Imagine a world where no one is educated and people could not work important jobs needed to keep society running. Imagine a world where school is only optional and for most, ended at about the 5th grade. School in the early 1800s was exactly like it was in the example above. The school houses were bad, and teachers didn't know the correct curriculum. Schools were only open for two to three months, so most of the curriculum had to be relied on at home. Also, teachers were poorly trained and often beat the students that misbehaved. When Horace Mann was a young child, he enjoyed going to school but was disappointed when school ended and he hadn't been in it for longer than ten weeks. Horace Mann was very fortunate that he had access to a public library and got an at-home education while reading books from the local library.
Thesis
Horace Mann deserves the American in Rights Award for all of his great contributions to Education Reformation and for giving citizens the rights to a good, public education.