Educators must open their eyes to the intensity of the anti-public-school efforts by many politicians and business leaders. This book provides a defense against those who innocently attack schools with misinformation and those who disingenuously attack schools with disinformation. A total of 18 chapters address 18 criticisms most commonly leveled at public schools. Each chapter discusses a criticism and suggests a brief reply based on pertinent data. The chapters address issues in educational spending, academic achievement, declining test scores, international comparisons, the dropout rate, private versus public schools, the global marketplace, the education-work relationship, administrative bureaucracy, teacher quality, and special education costs. The book does not suggest that public education is free of problems; the reform of public education must go forward. References accompany each chapter. Appendices contain financial data and statistics as of December 1996; an index is included. (LMI)