University of Chicago Laboratory Schools

University of Chicago Laboratory Schools, a pioneer school in the progressive education movement in the United States. The original University Elementary School was founded in Chicago in 1896 by American educator John Dewey as a research and demonstration centre for the Department of Pedagogy at the University of Chicago. The school was designed to exhibit, test, and conduct research in educational methods centring on the child. Lessons featuring collaborative hands-on activities replaced the traditional instructional methods of drill and memorization. Subjects were correlated, connecting reading, writing, history, spelling, arithmetic, and science to life; emphasis was placed on physical training, music, art, and such practical skills as domestic science and manual training.

In 1901 the University of Chicago combined the Laboratory School with the Chicago Institute, a private progressive normal school that had been founded by Francis W. Parker. As part of the university’s new School of Education, secondary schools were established in 1902 and under Dewey’s leadership were merged in 1903 into a set of laboratory schools. The schools marked the beginning of the lab school movement for teacher preparation and educational research in the United States. The Laboratory Schools enroll pupils from nursery school through the 12th grade.