The Revolution in American
Higher Education To produce the upheaval in the United States that changed
and modernized the domain of higher education from the mid 1860's to the
mid 1880's, three primary causes interacted. The emergence of a half dozen
leaders in education provided the personal force that was needed.
Moreover, an outcry for a fresher, more practical, and more
advanced kind of instruction arose among the alumni and friends of nearly
all of the old colleges and grew into a movement that overrode all
conservative opposition. The aggressive "Young Yale" movement appeared,
demanding partial alumni control, a more liberal spirit, and a broader
course of study. The graduates of Harvard college simultaneously rallied
to relieve the college's poverty and demand new enterprise. Education was
pushing toward higher standards in the East by throwing off church
leadership everywhere, and in the West by finding a wider range of studies
and a new sense of public duty. The old style classical education
received its most crushing blow in the citadel of Harvard College, where
Dr. Charles Eliot, a young captain of thirty five, son of a former
treasurer of Harvard, led the progressive forces. Five revolutionary
advances were made during the first years of Dr. Eliot's administration.
They were the elevation and amplification of entrance requirements, the
enlargement of the curriculum and the development of the elective
system, the recognition of graduate study in the liberal arts, the raising
of professional training in law, medicine, and engineering to a
postgraduate level, and the fostering of greater maturity in students'
life. Standards of admission were sharply advanced in 1872-1873 and
1876-1877. By the appointment of a dean to take charge of student
affairs, and a wise handling of discipline, the undergraduates were led
to regard themselves more as young gentlemen and less as young animals. One
new course of study after another was opened up - science, music, the
history of the fine arts, advanced Spanish, political economy, physics,
classical philology, and international law.
美国高等教育的革命
从 19 世纪 60 年代中期到 19 世纪 80 年代中期，改变了美国高等教 育并使其现代化的激变有三个互相作用的因素。
六位教育界领导者的出现保证了所需的人 力因素。 除此之外，要求更新、更实用、更高层次的教育呼声在几乎所有老式学院的校友
和朋友间升起并发展成压倒所有保守派的一场运动。 咄咄逼人的"青年耶鲁"运动出现了，
要求校友具有部分控制，更自由的精神和更广的选课范围。哈佛学院的毕业生同时团结起来 缓解学校的贫困状况并要求新的事业。
在东部地区的高等学府抛弃了教堂的领导，西部地 区的学校则扩大了学习范围，树立了一种新的社会责任感，由此教育不断地被推向更高的标 准。
在哈佛学院的城堡里，旧式的经典教育受到了最毁灭性的打击。 哈佛以前一个财政主 管的儿子，35 岁的年轻领袖查尔斯·艾略特博士，领导了进步的力量。
在他管理学院的第 一年取得了五个革命性的进展。 那就是提高和加强入学要求，扩充课程和发展选修课，承
认大学文科的研究生学习，将法学、医学和工程学的职业训练提高到研究生水平和促进学生 生活的成熟。 入学标准在 1872～1873 年及 1876
年～1877 年急剧提高。 由于采用了学生 事务院长负责制和明智的处理纪律的手段，大学生把自己更多地看作是年轻的绅士，而不是 年轻的动物。
学校开设了一个又一个的新课程--自然科学、音乐、美术史、高级西班牙语、 政治经济学、物理、古典语言学和国际法。
译路通武汉翻译公司整理
2012.7.5