That's only one way in which schools and education have changed over the years. Fashions come and go, but historical events and political changes impact education in many ways.
From speed-reading to SMART boards, here's what going to school looked like the decade you were born.
1950s: Uniform restrictions, public school vs. private school, and longer school days.
Uniform restrictions were enforced at both public and private schools. Yuriko Nakao/Reuters
Quora user Sue Murphywrotein a thread that at her public school in the 1950s she had to wear a uniform. Uniforms were quite popular in the 1950s at both Catholic and public school, with most girls required to wear skirts or jumpers of a certain length while boys traditionally wore a button down shirt, slacks, and maybe even a necktie, with options like blazers and cardigans available.
According to Murphy, she also remembers having longer school days that started at 7:30 a.m. and ended at 4:30 p.m. and that they had more time off: "Back then holidays were really on holidays, which made life a little less boring since it broke up the routine," she wrote.
Murphy is right — students today are in school 25 more days out of the school year than kids in the 1950s.
1960s: Speed reading, segregation, and science equipment.
Speed reading was a skill being pushed in schools. Sean Gallup/Getty Images
Mendez also said they were encouraged to speed-read at his school, which is unsurprising given The Wall Street Journal's reporting that speed-reading first started gaining popularity in the late 1950s when it was introduced by a Utah teacher named Evelyn Wood. The practice was debunked, but not before Wood pushed ads promoting the practice during the 1960s through the early 1970s.
1970s: Open classrooms, less government involvement in education, and the Vietnam War.
Students were encouraged to "roam free" in the '70s. Matt King/Getty
The 1970s were a tumultuous time.
Due to funding cuts and economic pressures of the time, there was less government involvement in schools. Schools started experimenting more and more. Open classrooms — where students could roam free and weren't tied to a desk — were tested around the country and people began to fear the US was falling behind in science and math from the rest of the world, according to The Atlantic.
1980s: Computers became a thing, as did "latchkey kids."
Computers were just being introduced in select schools in the 1980s. Wikimedia Commons
In the 1980s, computers were added at select schools across the US. Ben Waggoner, a biology professor, reminisced on Quora about the early days of computers when they were only used in the school for specific classes: "My generation is pretty much the last that has significant memories of a time without personal computing," he wrote.
The other big trend in the '80s was that kids were commonly left home alone after school while their parents were still working. They were called "latchkey kids."
"Because [parents] were working, kids were letting themselves into their own homes," an anonymous Quora user wrote. "To avoid this situation, schools started offering aftercare. That aftercare eventually turned into structured activities."
Meanwhile, a report called A Nation at Risk was published in 1983 documenting how public schools were failing to educate children properly. The school reform movement was sparked, and states started passing laws to raise the expectations for students,according to Oregon State University.
1990s: SMART boards, Columbine, and computers everywhere.
SMART boards were one of the first ways technology and education combined. Abby Rogers/Business Insider
Changes in technology continued to be more drastic and more frequent in the '90s. According to School Reform Journal, in 1981 only 18% of schools had computers, but by 1999, 99% reported that they did. This trend continues today with new technologies constantly being added to the classroom.
After the chalkboard came the whiteboard, which was then phased out by SMART Boards, which debuted in 1991. This doesn't seem like a big deal in comparison to today's iPad and smartphones, but it was a big deal at the time.
There was also a rise in for-profit schools with the customer service aspect being a huge selling point.
Another event that hugely impacted schools in the late '90s and into the early aughts was the shooting at Columbine High School in 1999. After the incident, which resulted in the death of 15 people including the shooters, schools tried to up their safety procedures by introducing metal detectors, security cameras, and police presence to schools.
2000s: No Child Left Behind, 9/11, and the Common Core.
No Child Left Behind Act was introduced under the President Bush. Darren McCollester/ Getty
The early 2000s were defined by the attacks of September 11. Soon after the attacks, the No Child Left Behind Act was signed into law in early 2002, ushering in a new age of standardized testing.
The Washington Post reported that the act failed to raise scores on standardized exams and led to extensive teaching for the test, cheating scandals, and pushing low-scorers out of school, all related to the fixation on testing.
In the late 2000s, the Common Core was introduced under the Obama administration. The Common Core is a set of guidelines for what students should be studying and at each grade level. The guidelines also state that tests should be taken, analyzed, and compared to that of other schools. This education initiative is considered an extension of the No Child Left Behind Act.
2010s: Charter schools, Sandy Hook, and transgender bathroom laws.
Modern day education is changing faster than you can tweet, text, or type. Charter schools have recently been in the spotlight, and with good reason. An estimated 3.1 million students are currently enrolled in these schools across the country. These independently run public schools have strict performance goals that need to be met.
Another huge change this decade happened after the events of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shoot in 2012. The United States was forced to accept that schools shootings were becoming more common — The Washington Times reported that the frequency between killings has increased to 74 days between incidents this decade, compared with 282 days between killings in the '70s.
Transgender bathrooms were also thrust into the news. In 2016, President Obama issued guidelines sent to all school districts to ensure no student, including transgender students, was discriminated against. This was to allow transgender students to use the bathroom that matches their gender identity. Schools who did not abide would face a loss of federal funding and lawsuits. President Trump withdrew federal protections for transgender students after going into office, according to CNN.
Read the original article on INSIDER. Copyright 2017.