Antebellum Florida developed an informal system of academies that served as dominant educational institutions until after the Civil War. Academies followed people; they grew in size and number as cities and towns grew. Four basic types of academies appeared in urban areas, ranging from small, simple one subject, one room academies to institutions numbering over one hundred students. Rural academies ("old-field" schools), ranged from one tutor teaching the children of one plantation owner to neighborhood schools for children of surrounding plantations. These academies were smaller in size and offered fewer subjects than their urban counterparts. Academies were started to combat ignorance, educate useful citizens, and teach proper moral values to the young. Patrons were willing to educate their own, but tax supported institutions were unacceptable to them; tuition based academies for those who could afford them were a result of this conviction. Larger, urban academies offered Classical and English studies six hours a day, five days a week, ten months a year with two months vacation. Public examinations generally followed each quarter. / Teachers in academies varied in origin, longevity and quality. Most came from outside Florida; many were transient, some were career educators who remained in Florida. College degrees were more common in latter decades of the era. Men outnumbered women, though women increased in numbers as academies educating young ladies increased in size and numbers. Boys and girls were educated separately; recitation was the most common method of instruction. Textbooks were scarce early in the era, later decades had a large variety available in urban Florida bookstores. The withdrawal of the South from all Northern influences from 1850 onward resulted in the exclusion of most Northern teachers from Florida academies. Despite much clamor for Southern textbooks, Northern textbooks continued to be used. The Civil War destroyed the academy system; changed conditions after the war no longer required its function. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 49-03, Section: A, page: 0444. / Major Professor: James R. Robarts. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1987.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_76220 |
| Contributors | Crandall, Robert Charles., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 220 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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