COMMITTEE OF TEN IN

HISTORY OF
EDUCATION
SUBJECT: EDUC 211 ( HISTORY OF EDUCATION)

REPORTER:
NORHAMIN B. MAULANA
 Activity: Sharing of Thoughts
 What do you think if the education was not organized in terms of
the following:

 Length of Education
 Curriculum Applied
 Courses to be offered
 Committee of Ten
Purposes and Objectives:

 The primary goal and objectives of the Committee of Ten was to

examine the organization and curriculum of secondary schools
in the United States. The committee aimed to standardize and
improve secondary education by addressing issues such as the
lack of uniformity in curricula, variations in graduation
requirements, and the need for a more coherent and systematic
approach to education.
The primary purpose of the Committee of Ten was to
address the issues of inconsistency and lack of
coherence in secondary education. The committee
aimed to provide recommendations that would bring
about greater uniformity in curriculum and
graduation requirements across secondary schools.
Background:

In the late 19th century, there was a growing concern about the lack of
standardization in secondary education in the United States. Different
schools and school systems had varying curricula, graduation
requirements, and educational philosophies. This lack of consistency led
to questions about the quality and effectiveness of secondary education.
Formation:
In 1892, the National Education Association (NEA), a
prominent educational organization in the United States,
established the Committee of Ten. The committee was
composed of ten influential educators, chaired by Charles W.
Eliot, the president of Harvard University. The other members
were leaders in the field of education, including college
presidents and prominent educators.
 The Committee of Ten was a significant development in
the history of education in the United States during the late
19th century. It was established in 1892 by the National
Education Association (NEA) and consisted of ten
prominent educators, chaired by Charles W. Eliot, the
president of Harvard University at that time.
 The Committee of Ten was a pivotal development in the
history of American education during the late 19th century.
 Key outcomes and recommendations of the
Committee of Ten include:
 Standardization of the Curriculum
The committee recommended a standardized curriculum for
secondary schools, emphasizing a core set of subjects that all
students should study. This included English, mathematics, science,
history, and foreign languages.
 Division of the Curriculum
The committee proposed dividing the curriculum into two main
parts: a core curriculum that all students would study and a
differentiated curriculum that would allow students to specialize in
Introduction of Electives
The Committee of Ten advocated for the inclusion of elective
courses, giving students some flexibility in choosing subjects that
aligned with their individual interests and aspirations.
 Duration of Secondary Education
The committee recommended a standard duration of six years for
secondary education, divided into a lower and upper division. This
structure laid the groundwork for the modern high school system
with a four-year curriculum.
 College Entrance Requirements
The report also addressed college entrance requirements, suggesting that
colleges should consider a student's high school record rather than relying solely
on entrance examinations. This recommendation had a significant impact on
college admissions practices.

 Emphasis on Discipline and Moral Education

The committee emphasized the importance of discipline and moral education in
schools, with a belief that education should contribute to the moral and social
development of students.
Education is a matter left up to individual states and territories in the
United States. This meant that each state developed its own system,
including its own structure for secondary education, or high school. These
disparate systems often led to a disconnect between high schools in the
same state or large gaps between the skills students had when they left
high school and what colleges were looking for. The rise of the common
school helped even out differences in different states grammar schools but
by the late 1800s, a desire for educational standardization had manifested
across the country
the National Education Association formed The 1892 Committee of Ten. The
committee was largely composed of representatives of higher education. Its
subgroups, consisting of eight to ten members each, were convened by the
following individuals:

 Charles William Eliot, President of Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts Chairman

 William T. Harris, Commissioner of Education, Washington, D.C.
 James B. Angell, President of the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan
 John Tetlow, Head Master of the Girls’ High School, Boston, Massachusetts
 James Monroe Taylor, President of Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, New York
 Oscar D. Robinson, Principal of the High School, Albany, New York
 James H. Baker, President of the University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado
 Richard Henry Jesse, President of the University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri
 James C. Mackenzie, Head Master of the Lawrenceville School, Lawrenceville, New
Jersey
 Henry Churchill King, Professor in Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio
 Recommendations
 The committee provided its recommendations in a report published in 1894 that answered an initial set of
questions, and outlined important curricular knowledge within each major instructional specialty including
Latin, Greek, English, "Other Modern Languages", mathematics, and the sciences (physics, chemistry, and
astronomy).

 Twelve years of education were recommended, with eight years of elementary education followed by four
years of high school. The committee was explicitly asked to address tracking, or course differentiation
based upon postsecondary pursuit. The committee responded unanimously that "...every subject which is
taught at all in a secondary school should be taught in the same way and to the same extent to every pupil so
long as he pursues it, no matter what the probable destination of the pupil may be, or at what point his
education is to cease."[3] In addition to promoting equality in instruction, they stated that by unifying
courses of study, school instruction and the training of new teachers could be greatly simplified.
These recommendations were generally interpreted as a call to
teach English, mathematics, and history or civics to every student
every academic year in high school. The recommendations also
formed the basis of the practice of teaching chemistry, and
physics, respectively, in ascending high school academic years.
Thank you
DR. JUDITH B. ALBA
SUBJECT TEACHER