The Reasons That Make American Community Colleges Grow Fast

Community College is a kind of short-term great pioneering work of higher education in America. As it has the advantages of low cost, facing the populace, serving community, pragmatism and has high openness and flexibility, it also has the functions of vocational education, transferring schools education, community education and the foundational education, it has trained great numbers of high- quality talented persons for the society, both in and overseas , it has caused great influences, and received widespread praise. In only about one hundred years, US Community college has obtained so rapid development in an immigrant country, and is called the best characteristic in America, there must be some in-depth reasons in its development ,therefore, studying this topic must be very important for us to study the reasons which make US community colleges grow so fast and strong in reforming and developing our country's higher vocational education .Looking over the domestic and foreign US community college's research history, we can find most is about the study on its historical development, function, characteristic and rule, but it is insufficient that the analysis of the reasons that cause US community colleges developing so rapidly , as the special education form in US After reading more materials about US community colleges and analyzing American policy and economy ,the writer mainly analyses and summarizes the reasons of the US community college rapid development ,from the aspects of American economy swift development to meet the needs of training talented person , the government's legal safeguard ,especially from the cultural angle of view, the superior education origin of America ,the pragmatism education thought, the spirit to innovate, the attention of actual effect and the national culture characteristic that all the people participates in study.It is not accidental at all that community college, this education pioneering work, experiences a vigorous development in American. Government's related law has provided the safeguard for the rapid development of community college. American Government has promulgated successively more than 150 copies of vocational education law in the recent hundred years. Based on promulgation historical background, content and effect of several epoch-making vocational education law such as "Morrill Act", "Smith Hughes Act", "Professional Educational Act", "Cull. Bergin Act", this article mainly expounds that the correlation legal measure as the safeguard plays an important role in community college's healthy and fast development. In 1960s, community college's 75%~ 80% funds originates from State authority's allocation and the local tax revenue, promoting community college's development greatly. From cultural angle, the pragmatism education idea is thought root of the US community college's fast development. In the US, the pragmatism is like blood flowing in American's big and small blood vessels, which places the good populace thought foundation for development of the US community college that tends to putting emphasis on practical effects. It was during North America colony time that American stressed the thought of education for social service. In late 19th century, taking"Morrill Act"as a bugle,"Wisconsin Idea"and"Cornell Idea"as representative,"presented as a gift"movement plays the role of making American college directly serve for the social economy. This pragmatism movement has left the profound influence over higher education development and reform not only in American but even all over the world. Moreover, American has Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and Dewey well-known for their pragmatism education thought, which has had the profound influence over the American vocational education development.The US used to study from other countries and try to reform her education system. The community college is definitely a great success. For instance, American University in early time absorbed the Scotland university educational model and the vocational education thought. The country tends to tell the education from politics in studying other countries experience. The US would like to carry on the renewal creation actually according to her real situation, thus having yielded the substantial fruit. The article solid school was established under Franklin's impetus before America dependence. After Civil War, America on the one hand devoted to studying from Germany, on the one other hand in 1862 Congress passed " Morrill Act" and began to organize the farm worker institute and trained large quantities of specialists. After World War II, the economic structure and the labor force employment structure changed along with the new technological revolution. Therefore, the US strengthened the vocational education, and carried on the bold reform in educational content and method. And a series of reform innovation and government's legal measure were passed, resulting in the community college swift and violent development. And thus community college composed the half of American higher education school. 54% new university students entered two-year community college in American In 1983.The US national culture tradition raises fertile soil for the community college development. For example, the open and multi-dimensional culture promotes the American vocational education development. The religion plays an integral role in the American populace thought and the education. Traditionally, the US people consider education important, and have a story desire to participate in the education mission. American Government emphasizes the importance of the lifelong study, which has provided a broader space for the community college development. To improve the national quality unceasingly and to enhance international competitive power, the US vigorously encourages life-long study. The US federal government has formulated a series of measures to strengthen the populace's lifelong study consciousness, and promote the life-long study society's foundation. In the US, the community college is getting up the leading role in"the lifelong education". The community college is ubiquitous, and can meet the needs of each kind of crowd to the lifelong study demand in different places. It includes many kinds of educations, satisfying the multiplicity and the flexible demand of lifelong education and the objective need to sharpen the labor force employment ability in the life-long study. It also provides the equal opportunity for the life-long study, and offers great vigor and large space for community college's development. According to statistics in February, 2005, the US has 1157 community colleges with 16 million students at present, 46% enrolled students in the American collegesAccording to the US community college experience, currently, we should transform the populace's understanding to the vocational education, enhance people's consciousness to life-long study by setting up the perfect corresponding vocational education, the life-long education law, the perfect science management system as well as enhancing the professional institute characteristic construction, expanding education function, strengthening its flexibility and the multiplicity and the openness. Moreover, we should lay the widespread populace cultural base to promote the vocational education development. These are what this paper mainly studies to provide the good condition for all-people-to-study society establishment and the good mass culture foundation for community college's development. This is one of the most important factors to promote our country's higher vocational education .