Thomas Jefferson believed that “education should provide the average citizen with tools of reading and writing and that political beliefs would be formed through the exercise of reason”…. and that an “an individual is ‘endowed with a sense of right and wrong . . . this sense is as much as part of his nature as the sense of hearing, seeing, feeling; it is the true foundation of morality'” (55). I agree with Jefferson. As long as a person has enough information about a certain subject matter, they can decide for themselves which is right or wrong. Education is supposed to help guide children along the right path and impose strong morals, however, it is up to the child himself to decide what he wants to think and do. Through my years of schooling, teachers and professors are there to probe students to think and analyze more critically– by providing sufficient information to help students determine what they think is the best answer. Jefferson and I both believe that children and adults, alike, have the capabilities to make good decisions through learning and education. Jefferson has a more contemporary view on learning and would identify with more people in modern society.
“Urban families believed that … childhood was a stage of life where character could be shaped to make the virtuous adult. Schools were seen as logical institutions for the extension of childhood that would protect and mold children” (60). It is important to keep children from the dangers of the streets and to prevent them from falling down the wrong path. A way parents thought that was possible, was to put children in school, where they could learn and possibly better themselves. However, there are exceptions. Sometimes children act out in schools and form posses and cliques that often alienate others. It becomes a hostile environment for some children, so how can we ensure that schools are the best alternative? And what should be regulated in schools to make sure that children are getting the best education possible?
