Mo. Hist. Soc.
Susan Blow founded the first public school kindergarten in America.
Operation Headstart: The Beginnings Of
The Public School Kindergarten Movement
BY SELWYN K. TROEN*
The development of public school systems was part of the
process of change and innovation that was connected with the
growth of cities in the nineteenth century. While the traditional
roots of common schooling extended back into the seventeenth
century, its spread in the early nineteenth century stemmed
from a concern for a democratic society. Its subsequent functions
were subject to constant redefinition by later generations as
schools adapted to the needs of an urban citizenry. Indeed, from
Horace Mann through John Dewey, educators stressed the necessity for preparing children to enter an urban-industrial society. The
introduction of new instructional branches such as evening educa-
*Selwyn K. Troen is an assistant professor of History at the University of
Missouri-Columbia. He received the B.A. degree from Brandeis University, Wal-
tham, Massachusetts, and the M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of
Chicago.
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