Ernest Horn was a curriculum professor at The University of Iowa in the early to mid-twentieth century. Predominantly known at the time for his spelling research, Horn also made important contributions to the field of social studies education. This historical inquiry illuminates one of Horn’s contributions to social studies education by examining his view of moral education. Greatly concerned with what he perceived as a moral decay in American society during the 1920s, Horn sought to pragmatically combat that decay through an approach to moral education that incorporated case situations and focused on student engagement. This inquiry explicates Horn’s approach to moral education and concludes that his work, when assessed alongside that of his contemporary John Dewey and more current moral educationists such as Kohlberg and Noddings, adds to our historical understanding of moral education.
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