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Attendance increased, but was still relatively small at the end of the century. These schools except in major cities were small reflecting the relatively limited attendnce. Attendance steadily increased after the turn-of-the 20th century, but continued to be far below pimary school attendance. Several factors swere involved. Attendance in the South was below national trends, and this was for both white and black youth. The prosperity of the Roaring Twenties provided a boost in secondary school attendance. Pradoxaly so did the Depression of the 1930s. With jobs hard to get more young people apparently decided to continue their schooling. The higest attendance rates were in states where manufacturung was less important or agricultural areas where income was the highest. Attendabnce tended tolag in areas where foreign-born immigrants were concentrated. 【Goldin】 The foreign-born resistabce to seciondary education probably reflects the working-class domination of the immigrant stream and the poor education systems in many countries where the immigrants originated such as Italy and Ireland and Eastern Europe in general. An exception here was Jewish immigrants. Jews aspired toward education, but faced restictions in European countries, especially the Tsarist Empire which at the time included Poland, Ukraine, and the Baltics. America was the first country in which Jews had access to real educational opportunity. (The same was the case in Germany, but to a lesser extent.) During the late-19th and early-20th century, American secondary school attendance was becoming increasingly common, substantially more common than in Europe. This was especially true as the immigration wave from Eurooe became more asssimilated and the foreign-born compsution declined and ast the same time European countries expanded their public school systems. In additiion the immigrabt flow from Europe was disrupted by World War I (1914-18) and the United Stated intriduced immigrastion quitas after the War (1920s). After World War II, both America and Europe moved toward an era where most children continued their education to secondary schools.
Goldin, Claudia. "How America graduated from high school: 1910 to 1960," NBER Working Paper Series, No. 4762 National Bureau of Economic Reserach (June 1994).
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