[nemo]

It's true that the U.S. did model some of its public education on the Prussian model:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prussian_education_system

But there's a lot of conspiratorial libertarian agenda in your comment.

American schools existed before that (and were called "schools", it's a very old word), they were just influenced by the Prussian model. The part that Americans liked was the view that all were entitled to an education in a public school system with a universal educational curriculum, thus democratizing education. As it was adopted they modified it to suit American ideals and needs.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_education_in_the_Uni...

Also, school (technically σχολή/"scholé") in Ancient Greek means "leisure." Since learning and study were leisure activities, the term evolved in Greek and Latin into the word for learning in the ancient world, while the English term "school" has meant a place of learning and study since the Middle Ages. Arguments from etymologies are virtually always the flashing red light of terrible history.