Illustration: An arithmetic class at a school in London, England. Published in the Illustrated London News, October 3, 1891

Source: Getty

Why Would Parents Oppose Compulsory Education?

In Victorian England, reformers thought all children should go to school. That didn't sit well with everyone—and not just kids.
Harriet Taylor Mill

Harriet Taylor Mill, At Last

When you're married to John Stuart Mill, whatever you do or say may be held against you. And so it was.
Smokey Robinson and The Miracles Clockwise from left: Smokey Robinson, Pete Moore, Bobby Rogers, Ronnie White.

Music Education and the Birth of Motown

Music teachers in the Detroit public schools paved the way for the success of future Motown artists like Smokey Robinson and Mary Wilson of the Supremes.
Visitors walk past the entrance gate to the Auschwitz death camp, the most notorious of the many Nazi concentration camps

Does Dark Tourism Exploit Tragedy for Profit?

Thanatourism, as one scholar calls it, has a long history. And some historic sites of mass death do offer thoughtful educational experiences.
Children enacting heteronormative gender roles

Bringing Up Baby Straight

Many parents just assume their kids will turn out heterosexual. That's part of heteronormativity.
Gouverneur Morris

Gouverneur Morris’s Secret Sex Diary

The author of the preamble to the Constitution spent years in Europe as a businessman, diplomat, and connoisseur of the pleasures of the flesh.
A line drawing of a girl with a tablet

Does Virtual Learning Work for Every Student?

Given Covid-19, schools have limited options for teaching kids. What’s working and not working in the era of online learning?
Daisetsu Teitarō Suzuki photographed by Shigeru Tamura

D.T. Suzuki’s Very American Zen

Zen was a conservative form of Buddhism in Japan that eventually became a way for Americans to find inner peace.
Two women hugging in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris

When It Comes to Coming Out, Location Matters

Two scholars compared coming out experiences in the U.S. and France. The differences may speak to shifts in everyday life for LGBTQ people.
An altar for Santa Muerte

Who Is Santa Muerte?

The folk saint Santa Muerte might seem mysterious, but her devotees embrace a wide variety of everyday practices.