A passionate defense of our public school system against attacks
propagated by budget-slashing conservatives. Education psychologist
Berliner (Univ. of Arizona) and Biddle (director of the Center for
Research in Social Behavior, Univ. of Missouri) contend that the
attack on American schools in the past decade is largely an
unwarranted and "Manufactured Crisis." It began when the "mother of
all critiques," 1983's A Nation at Risk, was released. Sponsored by
Secretary of Education Terrel Bell and endorsed by President
Reagan, the report contends that our nation is losing its
leadership in science, commerce, and industry as a result of inept
educators and inadequacies in teaching programs. Embraced by
private school voucher advocates of the right wing, this report is
riddled by myths and fraud, according to Berliner and Biddle. The
report and its aftermath served to "scapegoat educators as a way of
diverting attention from America's deepening social problems."
Among the charges that cannot be supported, for example, is the
claim that student achievement in American schools has recently
declined. Berliner and Biddle explode this myth with detailed
analysis of SAT scores and other tests that, they conclude,
indicate modest gains in student knowledge and suggest that the
nation's academic achievement is now more evenly distributed. While
emphatic in their defense of public education, the authors can be
rather radical in their proposals for strengthening it. Their
vision includes an end to tracking students by ability - and even
by age. They would also like to see alternative means of evaluating
student performance. Student portfolios, for example, should
replace standardized tests. The authors would also like to bring
additional funds to bear to counter the "savage inequalities" that
doom poor school districts to the weakest, tax-based funding. A
gutsy, cogent, and well-documented book that both defends public
education and offers ways to improve it. (Kirkus Reviews)
The Manufactured Crisis debunks the myths that test scores in
America's schools are falling, that illiteracy is rising, and that
better funding has no benefit. It shares the good news about public
education. Disputing conventional wisdom, this book ignited debate
in Newsweek, The New York Times, and the entire teaching
profession. Winner of the American Educational Research Association
book award, The Manufactured Crisis is the best source of facts and
analysis for people who care about what's really happening in our
schools.
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