Title of the Book: The Rise of American Education

Author: Joe Park

Year of Publication: 1965

Unit/Issue: Development of Higher Education

This unit discusses the significant expansion of higher education in America

during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, which happened due to
diverse reasons such as economic growth, industrialization, and increasing
demand for professionals with skills. In it we are shown how land grant
colleges were established as a result of the Morrill Act passed in 1862. These
institutions played an important role in democratizing higher education by
making it more accessible to a larger population, especially in rural areas. We
also see that those who contributed significantly to university development
included philanthropists like Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller who
gave massive amounts towards funding universities and research facilities. It
also attempts to trace the origin of research universities within this same
period which mainly represented change from general education into research
oriented one that was more specialized thus shaping the current university
system in this country today. This unit also highlights how higher learning was
affected by the two world wars including provision of funds by governments for
scientific research and technological advancement, which facilitated growth
and development of universities.

Diversification of Curriculum was Another point to note is that higher

education curricula diversified with new subjects and interdisciplinary studies
that catered for changes in society and economy. In the course of developing
higher education, this unit acknowledges some challenges and controversies
encountered such as arguments about academic liberty, financing priorities
and accessibility to education by minority groups. One-Page

Summary

The chapter on the Development of Higher Education from Joe Park's "The
Rise of American Education" provides an extensive overview of the development
of higher education in America between the 19th century and early 20th
century. It is remarkable to see how the higher education institutions have
grown on a large scale due to economic growth, industrialization and
increasing demand for professionals with specialized skills. Among the changes
include the creation of land-grant schools, university funding through
philanthropy and research institutions developing into specialized fields as well
as scientific research. The study also examines the effects of World War I and II
on higher education in relation to government funding for innovation and
research. Therefore, while this module looks at various aspects of curricular
diversification in higher education.