Momentous changes are occurring in American education at a rapid pace, and with far too little deliberation about their value and likely consequences. The most dramatic, and possibly most significant, is the federal Department of Education's quiet but firm assumption of control of the nation's public schools. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is…

This article address the falsehoods regarding No Child Left Behind and Race to the Top legislation, the educational reformers' stance that schools are failing, the privatization movement in education, and the issues of technology in the schools. The importance of poverty is emphasized, although policymakers ignore it and advocate school choice as…

This book is a comprehensive history of American education from 1945 to 1980--its social and political context, the influences that shaped educational policy, and the effects of those policies on schools and colleges. Chapter 1, "Postwar Initiatives," describes the state of education immediately following World War II, and the steps…