Video: History of Compulsory Schooling
April 30, 2007

The above video links the reforms of Horace Mann to the Prussian education system.

"This ultra short documentary explains the history of compulsory schooling and advocates choice in education. It starts 200 years back with Prussian absolutism. There, under the regime of a dictatorship, compulsory schooling was invented and implemented on a massive scale. It continues to show how educators such as Maria Montessori, Célestin Freinet, Peter Petersen and Rudolf Steiner had a hard time challenging their governments ideas on education. I made this micromentary to rise awareness about the true origins of our school system. It is also a call for action, to liberate ourselves from this outdated and harmful institution. Our society is changing ever faster, we no longer need a bureaucratic school system. We need learning environments that are way more open and flexible. We need choice in education."