Public education

Public education is schooling provided by the government, and paid for by taxes, in countries other than England where public schools are privately funded. Public education emerged in the late 18th century, as political philosophers argued that an educated citizenry was an essential component of a democratic society. While in colonial America, as in Europe, schooling was often regarded as a prerequisite for religion (in the Protestant Reformation concepts such as the priesthood of the laity or the importance of the individual conscience and the supremacy of Scripture had made widespread literacy take on greater importance), the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 provided that "Religion, morality, and knowledge being necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged."

Overview

Public education is generally available to all. In most countries, it is compulsory for children to attend school up to a certain age, but the option of attending private school is open to many. In the case of private schooling, schools operate independently of the state and generally defray their costs (or even make a profit) by charging students tuition fees. The funding for public schools, on the other hand, is provided by tax revenues, so that even individuals who do not attend school (or whose dependents do not attend school) help to ensure that society is educated. Outside the U.S., the term public school can have a very different meaning, since the British use this term for certain elite private schools. In poverty stricken societies, authorities are often lax on compulsory school attendance becuase the children there are valuable laborers. It is these same children whose income-securing labor cannot be forfeited to allow for school attendance.

Related Topics:
Private school - Tuition fees - Public school

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In some countries, such as Germany, private associations or churches can operate schools according to their own principles, as long as they comply with certain state requirements. When these specific requirements are met, especially in the area of the school curriculum, the schools will qualify to receive state funding. They are then treated financially and for accreditation purposes as part of the public education system, even though they make decisions about hiring and school policy (not hiring atheists, for example), which the state might not make itself.

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