Education Learning Journey

"Strange notions, has he?" said the old man. "Ah, there's too much of that sending to school in these days! It only does harm. Every gatepost and barn's door you come to is sure to have some bad word or other chalked upon it by the young rascals: a woman can hardly pass for shame sometimes. If they'd never been taught how to write they wouldn't have been able to scribble such villainy. Their fathers couldn't do it, and the country was all the better for it."
Thomas Hardy, The Return of the Native, Book 2, Chapter 1.

Fortunately not everyone was of this opinion about education, which is why you can read this today.
Follow the steps to see how your great-grandparents fought for our education.

Click on the steps below to explore.

Education Learning Journey. Step 4. School Boards and the Education Act of 1870. For some years it had been apparent that the education system in Great Britain was inadequate. Leaving the education of the future work force of the country in the hands of voluntary staff with voluntary attendance resulted in too many illiterate workers in the system. When almost all male householders were given the electoral franchise by the Reform Act of 1867, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Robert Lowe remarked that "the lower classes ought to be educated to discharge the duties cast upon them". The resulting Education Act, drafted by William Forster gave local authorities the power to set up School Boards. Elected by the ratepayers, these boards would examine the education provision in their district and if found inadequate they would have the power to build and maintain schools out of the rates. For the first time women were allowed to stand as candidates and to vote for these boards. In Manchester Lydia Becker was voted onto the first School Board and served continually until her death 20 years later. She was an advocate for female suffrage and founder of the Women's Suffrage Journal, and was very interested in the education of girls. A critic of the domestic element in girls' education she argued that boys should also be taught to sew and cook. School Boards decided whether their schools were to charge fees or to be free, and for a while existed in conjunction with other types of school such as ragged schools and works schools. Many of the Board Schools built in the19th century are now part of colleges or converted to other uses such as flats or offices, can you find any in your area? The Great Reform Act of 1867 gave male householders the right to vote, when was Universal Suffrage (the right to vote for all citizens over the age of 21) granted?

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