""This anthology is important for historians of education, but... it has a larger purpose. Public schools have 'remained a faithful barometer of the major economic, political and social changes that swept across the nation.' Social historians can learn much from this well-written anthology."" -- Journal of American History .."". a fine contribution to the history of public policy studies."" -- The Public Historian School reform activists sometimes forget that schools are a product of history, that many proposed reforms were tried before -- with mixed results. That understanding of the past is critical to our understanding of current efforts to improve schools. These original studies of school reform in Indiana, from before the Civil War to the most recent efforts, offer a much-needed perspective on the reoccurring struggle to remake the public schools in a new image.

The American Educational History Journal is a peer?reviewed, national research journal devoted to the examination of educational topics using perspectives from a variety of disciplines. The editors of AEHJ encourage communication between scholars from numerous disciplines, nationalities, institutions, and backgrounds. Authors come from a variety of disciplines including political science, curriculum, history, philosophy, teacher education, and educational leadership. Acceptance for publication in AEHJ requires that each author present a well?articulated argument that deals substantively with questions of educational history.

In Indiana in Transition: The Emergence of an Industrial Commonwealth, 1880–1920 (vol. 4, History of Indiana Series), author Clifton J. Phillips covers the period during which Indiana underwent political, economic, and social changes that furthered its evolution from a primarily rural-agricultural society to a predominantly urban-industrial commonwealth. The book includes a bibliography, notes, and index.

In Indiana in the Civil War Era, 1850–1880 (vol. 3, History of Indiana Series), author Emma Lou Thornbrough deals with the era of the Civil War and Reconstruction. Thornbrough utilized scholarly writing as well as examined basic source materials, both published and unpublished, to present a balanced account of life in Indiana during the Civil War era, with attention given to political, economic, social, and cultural developments. The book includes a bibliography, notes, and index.