Periods of History:

1840-1860 The Teaching Normal School. Founded on principles drawn from the West Point model of the "fine art of teaching," as opposed to lecture-examination or recitation-examination method.

1860-1890 The Psychological Normal School. Developed with contemporary interests in behavioral science. Pestalozzi's definition of education as the "harmonious development of all the faculties," dominated teacher training.

1890-1909 The "Modern" Normal School. Improvements in facilities and equipment, broadening of the curriculum for more foundational learning.

1909-1921 The Professional Normal School. The state Board of Education began upgrading training and requirements, while instituting standardization and control.

1921-1960 The Teachers' College. Beginning with the first granting of the baccalaureate degree for teachers, the period ended when the concept could no longer contain the activities and demands upon the institution. The name changed to Bridgewater State Teachers College in 1932, and the first graduate program began in 1937.

1960-1975 The Multi-purpose Liberal Arts College. Released from single-purpose status in 1960 to serve a demographic explosion of students, the institution nearly exploded in size and curriculum as well.

1975- The Comprehensive I College. Consolidation and a return to instrumental purposes, a career-oriented mission began expanding, with aspirations for status as a teaching university. As public investment and regard for public higher education has declined, the school is constructing its identity and regional service base. In 1984 its new Foundation began building a fiscal groundwork.

Founding

Interest expanded by the 1830s for developing better preparation of teachers for the many grade schools which had become required in Commonwealth towns and cities, as well as in other states. The accepted models were the Prussian Teachers' Seminaries, and the derivative French écoles normales. By 1825 Normal Schools had been advocated as separate institutions exclusively devoted to "the scientific preparation of teachers."

In 1837 the Massachusetts Board of Education was created with Horace Mann as executive secretary. In 1838 Boston merchant Edmund Dwight challenged state legislators to match $10,000 for a 3-year trial for Normal Schools, and on April 19, 1838, 3 schools in 3 areas of the state were authorized. On May 30, 1838, a Plymouth County committee petitioned to establish a Normal School as soon as everything could be put in place, mostly through assessments and pledges from the towns. On September 4, 1838, an educational convention was held in Hanover to raise the money for the school, and six towns pledged $8000 each, with an additional $2000 from the town of site. Several towns competed for the school, including Plymouth, Middleboro, and Bridgewater, but a committee decided on Bridgewater. When the other towns reneged on their pledges that would have built a structure, Bridgewater offered a town hall for the school, and a place for a "model" school.

A Normal School opened in Lexington on July 3, 1839, on which Horace Mann focused his energies. After several moves it became Framingham Normal School. A school at Barre opened September 4, 1839, later to become Westfield Normal School. Bridgewater opened later, September 9, 1840, holding out for a permanent site and building, which proved futile initially. A building came in 1846, the "first permanent Normal School building in America," again amid competition among towns for the site, and a third battle occurred following the fire of 1924 that destroyed three major halls.

Conflict and opposition:

In addition to the competition for the site, primarily from Plymouth, there was apparently considerable opposition to the concept of the Normal School from a number of quarters. Some states developed teacher education in the academies, and there is reference to opposition by the academies in Massachusetts. There is also reference to strong opposition to Normal Schools in the legislature of 1840. Further, working teachers were quite defensive initially, considering the "professionalization" of teaching a challenge to their abilities. Finally, in the early years the product of Normal Schools was uneven.

Initially students stayed for one 14-week term, then often stopped out for a term or two to teach. The results were dismal and the first principal, Tillinghast, tried to resign over the matter. In 1846 the Board of Education passed a requirement of one year of study (3 consecutive terms). Later on, a year-and-a-half, then two years, then three years, and finally in 1869 a four-year course were offered for various certificates. In 1901, 66 students graduated in the 2-year, 11 in the 3-year, 13 in the 4-year, and 23 in the 1-year courses, the latter a certificate for experienced teachers. The 4-year course was dropped in 1917 during a standardization initiative as an intrusion into the college field, only to be reinstated in 1921 as the Teacher College movement hit Massachusetts.

Ongoing Issues:

The most common issues, of course, concern the relationship of the institution to the legislative authority that created and funds it. Early salaries speak to the parsimony of the public for what should have been a matter of genuine community interest and involvement, and investment in citizenship and the future of the communities involved. Even good times have been difficult at best.

The major periods of physical expansion occurred in the 1870-1890 period and the 1960-1975 period, allowing for rebuilding from the 1924 fire. These periods coincide with public sentiment for expanded national investment in infrastructure and public projects. It is notable, however, that interaction with the state legislature on each occasion was a frustrating and often a bitter stand for quality on the part of the school. Typically, legislatures refused to appropriate enough money to cover the costs of capital improvements, and supplemental appropriations had to be sought. Legislators were unhappy to see new requests come and frequently attempted to curtail them. In the 1960s, the new Campus Center building, for a school that had never had a student activities facility or commuter dining room, took 7 years from initial consideration. The school refused offers of any 1/3, 1/2, or 2/3 of the planned building, finally accepting an offer of the whole building without air conditioning (which it lacks today). In current times appropriations continue to be made and released on politically beneficial timetables over a decade.

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Bibliography

Boyden, Arthur C. (1933). The History of Bridgewater Normal School. Bridgewater, MA: Bridgewater Normal Alumni Association.

Bridgewater State College, As We Were . . . As We Are: 1840-1976. (1976). Bridgewater, MA: Alumni Association of Bridgewater State College.

Rondileau, Adrian. (1991). Bridgewater State College: Adventure in Excellence. Bridgewater, MA: Bridgewater State College Foundation.

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