Anton Makarenko became a national hero for effecting education for communism in the 1920s. His book, "The Road to Life," is an artistic achievement and the most widely read and influential work on education in the Soviet Union. But Makarenko's legacy is more myth than model in present-day Russia. (Author/SJL)

Describes the career and methods of A. S. Makarenko, revered in the Soviet Union for his successful work with children abandoned in the Civil War (1918-1921). Evolution of his theories in later Soviet education is traced and comparisons made with institutions for homeless or delinquent youth in other countries. (SJL)