From wretched employment to honourable profession, the changing image of teachers in nineteenth-century Ontario

grantor: University of TorontoAt the turn of the nineteenth century, schooling in Upper Canada was, for the most part, haphazard and unsupervised. Yet, in less than a century, the province could boast of a free, universal and compulsory system of state-run education which ranked among the best in the world. This transformation was due in large part to the ability of Egerton Ryerson, Chief Superintendent of Schools for Upper Canada during much of the period, to after public perceptions of teaching. Ryerson's hope for a professional corps of teachers enjoyed considerable success. However, changing social and economic conditions, combined with the practical experience of teachers, altered the trajectory of Ryerson's initial vision. Through the reminiscences of superannuated teachers writing at century's end, this paper shows that teachers' view of themselves did not necessarily parallel the one constructed by Ryerson, or any other bureaucrat.M.A