Eleven Photographs of Open Air Schools, Including the Phebe Anna Thorne Model School at Bryn Mawr College
- Eleven photographs, approximately 7 x 9 ½ inch and smaller. With stamps for Brown Brothers, Illustrations Bureau, and E.J. Reil
- Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania; and others , 1910
Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania; and others, 1910. Eleven photographs, approximately 7 x 9 ½ inch and smaller. With stamps for Brown Brothers, Illustrations Bureau, and E.J. Reily verso; most with captions verso. Most with chipping and wear at edges; overall good.. Open-air schools became popular in the United States in the early 20th century in response to public health crises, including tuberculosis.[1] Conducting lessons in open-air classrooms reduced the transmission of diseases, which allowed many children to attend school despite their often chronic illnesses. Offered here are eleven photographs of open-air schools, three of which are identified as the Phebe Anna Thorne Model School at Bryn Mawr.
The Phebe Anna Thorne Model School opened in 1913, under the direction of the College’s president Carey Thomas, using funds donated by Samuel Thorne in memory of his sister Phebe Anna.[2] The Thornes were an affluent New York Quaker family; Phebe Anna (1828–1909) was the only daughter to survive to adulthood and was a philanthropist and supporter of progressive social causes.[3]
The school was part of Bryn Mawr’s Department of Education, which trained its students in teaching younger pupils rather than those of highschool or college age – the students in most of these photos are probably in about 4th or 5th grade.[3] It also allowed testing of more cutting-edge pedagogical practices: the structure of the school was quite experimental, including open-air classrooms, outdoor naptime, a flexible curriculum, and less formal assessment.
Of interest to scholars of the history of education, especially experimental pedagogy.
[1] Sherman C. Kingsley & F.B. Dresslar, “Open-Air Schools,” Department of the Interior, Bureau of Education Bulletin 23 (1916).
[2] Cornelia Meigs, What Makes a College? A History of Bryn Mawr (The MacMillan Company, 1956).
[3] Olive Floyd, Phebe Anna Thorne: Quakeress (Privately Printed in Rye, New York, 1958).
The Phebe Anna Thorne Model School opened in 1913, under the direction of the College’s president Carey Thomas, using funds donated by Samuel Thorne in memory of his sister Phebe Anna.[2] The Thornes were an affluent New York Quaker family; Phebe Anna (1828–1909) was the only daughter to survive to adulthood and was a philanthropist and supporter of progressive social causes.[3]
The school was part of Bryn Mawr’s Department of Education, which trained its students in teaching younger pupils rather than those of highschool or college age – the students in most of these photos are probably in about 4th or 5th grade.[3] It also allowed testing of more cutting-edge pedagogical practices: the structure of the school was quite experimental, including open-air classrooms, outdoor naptime, a flexible curriculum, and less formal assessment.
Of interest to scholars of the history of education, especially experimental pedagogy.
[1] Sherman C. Kingsley & F.B. Dresslar, “Open-Air Schools,” Department of the Interior, Bureau of Education Bulletin 23 (1916).
[2] Cornelia Meigs, What Makes a College? A History of Bryn Mawr (The MacMillan Company, 1956).
[3] Olive Floyd, Phebe Anna Thorne: Quakeress (Privately Printed in Rye, New York, 1958).