Louisa Parsons Hopkins Explained

Louisa Parsons Hopkins (1834–1895) was an American educator and poet, who spoke and wrote on progressive education.^{[1] [2] [3]}

Life

Born in Newburyport in 1834, she attended the Putnam Free School, and was part of a small writing group under Thomas Wentworth Higginson, along with Jane Andrews and Harriet Prescott Spofford.^[4] Her husband's business "suffered a reversal in fortune", which led her to create a small primary school in her home for extra income.^{[4] [5]} Her students did well, and she wrote up an article for the Journal of Education on her methods. This led to fame in educational circles, and ultimately to a string of books^[6] and speaking engagements. She was appointed to the Board of Supervisors of the Boston Public Schools, and paced by Governor William E. Russell on a commission to investigate the use of manual training in Europe. Her work on that commission was noted by contemporaries as being singular in nature.^[7]

She retired from that position due to illness and died a few years later.

Works

• Breath of the Field and Shore (1881)
• Motherhood: A Poem (1881)
• Handbook of the Earth: Natural Methods in Geography (1883)
• Educational Psychology: a Treatise for Parents and Educators (1886)
• Natural-history Plays, Dialogues, and Recitations for School Exhibitions (1885)
• The Spirit of the New Education (1892)
• Observation Lessons in the Primary Schools: A Manual for Teachers (1896)

Notes and References

1. Book: John A. Glover. Royce R. Ronning. Historical Foundations of Educational Psychology. 11 November 2013. Springer Science & Business Media. 978-1-4899-3620-2. 3–.
2. Book: Edward T. James. Janet Wilson James. Paul S. Boyer. Notable American Women, 1607–1950: A Biographical Dictionary. registration. 1971. Harvard University Press. 978-0-674-62734-5. 49–.
3. Web site: Socol . Ira David . 2024-02-29 . Designed to Fail (2): a history of American education . 2024-06-22 . Teachers on Fire Magazine . en.
4. Web site: Boston Evening Transcript - Google News Archive Search. news.google.com. 2015-05-24.
5. Book: Bertha Johnston. E. Lyell Earle. The Kindergarten-primary Magazine. 1894. 485–.
6. Book: William J. Reese. America's Public Schools: From the Common School to "No Child Left Behind". 4 February 2011. JHU Press. 978-1-4214-0103-4. 161–.
7. Book: Pawtucket (R.I.). School Committee. Annual Report . 1896. 2–.