Abstract
Religion and public education have been intertwined since the inception of public education in colonial America.1 However, this intersection has not always been problematic. In the early 1600s, the predominantly Protestant citizenry of the United States founded the public education system in the New England Colonies.2 Horace Mann, one of the prominent forces behind the founding of common schools, based the curriculum of the common school on his own liberal protestant beliefs.3 It was Mann’s view that because of the liberal nature of his religious beliefs, those beliefs could be considered secular, and serve as a philosophical underpinning for a system of public schools.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2011 Sense Publishers
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Russell, J.R., Richardson, J.T. (2011). Religious Values and Public Education in the United States. In: Coleman, E.B., White, K. (eds) Religious Tolerance, Education and the Curriculum. SensePublishers. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6091-412-6_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6091-412-6_2
Publisher Name: SensePublishers
Online ISBN: 978-94-6091-412-6
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and LawEducation (R0)