The earliest public schools in modern Western culture were established in the early 16th century in the German states of Gotha andThuringia. However, even in the 18th century, the majority of people in Europe lacked formal schooling, meaning they were homeschooled, tutored, or received no education at all. Regional differences in schooling existed in colonial America; in the south, farms and plantations were so widely dispersed that community schools such as those in the more compact settlements were impossible. In the middle colonies, the educational situation varied when comparing New York with New England until the 1850s. Formal schooling in a classroom setting has been the most common means of schooling throughout the world, especially in developed countries, since the early- and mid-19th century. Native Americans, who traditionally used homeschooling and apprenticeship, vigorously resisted compulsory education in the United States.