Developing Methods of Teaching Citizenship using Extracurricular Activities in the U. S. at the Turn of the Twentieth Century: Focusing on Wilson Gill’s “School City” and its Critique

<p>　This study traces the characteristics and contemporaneous positioning of citizenship education using extracurricular activities in the U. S. at the turn of the twentieth century. For this purpose, this study explores the design background, content, and characteristics of the educational method called “School City” developed by Wilson L. Gill (1851–1941), president of “The Patriotic League,” a progressive group that was active at the turn of the century. The study also examines the critical discussions about “School City” that took place in the National Municipal League from 1903 to 1905.</p><p>　First, Gill’s “School City” was introduced in 1897 to a summer vacation school on the Lower East Side of New York City, and it was successively introduced to various schools in the Northern U. S. and U. S. occupied Cuba. “School City” was an educational method that attempted to effectively realize citizenship education as Americanization by having students learn “American principles” and “ideals” experientially through the introduction of a student self-governing body with a separation of powers. However, as the policy of progressive reform shifted in the 1900s to the pursuit of “efficiency and frugality,” the complexity of “School City” and other factors were roundly criticized. Extra-curricular activities were reduced to being a means of enriching school life and reconsidered by school governments as being a part of citizenship education, rather than having overall responsibility for citizenship education.</p>