Two of the most respected voices in education and a team of young education scholars identify 50 myths and lies that threaten America's public schools. With hard-hitting information and a touch of comic relief, Berliner, Glass, and their Associates separate fact from fiction in this comprehensive look at modern education reform. They explain how the mythical failure of public education has been created and perpetuated in large part by political and economic interests that stand to gain from its destruction. They also expose a rapidly expanding variety of organizations and media that intentionally misrepresent facts. Many of these organizations suggest that their goal is unbiased service in the public interest when, in fact, they represent narrow political and financial interests. Where appropriate, the authors name the promoters of these deceptions and point out how they are served by encouraging false beliefs.
This provocative book features short essays on important topics to provide every elected representative, school administrator, school board member, teacher, parent, and concerned citizen with much food for thought, as well as reliable knowledge from authoritative sources.
Author(s): David C. Berliner, Gene V. Glass
Publisher: Teachers College Press
Year: 2014
Language: English
Pages: 107
Cover......Page 2
Title Page......Page 4
Copyright......Page 6
Dedication......Page 7
Epigraph......Page 8
Contents......Page 9
Preface......Page 11
I. Myths, Hoaxes, and Outright Lies......Page 12
II. Myths and Lies About Who’s Best: Charters, Privates, Maybe Finland?......Page 15
1. International tests show that the United States has a second-rate education system.......Page 16
2. Private schools are better than public schools.......Page 19
3. Charter schools are better than traditional public schools.......Page 20
4. Charter schools are private schools.......Page 21
5. Cyberschools are an efficient, cost-saving, and highly effective means of delivering education.......Page 22
6. Home schooled children are better educated than those who attend regular public schools.......Page 24
7. School choice and competition work to improve all schools. Vouchers, tuition tax credits, and charter schools inject competition into the education system and “raise all boats.”......Page 25
8. Want to find the best high schools in America? Ask Newsweek or U.S. News.......Page 27
III. Myths and Lies About Teachers and the Teaching Profession: Teachers Are “Everything,” That’s Why We Blame Them and Their Unions......Page 29
9. Teachers are the most important influence in a child’s education.......Page 30
10. Teachers in the United States are well-paid.......Page 31
11. Merit pay is a good way to increase the performance of teachers. Teachers should be evaluated on the basis of the performance of their students. Rewarding and punishing schools for the performance of their students will improve our nation’s schools.......Page 32
12. Teachers in schools that serve the poor are not very talented.......Page 34
13. Teach For America teachers are well trained, highly qualified, and get amazing results.......Page 35
14. Subject matter knowledge is the most important asset a teacher can possess.......Page 37
15. Teachers’ unions are responsible for much poor school performance. Incompetent teachers cannot be fired if they have tenure.......Page 38
16. Judging teacher education programs by means of the scores that their teachers’ students get on state tests is a good way to judge the quality of the teacher education program.......Page 40
IV. Myths and Lies About How to Make Our Nation’s Schools Better......Page 42
17. Class size does not matter; reducing class sizes will not result in more learning.......Page 43
18. Retaining children in grade—“flunking” them—helps struggling students catch up and promotes better classroom instruction for all.......Page 44
19. Tracking, or separating slow and fast learners, is an efficient and productive way to organize teaching. Gifted classes and special schools for our most talented students benefit both individuals and society.......Page 46
20. Immersion programs (“sink or swim”) for English language learners are better than bilingual education programs.......Page 47
21. Preserving heritage language among English language learners is bad for them.......Page 48
22. Abstinence-only educational programs work to reduce sexual contact and unwanted pregnancies among school children.......Page 49
23. Homework boosts achievement.......Page 51
24. Group projects waste children’s time and punish the most talented.......Page 52
25. School uniforms improve achievement and attendance.......Page 53
26. Longer school days and weeks have big payoffs for achievement.......Page 54
27. If a program works well in one school or district, it should be imported and expected to work well elsewhere.......Page 55
28. Zero-tolerance policies are making schools safer.......Page 56
29. The benefits of preschool and kindergarten programs are not convincing and thus not worth the investment.......Page 58
30. Character education will save America’s youth and strengthen the nation’s moral fiber.......Page 60
31. Bullying is inevitable; it’s just kids. It’s a rite of passage. The national effort to eliminate bullying is effectively addressing the problem in our schools.......Page 61
32. American K–12 education is being dumbed down.......Page 62
33. Mayoral control of public schools has paid off in terms of student achievement.......Page 64
34. Forced integration has failed.......Page 66
35. Money doesn’t matter! We’re spending more money than ever, but test scores are stagnant.......Page 68
36. The money available to school districts is spread equally across their schools.......Page 69
37. In America, public money is not used to support religious schools.......Page 70
38. Education benefits children individually, not the public in general; so supporting education for all past a minimal level—8th grade or 12th grade, say—is hardly justifiable.......Page 72
39. Tuition tax credits for families that choose private schools are appropriate, since they are spending their own money to educate their children.......Page 73
40. Tuition tax credits and education savings accounts are helping many poor children escape failing public schools and enroll in excellent private schools.......Page 74
41. Portfolio management models of schooling will increase district performance.......Page 75
VI. Myths and Lies About Making All Students Career and College Ready......Page 77
42. All kids can learn. Schools can teach all students to the point of mastery.......Page 78
43. Our nation’s economy is suffering because our education system is not producing enough scientists, engineers, and mathematicians.......Page 79
44. The United States has had to create special passport guidelines to import scientists and engineers because our education system cannot produce enough of them.......Page 82
46. Advanced placement (AP) courses are providing minority students an opportunity to get a head start on a college education.......Page 84
47. College admissions are based on students’ achievement in grades K–12 and their SAT or ACT scores.......Page 85
48. Education will lift the poor out of poverty and materially enrich our entire nation.......Page 86
49. IQ tests predict success in life. That’s why schools use them to form ability groups and pick students for gifted or special-needs tracks.......Page 88
50. The schools are wasting their time trying to teach problem solving, creativity, and general thinking skills; they would be better off teaching the facts students need to succeed in school and later in life.......Page 89
Additional Sources......Page 91
Acknowledgments......Page 92
About the Authors......Page 93
Index......Page 95
