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Education in Virginia addresses the needs of students from pre-kindergarten through adult education. Virginia's educational system consistently ranks in the top ten states on the U.S. Department of Education's National Assessment of Educational Progress, with Virginia students outperforming the average in all subject areas and grade levels tested. The 2010 ''Quality Counts'' report ranked Virginia's K–12 education fourth best in the country. All school divisions must adhere to educational standards set forth by the Virginia Department of Education, which maintains an assessment and accreditation regime known as the Standards of Learning to ensure accountability. In 2008, 81% of high school students graduated on-time after four years. The 1984 Virginia Assembly stated that, "Education is the cornerstone upon which Virginia's future rests."〔Wiley, Sandra, and Marshall, Paxton. "The Virginia Assembly on Policy for Elementary and Secondary Education in Virginia: Issues For the Commonwealth. 1984.〕 ==History== The Syms School was founded in 1635, as the first free school in the Americas, but this was not the first attempt at establishing an education system. The first attempt was a move in 1619-1620 by the London Company to begin a school to educate Indian children in Christianity. The second attempt, known as the "East India School", was meant to educate white children in the colony of Virginia.〔Heatwole, Cornelius. "A History of Education in Virginia". The Macmillan Company. 1916. p. 43〕 Virginia was a frontrunner in education during the colonial period, by continuing to establish schools and colleges, such as The College of William and Mary in 1693. Thomas Jefferson wanted a "Bill for More General Diffusion of Knowledge" to create a universal public education, but some of the planters at the time did not want tax money to go to educating poor children. The first free public school systems were established around 1851, and Thomas Jefferson started the first public university, The University of Virginia, in 1819.〔Unger, Harlow. "Encyclopedia of American Education." Facts on File Publishing. 2007. p. 1185.〕 In addition to the free schools, there was also a system of "pay schools." These were mostly funded by parents of a community, and they also had control over the school as a community. These became known as field schools, because they were often built in a field by the community. The teachers were also selected by the community, and were typically clergy in the church or community. These schools were also not run in the winter months. Privately funded education also included private tutors or boarding schools abroad for the richest of the families.〔Buck, J.L. "The Development of Public Schools in Virginia." 1952. p. 17.〕 Now, Virginia has 134 school divisions that are governed by local school boards. Within these divisions, there are around 1,900 schools that provide an education for over one million students.〔http://www.ven.state.va.us/k12.html〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Education in Virginia」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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