Carleton W. Washburne: His Administrative and Curricular Contributions in the Winnetka Public Schools, 1919 Through 1943
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Loyola University Chicago Loyola eCommons Dissertations Theses and Dissertations 1988 Carleton W. Washburne: His Administrative and Curricular Contributions in the Winnetka Public Schools, 1919 Through 1943 William G. Meuer Loyola University Chicago Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss Part of the Education Commons Recommended Citation Meuer, William G., "Carleton W. Washburne: His Administrative and Curricular Contributions in the Winnetka Public Schools, 1919 Through 1943" (1988). Dissertations. 2573. https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss/2573 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at Loyola eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Loyola eCommons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. Copyright © 1988 William G. Meuer CARLETON W. WASHBURNE: HIS ADMINISTRATIVE AND CURRICULAR CONTRIBUTIONS IN THE WINNETKA PUBLIC SCHOOLS, 1919 THROUGH 1943 by William G. Meuer A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Loyola University of Chicago in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Education June 1988 William G. Meuer Loyola University of Chicago CARLETON W. WASHBURNE: HIS ADMINISTRATIVE AND CURRICULAR CONTRIBUTIONS IN THE WINNETKA PUBLIC SCHOOLS, 1919-1943. This historical study examines Carleton W. Washburne's (1889 - 1968) educational innovations as superintendent of schools in Winnetka, Illinois, from 1919-43. Washburne brought the Winnetka schools national and international recognition as a center of "progressive education" or more commonly called "the Winnetka Plan." Chapter I establishes the topic by defining terms. Chapter II presents an overview of the progressive movement in education by examining the ideas of leading theorists. Progressive educational ideas are examined in relationship to Washburne's philosophy. Chapter III provides a succinct commentary on Washburne's life and career as an educator. Chapter IV provides an historical, demographical and social overview of the school system and the village of Winnetka prior to Washburne's superintendency. Chapter V looks at the child as an individual and as a member of a group. Committed to a philosophy of child-centered education, Washburne established a Department of Educational Counsel, an Educational Research Department and a nursery school affiliated with the junior high school. ii Chapter VI discussed the Winnetka curriculum by analyzing Washburne's emphasis on research-based instruction as well as the common essentials -- spelling, language, math, and reading -- which were geared to the individual child. Chapter VII reviews the second part of the school day which was devoted to group and creative activities. These encouraged children to develop interests and provided time for the stimulation of the child's creativity. Washburne's style of educational leadership and administration is discussed in Chapter VIII. Chapter IX establishes Washburne's national and international reputation as an educator. Chapter X presents an overview of philosophy, curriculum, evaluation and development and other district activities which were initiated under Washburne's leadership and continue to be an essential component of the educational process in Winnetka today. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The writer wishes to express his appreciation to the members of his doctoral committee for their guidance: Dr. Gerald Gutek (Director), Dr. Philip Carlin and Dr. Joan Smith. The writer would also like to express his appreciation to these retired staff members of the Winnetka Public Schools who gave of their time to be interviewed for this study: Barbara Beatty, Charlotte Carlson, Jean Duffy, Samuel Mages, Julia Ostergaard, Cecilia Powers and Marion Stern. Appreciation is expressed to the Board of Education under the auspices of Dr. Donald s. Monroe for their assistance and suppport; to Ann Whelan for her technical knowledge in computer science; to Doni Reeves for videotaping many interviews; to Margaret Washburne Plagge, daughter of Dr. Washburne, for her expertise and assistance; Virginia Holdredge and the retired staff as mentioned above for reading and critiquing this study; to Bob and Patricia Woolson for working with the writer in editing the videotapes and the staff of Carleton Washburne School for their encouragement. Finally, a special note of thanks is extended to my wife, Betsy, and to our children, Will, Hammond, and Laura Elizabeth, for supporting me in this endeavor. iv VITA The author, William George Meuer, is the son of Lester Jacob Meuer and Leona Becht Meuer. He was born March 28, 1941, in Webster, South Dakota. His elementary education was obtained at St. Otto's Catholic School in Webster, South Dakota. His secondary education was completed in 1959 at the Webster High School. In June, 1959, Mr. Meuer entered Northern State Teachers College, Aberdeen, South Dakota, and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education in June, 1962. After teaching for a partial year in the Aberdeen Public Schools, Mr. Meuer joined the staff of the Winnetka Public Schools. For the past twenty-six years, he has served as a teacher and administrator in that district. As of this writing, he is the principal of Carleton w. Washburne School, Winnetka, Illinois. Mr. Meuer received his Master of Science degree in School Administration from Northern State College (formerly Northern State Teachers College), Aberdeen, South Dakota, in 1964. He earned the Superintendent's Certificate from Northwestern University in 1984. v He has authored a children's social studies text entitled, How Farms Help Us, Benefic Press, 1970. He wrote an art appreciation text which was used by the Winnetka Public Schools entitled Masters of Light and Color. In 1983, Mr. Meuer wrote an article for The Forum, a Winnetka publication, depicting the importance of working with children in the decision-making process. Mr. Meuer is a member of Phi Delta Kappa, National Education Association (life member), National Middle School Association, Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development and the Illinois Principals' Association. vi CAREER PROFILE OF THE RETIREES IN WINNETKA BEATTY. BARBARA: A graduate of the Winnetka Graduate Teachers College; came to Winnetka as a third grade teacher in 1934; retired in 1970 as the creative activities consultant at Samuel Greeley School. CARLSON. CHARI.OTTE: A graduate of the Winnetka Graduate Teachers College; began her teaching career in Winnetka in 1935 as a classroom teacher. Active in curriculum development and evaluation, she retired in 1972. DUFFY. JEAN: Joined the Winnetka staff in 1929 and was a member of the physical education department. She joined the staff at National College of Education in 1943. MAGES, SAMUEL: An instrumental music teacher who worked in Winnetka from 1939-1956 before becoming a fulltime member of the music department at New Trier High School. OSTERGAARD. JULIA: Both as teacher and administrator, her career in Winnetka spanned the years from 1920 through 1959. POWERS. CECILIA: Served the district from 1928-1967 as a classroom teacher both at Horace Mann School and later at Crow Island School. Active in the development of the science program. STERN, MARIAN: A graduate of the Winnetka Graduate Teachers College. Worked in the district as an elementary teacher from 1939-1950. vii STAFF MEMBERS OF THE CARLETON WASHBURNE ERA From left to right: Barbara Beatty, Jean Duffy, w. G. Meuer (author), Marian Stern, Charlotte Carlson, Samuel Mages and Julia Ostergaard. TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT • • • • • . ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS • . iv VITA • . v CAREER PROFILE OF RETIRED WINNETKA TEACHERS ••••••• vii Chapter I. INTRODUCTION: THE DEFINITIONS AND LIMITS OF THE STUDY • . 8 II. THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF SELECTED THEORISTS TO PROGRESSIVE EDUCATION • • • • • • • • • • • • • 21 III. WASHBURNE: A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH • • . 52 IV. THE SCHOOL AND SCHOOL COMMUNITY PRIOR TO 1919 • • 73 v. THE CHILD AS AN INDIVIDUAL AND AS A MEMBER OF A GROUP • • • • • • • . 93 VI. THE "COMMON ESSENTIALS" A RESEARCH-BASED CURRICULUM • 116 VII. GROUP AND CREATIVE ACTIVITIES • 143 VIII. CARLETON WASHBURNE: THE LEADER 187 IX. NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS • 219 X. THE WASHBURNE LEGACY 234 SUMMARY • • • • • • • • • • • . 250 BIBLIOGRAPHY • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 254 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION: THE DEFINITIONS AND LIMITS OF THE STUDY The first and second decades of the twentieth century saw more and more educators criticizing the fundamental theories and practices of traditional education. In A History of Education in American Culture, Butts and Cremin said: They [these advocates of a modern educational program] hit hard at almost every phase of practice that had come down from the nineteenth century and some of them went to extremes in devaluing learning from books, the fundamental skills of the t~ree R's, and the acquisition of factual information. The theories of the progressive advocates can be traced back to the nineteenth century. An overview of the progressive movement in education will be presented in Chapter II in order to more clearly understand how the theories of this era influenced Carleton Washburne, both as an individual and as a leader in education. 1R. Freeman Butts and Lawrence A. Cremin, A History of Education in American Culture (New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston,