Background
He was born on April 15, 1771 in Connecticut, United States.
He was born on April 15, 1771 in Connecticut, United States.
He was a pupil of Noah Webster in Connecticut in 1782 and studied from the manuscript sheets of the famous spelling book. He was largely self-educated.
About 1794 he began to teach in New York City. Preparation for his work as an organizer was obtained in the Incorporated Society of Teachers, of which he was twice elected president. His Manhattan School, at first for girls only, had a reputation extending beyond the city. It was not only large and successful but was also a pioneer in offering advanced instruction to girls.
Like Noah Webster he began writing by compiling a spelling book, the Union Spelling Book (1804). Its success led him to the preparation of a series of elementary English texts for spelling, reading, and grammar, which were widely adopted in both the East and the West. Their rapid introduction into schools in the West was certainly one of the influences that led to his later removal to Cincinnati.
With the aid of John Picket, the eldest of his five children, he edited and published in New York The Academician, a semi-monthly paper. Inexperience and the fact that the editors themselves had to write almost all the copy caused delays in publication. It ran from February 7, 1818, to January 29, 1820, and developed a theory of education based upon psychology, introduced the views of Pestalozzi, Fellenberg, and Lancaster, published school news, and gave practical advice on teaching.
Removing to Cincinnati in 1826, he established another school for girls, was elected to the board of education, and became a trustee of Cincinnati College. When the city established a public school system, he united the teachers of the local private and public schools in 1829 to form an association that soon became the Western Literary Institute and College of Professional Teachers. This body, centering in Cincinnati, had members and affiliated societies in eighteen states in the Ohio and Mississippi valleys and remained active until about 1845.
Influential in many states, the association was in Ohio one of the deciding factors in establishing a state school system and obtaining the passage of the school law of 1838. He also attempted to establish a normal school and with others obtained a charter for one from the Ohio legislature in 1834, but the institution was still-born.
He died in 1850.
Albert Picket established two schools for girls, including Manhattan School. He also participated in organization of an association the Western Literary Institute and College of Professional Teachers, that became one of the deciding factors of establishing a state school system and obtaining the passage of the school law of 1838. Besides, to make a knowledge of progressive educational ideas more widely available, he undertook the establishment of a teachers' magazine New York The Academician - one of the first educational periodicals in the United States.
Whether as organizer, journalist, or protagonist of professional education, he aimed to raise the status of teaching and to develop a profession that should be able to guarantee the competence of its members.
Those who knew him well speak of his clear mind, his ability as a teacher, dignified presence.
Quotes from others about the person
According to E. D. Mansfield, Picket had "pure, disinterested zeal in the cause of education".
He married Esther Rockwell Hull on May 8, 1791.
