Charles William Eliot

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Charles Eliot is credited for having reformed the educational system in the Harvard University. Eliot was a Harvard alumnus and was President of the college. The reforms he implemented in Harvard had profound effect on all the educational institution thereafter. His insistences for educational reforms are driven by the experience and situation around him at the time. His interests in wanting to bring a change in the education system in United States are realized during his trip to Europe. Eliot advocated that education was not simply for the sake of bettering oneself but he realized that education and economic development went hand in hand.

At about this time, United States was rapidly transitioning from agrarian society to industrialized society. The nature of business at this time was the booming railroad industry, fueled mostly due to vast migration of people to the west. Railroads became a profitable industry; and bank seized on this opportunity and availed significant loans to aspiring businessman, which lead to it’s the eventual downfall during the panic of 1857. The panic of 1857 was caused by the decline of the international economy and the overexpansion of the domestic economy. This had both financial and emotional impact on Eliot. Eliot reasoned that insufficient knowledge and lack of standard education contributed to economic downturn in the 1857. Most business failed during the panic because they were unable to make an informed decision.

Higher education in the United States at this time is of great concern. The colleges were mostly based on classical curriculum that embraced religious teaching as its central theme. The colleges continued to disregard the industrializing nation, offering few courses in the muc...

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... to make well rounded students. Lectures and seminars are utilized in teaching. Requirement for admission into the college that takes into account the Standard Admission Test is also change seen as a result of the Harvard reforms. City College of New York also has numerous graduate programs in various disciplines.

Charles Eliot had a profound effect on the educational system in the United States. His educational reform has changed not just the college but had an equal impact on the secondary schools in the United States. Without the educational reforms of by Eliot it’s hard to imagine United States as it is today. His contribution is not measurable, but worth praising. He has not only found a meaningful way to utilize the individual knowledge for the betterment of society but in doing so has established United States as premier place for world class education.

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