ERIC Number: ED647435
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2024-Apr
Pages: 224
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: 978-1-68253-895-1
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Educational Pluralism and Democracy: How to Handle Indoctrination, Promote Exposure, and Rebuild America's Schools
Ashley Rogers Berner
Harvard Education Press
In "Educational Pluralism and Democracy," education policy expert Ashley Rogers Berner envisions a K-12 education system that serves both the individual and the common good. Calling for education reform that will enable US public schools to fulfill the longstanding promise of American education, Berner proposes a radical reimagining of both the structure and content of US public school systems. She urges policymakers to embrace educational pluralism, an internationally common model in which the government funds diverse types of schools that deliver more universal content. Providing an incisive assessment of democratic education throughout the world, Berner argues that educational pluralism can build students' exposure to diverse viewpoints and shared knowledge within distinctive school communities. She shows how pluralism steers a middle path that enables equitable access, promotes academic excellence, and avoids the zero-sum games that characterize US education policy. Pluralism, she observes, will ultimately serve democracy by defusing polarization and increasing social mobility, political tolerance, and civic engagement. In this thought-provoking proposal, Berner lays out a roadmap for big-picture reform, expertly delineating the mechanisms through which educational norms can change. A practical conclusion describes concrete moves that advocates can pursue to garner support and advance new legislation.
Descriptors: Democracy, Educational Policy, Kindergarten, Elementary Secondary Education, Educational Change, Equal Education, Access to Education, Educational Quality, Social Mobility, Political Attitudes, Prosocial Behavior, Citizen Participation, Educational Legislation
Harvard Education Press. 8 Story Street First Floor, Cambridge, MA 02138. Tel: 888-437-1437; Tel: 617-495-3432; Fax: 978-348-1233; e-mail: hepg@harvard.edu; Web site: http://hepg.org/hep-home/home
Publication Type: Books; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Early Childhood Education; Elementary Education; Kindergarten; Primary Education; Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A