Historiography of American education: pragmatism, consensus, revisionism and new revisionism

Abstract

This essay on the historiography of American education deals
with the major themes and authors of foundational American
historiography in the early twentieth century, and then more
closely studies major developments in theory, method, and
subject areas of the last thirty years. The essay centers on the
historiography of American elementary and secondary
education, and argues that in general, American historians of
education have a pragmatic inclination, with an emphasis on
empiricism, and are particularly conscious of directing their
historical work towards contemporary educational problems.
The essay concludes with recent theoretical, topical, and
methodological developments in the field.