Catholic Schools

A Historical View

Catholic schools began in colonial times and closely mirrored the Protestant community structure. Both Protestants and Catholics viewed education as a moral endeavor, and both groups sought to provide a strong religious foundation for their children. Most of the original Catholic schools were founded by religious orders. The all-girl academies were run by individual female religious orders, and the college seminaries were run by priests. The academies run by the women religious orders enabled them to sponsor free primary schools for the poor children who could not afford an education. Eventually these primary schools were replaced by the parochial school system, which attempted to address the education of children in poverty on a broader level. Parochial schools were schools that existed side by side with a parish church. This combination of a [Page 138]church rooted in a neighborhood community, with a school next door, remains one of the great inventions and contributions of the Catholic Church in the United States.

Eventually, a religious community of men, the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) became responsible for forming much of the Catholic school system in the United States. They created a model of a plan of study that spread throughout the country. After this model became formalized. it allowed room for curriculum and method development in the newly developing parochial system. The Jesuits based their plan of study on a document titled the Ratio Studiorum, which specified a curriculum that organized students into classes and grade levels. There were three levels determined by this system, covering primary, secondary, and college-level education. The focus of this curriculum was development of mental training in argument and higher thinking skills. Along with this focus, the new system of schools also stressed the 4R's: reading, ‘riting,’ rith-metic, and religion.

At this time the Catholic school system was similar in form to the Protestant schools. Both used secular instructional materials and placed strong emphasis on the religious education of their youth. Due to the increasing number of Catholics in the colonial world, more efforts were required to meet the needs of believers. As a response to this need, in 1782 the first parochial school emerged from St. Mary's Church in Pennsylvania, which served the largest Catholic population at the time. This development reflected the growing shift from education being primarily a thing of the home to a separate social institution. As immigration grew exponentially in the beginning of the 19th century, the population of Catholic parishes multiplied and more parochial schools emerged to account for the growing need within communities. Although there was not strong dissension between the Protestant and Catholic school systems as of yet, there was a growing emphasis placed on Catholics to send their children to these parochial schools. A pastoral letter from Bishop John Carroll in 1792 reminded parents that Christian education created lifelong benefits and best served God and preserved religion. In a world where Catholics were strongly the minority, this preservation and emphasis on evangelization of the faith became a primary focus for religious leaders.

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