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A Look Back at the 1950s: McCarthyism and ASCD

An Atmosphere of Fear and Suspicion

In 1953, Dwight D. Eisenhower became President of the United States. Joseph Stalin died. Queen Elizabeth II was crowned in Westminster Cathedral. The Korean War, which had lasted for three years and claimed the lives of 54,000 U.S. soldiers, ended with an armed truce. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed for selling nuclear secrets to the Soviet Union.

The fear of Soviet world domination had fueled an era of anticommunist fever now known as McCarthyism. In the early 1950s, people were often fired simply for receiving a subpoena from the House UnAmerican Activities Committee or one of the dozens of similar bodies established at every level of government (Schrecker, 1994). In this atmosphere of fear and suspicion,Several messages became crystal clear to the average American: Don't criticize the United States. Don't be different. Just conform. (Gusick, 1999)

ASCD Responds

William Van Til, ASCD President from 1961–1962, wrote that “while some education organizations remained timidly silent, columns and articles in Educational Leadership, as well as conference speakers, took up the problem” of “educational McCarthyism” (1986, p. 45). In the 1953 ASCD Yearbook, Forces Affecting American Education, Van Til and other educators—including Harold Benjamin; Willard E. Goslin; Charles S. Johns, President of Fisk University; and Robert Skaife of the Commission for the Defense of Democracy—described local conflicts and named unfair groups.

Public educators often felt that they were under attack during this era. Critics frequently charged them with using textbooks that were “communistic or at best socialistic,” with fostering juvenile delinquency through progressive education methods, and with being “godless” (Meyer, 1953, p. 30). In the October 1953 issue of Educational Leadership, whose theme was “Education for Liberty,” a wide range of authors defended the public schools and decried McCarthyism's attacks on freedom. One author, for example, said thatWe must all agree that loyalty to freedom requires us to oppose the unfounded or indiscriminate efforts to label all those who criticize the majority as somehow vaguely “subversive” and therefore to be dismissed along with the genuinely dangerous communists. (Butts, p. 11)

Agnes E. Meyer pointed out thatThe most useful lesson we can give these vigilantes, whether in Congress or in the local communities, is that true Americans refuse to use coercive power in the war of ideas. The best weapon we have lies in strengthening community solidarity through improve-ment of our school-community relationships, which keep open the free communication between all citizens and prevent exactly what the vigilantes want, the fragmentation of our society. (pp. 32–33)

In 1953, as today, ASCD members knew that education is the most powerful way to promote democracy, community, and liberty. Happy anniversary, ASCD!

<BIBLIST> <HEAD>References</HEAD> <CITATION> Butts, R. F. (1953). Our responsibility for freedom in education. Educational Leadership, 11(1), 5–12. </CITATION> <CITATION> Gusick, R. (1999). From the depression to the new millennium [Online curriculum]. Available: www.beyondbooks.com/ush12/6a.asp </CITATION> <CITATION> Meyer, A. E. (1953). An appeal for common sense. Educational Leadership, 11(1), 28–35. </CITATION> <CITATION> Schrecker, E. (1994). The age of McCarthyism: A brief history with documents. Boston: St. Martin's Press. </CITATION> <CITATION> Van Til, W. (1986). ASCD and social forces. In W. Van Til (Ed.), ASCD in retrospect (pp. 43–51). Alexandria, VA: ASCD. </CITATION> </BIBLIST>

—Information compiled by Deborah Perkins-Gough, Senior Associate Editor, Educational Leadership, and David Snyder, ASCD Reference Librarian

ASCD Resources for “Keeping Good Teachers”

Effective Teacher Hiring: A Guide to Getting the Best. (2002). Price: $18.95 (member); $22.95 (nonmember). Stock No. 102047.
Teacher Evaluation to Enhance Professional Practice. (2000). Price: $20.95 (member); $24.95 (nonmember). Stock No. 100219.
Qualities of Effective Teachers. (2002). Price: $18.95 (member); $22.95 (nonmember). Stock No. 102007.
How to Help Beginning Teachers Succeed, 2nd ed. (2000). Price: $10.95 (member); $13.95 (nonmember). Stock No. 100217.
A Better Beginning: Supporting and Mentoring New Teachers. (1999). Price: $21.95 (member); $25.95 (nonmember). Stock No. 199236.

Educational Leadership. (1999, May). “Supporting New Teachers.” Price: $6 (individual copy). Stock No. 199029.
Educational Leadership. (2001, May). “Who Is Teaching Our Children?” Price: $6 (individual copy). Stock No. 101037.

Mentoring to Improve Schools. (1999). Price: $396 (member); $466 (nonmember). Stock No. 498323.

Mentoring Leadership and Resource. Contact Richard E. Lange, Executive Director, Mentoring Leadership and Resource Network, 834 Inverrary Ln., Deerfield, IL 60015 USA; (847) 537-6029; fax: (847) 870-3896;<LINK URL="mailto:richardelange@hotmail.com">richardelange@hotmail.com</LINK>; <LINK URL="http://www.mentors.net">www.mentors.net</LINK>.

ASCD Board Endorses Institutional Membership

What better way for an education association to celebrate its 60th anniversary than to endorse a membership category focused on building a learning community among schools and districts? The ASCD Board of Directors voted overwhelmingly to approve ASCD Institutional Membership as an official Association membership category.

ASCD Institutional Membership, launched as a pilot program in September 2000, provides multiple faculty members with ongoing professional development through ASCD publications, online courses, and vouchers for off-site professional development opportunities. More than 1,000 schools and districts currently participate in the program.

For more information about the ASCD Institutional Membership, visit www.ascd.org; click Membership; then click Institutional Membership.

Success in High-Poverty School Districts

A new report profiles five high-poverty school districts that raised student achievement by focusing on districtwide strategies to improve instruction. The Learning First Alliance—a coalition of 12 U.S. education organizations, including ASCD—recently released Beyond Islands of Excellence: What Districts Can Do to Improve Instruction and Achievement in All Schools, which profiles the common characteristics of these five school districts. ASCD played a key role in cochairing the project, visiting the districts, and developing the report.

Acknowledged poor student performance and actively sought solutions.
Focused on improving instruction and implemented a coordinated set of strategies.
Shifted teacher and principal professional development from single workshops to comprehensive, research-based strategies.
Used multiple measures of student and school performance to guide decision making.
Engaged all stakeholders—parents, teachers, principals, school board members, universities, unions, central-office staff, and the community—to improve results.
Provided consistent and long-term support for improvement.

To view or obtain copies of the report, visit www.learningfirst.org.