I read this because a close friend suggested that I use it for my class. Damn, I hate it when I have to tell him that he is right.

Smeg!

The only reason I am not curled up in a whole crying about the coming apocalypse brought to us by stupid people is that it isn’t just an American problem if a conversation I had with a teacher from South Africa is any indication.

Ravitch’s book is a study in what went wrong in trying to correct the course of American Schools. It is politic in some parts, but take heart (or double the fear) – every side is too blame because no one seems to want to actually talk and think about the problem in a rational way. It’s not just politicians either, but those foundations that donate money – like the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

BTW, am I the only one who is worried that one of the major supporters of school reform is a foundation linked to Wal-Mart?

Ravitch took some heat for her change in view, but this is w
what makes the book compelling because Ravitch takes you step by step on how her view changed. It makes the writing more powerful because it means she actually thinks, considers, rejects or accepts, and then repeats the process when more information becomes available.

There are many statistics that are discussed, yet the book is not dry. In many ways, it is a presentation about how to use statistics and judge them. In this day, when exit polls are used by news agencies as the source for determining the winner (they shouldn’t be), it’s nice to see this.

Crossposted on Booklikes.

I should never have taken so long to finish this book. It is a must read for anyone who has any interest or investment in education in the UNited States, which is to say everyone. Sadly, I know this has not and most likely will not happen, but still this needs to be widely read.

I enjoyed the author's perspective, actually agree with much of what she said. The book at times became bogged down with statistics and detail, but the message is one worth discussing.....

As much as I disagree with most of Diane Ravitch's opinions, it is very interesting to hear thoughts regarding ed reform and public education from a different perspective. And, there are certain points she makes that are the same points made from the "ed reform" side - too bad there is so much villainization of both sides of the issue which takes away from the focus on students.

Definitely worth reading if you are interested in education - and especially education reform.

Even 13 years later, it's an insanely informative read into what the education system has been in the past, and what it has become today.

Part of what makes this author so compelling (in addition to her clear writing) is the fact that she was heavily involved with the whole "reform" movement that caused this mess. She knows the ideas well and is very articulate.
So when she says, "I was wrong," and she does say that, it makes the reader more prone to listen why.
Ravitch does not spend a lot of time discussing politics--there are a lot of statistics instead. She presents a very clear and compelling case for why what we are doing now is wrong.
As a teacher, reading this book gave me some hope that we, as a nation, will eventually come to our senses about testing and "accountability."

Battle cry for public education. Scary and inspiring. Wish I could work with Ravitch to battle the forces she admittedly helped set in motion. Very humble and intelligent book.

An amazing book.

Amazing in its ideas.

Amazing in its thoroughness.

Amazing in its clarity.

Amazing in how right Ravitch is.

Ravitch looks at current educational trends and practice, many of which she helped to put in motion, and analytically deconstructs them, discussing how they won't work or are intellectually flawed.

While I was reading this, the Times magazine had a Steven Brill piece on the power of teachers unions and it was amazing to juxtapose Brill's imprecise, often misinformed takes on education with Ravitch's well-researched, well-reasoned, data-informed perspective on the same issue.

Despite all of the claims that modern education is now about data, there's also an awful lot of rhetoric and Ravitch does a great job cutting through the rhetoric.

Whether or not you agree with the content (and I'd bargain that only those political stakeholders who have put all their chips on hollow, newfangled education reforms would disagree with it), this book provides a nuanced and eye-opening context for the educational reforms that are being put into place today. Ravitch refuses to do what knee-jerk journalists (of the left and the right) do: instead, she thinks long and hard about about the "fixes" that have been plaguing American education since No Child Left Behind. Anyone who is interesting in education should give up on WSJ and NYT editorials with their trite silver-bullet solutions and war whoops, and read this instead.