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Charles E. Vawter and Representations of Progressive Education

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Charles E. Vawter and Representations of Progressive Education Charles E. Vawter and Representations of Progressive Education _______________________________ A Dissertation Presented to The Faculty of the Curry School of Education University of Virginia _________________________________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy _________________________________ by Hugh A. Meagher B.A., M.A. August 2017 Charles E. Vawter and Representations of Progressive Education by HUGH ALEXANDER MEAGHER (Under the Direction of Derrick P. Alridge) ABSTRACT Charles Erastus Vawter, who in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century served as the Superintendent of the Miller Manual Labor School of Albemarle and the Rector of the Board of Visitors at both Virginia Polytechnic Institute and the Virginia State University, was an important progressive educator whose influence is profound but who remains largely forgotten in the early twentieth-first century. After serving as an officer in the Confederate Army’s “Stonewall Brigade”, Vawter completed his undergraduate education at Emory and Henry College and received his master’s degree in mathematics from the University of Virginia. Vawter then devoted the remaining thirty-six years of his life to the education of young Virginians – most of whom came from very humble backgrounds. Despite his prominent role at Miller Manual, Virginia Tech, and Virginia State University, a comprehensive study of Vawter’s educational thought has not been attempted prior to this study. This study seeks to describe and clarify Vawter’s educational thought, concentrating on his twenty-seven-year tenure as the superintendent of the Miller School of Albemarle, his fourteen-year service as Rector on the Virginia Polytechnic Board, and his four-year tenure as Rector of the Virginia State University Board, which terminated with Vawter’s death in 1905. The study clarifies the ways in which Vawter’s upbringing in rural western Virginia, manual training study at the College of Emory and Henry, service in the Confederate Army, and his deep Christian faith shaped his educational philosophy. This study uses historical research methods as a vehicle to place in context Vawter’s life experiences and how these experiences shaped his educational methodology. Furthermore, Vawter’s educational opinions are noteworthy as American educators struggle to replace the current system of high stakes testing with a system that teaches higher-level thinking. INDEX WORDS: Charles E. Vawter; Miller School of Albemarle; Virginia Public Universities; Progressive Education; Manual Training Education; Industrial Training; Christianity; Individual Worth TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER Page 1 INTRODUCTION ...............................................................................................1 Why Charles Vawter? ............................................................................4 Research Questions ................................................................................6 Relevant Literature.................................................................................6 Liberal vs Industrial Education ............................................................16 Methodology ........................................................................................20 Assumptions .........................................................................................22 Scope of the Study ...............................................................................22 Limitations of the Study.......................................................................23 Organization of the Study ....................................................................23 2 THE PURPOSES OF PROGRESSIVE EDUCATION ....................................24 The Unifying Beliefs of Progressive Education ..................................27 The Practice of Experiential Education ...............................................29 The Development of an Integrated Curriculum ...................................30 The School as a Welcoming Place .......................................................32 Pragmatism as a Controlling Principle ................................................33 The Teaching of Morality ....................................................................36 The Teaching of Social Responsibility ................................................37 The Education of Women ....................................................................38 i 3 VAWTER ON RACE AND EDUCATION ....................................................43 Scientific Racism .................................................................................43 The White Architects of Black Education ...........................................44 Armstrong and Hampton Institute .......................................................45 Washington and Tuskegee Institute .....................................................48 The Washington Du Bois Conflict .......................................................50 Virginia State University and Vawter’s Work with African Americans .........................51 Political Infighting in Virginia .............................................................53 The White Architects Move to Emasculate Virginia State ..................55 The Petersburg College is Renamed Virginia Normal and Industrial Institute ..................................58 Vawter’s Appointment as Rector of the Virginia State Board ............58 Vawter Ignores the Mandate of the White Architects .........................59 4 VAWTER ON INDUSTRIAL VS. LIBERAL EDUCATION .........................62 Industrial Education .............................................................................64 Arguments for Liberal Education ........................................................67 Manual Training Education .................................................................69 The Foundations of Manual Training – the English Inventors ............71 The Role of Women in Manual Training .............................................72 Man is an Animal That Uses Tools......................................................73 Pestalozzi’s Role in Manual Training ..................................................74 Manual Training Schools in Russia and the United States ..................75 ii Manual Training Develops at MIT ......................................................76 John Dewey and Manual Training .......................................................78 Manual Training in St. Louis ...............................................................79 Criticisms of Manual Training .............................................................81 The Decline of Manual Training ..........................................................84 5 THE BUILDING OF INSTITUTIONS: VAWTER AT MILLER MANUAL AND VIRGINIA TECH ...................87 Historical Context: Samuel Miller’s Life and Work............................88 Samuel Miller’s Philosophy .................................................................89 The Construction of the School ...........................................................92 How Vawter Influenced the Program ..................................................93 Vawter and Edison ...............................................................................95 The Establishment of Crozet and Western Albemarle’s Infrastructure .......................................................98 The Miller Manual Labor School Curriculum .....................................99 Vawter’s Work at Virginia’s Public Colleges ...................................102 The Morrill Act and the Establishment of Virginia Tech ..................103 William Ruffner’s Role in the Establishment of Virginia Tech ........104 Vawter’s Work at Virginia Tech........................................................106 Vawter’s Role in Strengthening the Academic Program at Virginia Tech .....................................................................108 Vawter’s Views on the Virginia System of Education ......................109 Vawter as Rector of the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors .................111 The Selection of President John McBryde .........................................115 iii Faculty Members Charge Vawter with Malfeasance .........................117 McBryde and Vawter Reorganize the Virginia Tech Academic Program.................................................................119 Vawter’s Role in the Renaming of the Blacksburg College ..............121 6 RECONSIDERING PROGRESSIVE EDUCATION IN OUR TIME ...........124 Racial Discrimination in Our Era ......................................................125 Liberal vs. Industrial Education in Our Era .......................................129 The Changing Pedagogy of the Twenty-First Century ......................134 The Flipped Classroom ......................................................................135 The Future of High Stakes Testing ....................................................137 Conclusion .........................................................................................140 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY ......................................................................142 iv Chapter 1 Introduction This dissertation is a study of the progressive work and educational thought of Charles E. Vawter. Vawter was a well-renowned Virginia educator in his roles as the first superintendent of the Miller School of Albemarle1 and chairman of the board at both the Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College (later renamed Virginia
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