect, honor and morale standards to our children. What responsibilities do parents have to teach religion to their offspring? Do children need to know the beliefs of more than one religion, do children have a right to practice religion in school?

Vocational education was more significant in the Middle colonies than elsewhere in colonial America. The academy that Benjamin Franklin helped found in 1751 was the first of a growing number of secondary schools that sprang up in competition with the Latin schools. Franklin's academy continued to offer the humanist-religious curriculum, but it also brought education closer to the needs of everyday life. Teaching such courses as history, geography, merchant accounts, geometry, algebra. These subjects were more practical, seeing as how industry and business were driving forces in the creation of the United States, while religious classes could not support a family or pay the debts.

After the common school had been accepted, people began to urge that higher education, too be tax supported(Gutmann 201). By the end of the century, such secondary schools had begun to outnumber the private academies. The original purpose of the American high school was to allow children to extend and enrich their common school education (Diane 56). Schools now needed to ready the students for college-an even higher form of education instead of preparing them to immediately enter the work force. America's educational ladder was unique.

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1813
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)