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 | | Reclaiming Education for Democracy: Thinking Beyond No Child Left Behind (Sociocultural, Political, and Historical Studies In Education) by Paul Shaker, Elizabeth E. Heilman ISBN-10: 9780805858426 ISBN-10: 0-8058-5842-3 ISBN-13: 9780805858426 ISBN-13: 978-0-8058-5842-6 Paperback 2008-06-13 Routledge Find Lowest Price |
Editorials | ||
Product Description Reclaiming Education for Democracy subjects the prophets and doctrines of educational neoliberalism to scrutiny in order to provide a rationale and vision for public education beyond the limits of No Child Left Behind. The authors combine a history of recent education policy with an in- depth analysis of the origins of such policy and its impact on professional educators. The public face of these policies is separated from motives rooted in politics, profit, and ideology. The book also searches for new insights in understanding the neoliberal and managerialist assault on education by examining the psychology of advocates who demonstrate a special animus toward universal public education. The manipulation of public education by No Child Left Behind is a case study in the general approach to public institutions taken by the politicians and theorists in these camps. K-12 education has been subjected to deceptive descriptive analyses, marginalization of its professional leadership, manipulation of its goals, the imposition of illegitimate quality markers, a grab on its resources by corporate profiteers, and a demoralization of its rank and file. This book helps us think beyond this new commonsense of education. Recipient: 2009 AERA Division K Award for Exemplary Research in Teaching and Teacher Education | ||
Reviews | ||
An important read and a critical conversation I found this book to be a fascinating look at the behind-the-scenes battle for influence in America's schools. The authors weave together a frightening mosaic that every educator and believer in public education should read. While not all readers will see the same picture in that mosaic, intellectual engagement in these deeply complex issues is critically important if we are to truly move beyond the rhetoric and as the title proclaims, reclaim education for democracy--and the evidence, theory, and analysis Shaker and Heilman lay out gives readers an opportunity to do just that. As an engaged researcher and instructor in education policy, I can attest to many of the issues Shaker and Heilman raise (in the interest of full disclosure, I have written with them previously on some of these topics). The authors are particularly eloquent in their discussion of the tensions between political advocacy and academic authority, and the tremendous struggles that have been taking place between the academic and political communities. Their critique of NCLB is insightful, direct, and cutting (although I think policymakers perhaps deserve a little more credit for trying to include support for programs that educators sincerely felt would improve schools). While the text at times jumps from topic to topic, in the last two chapters Shaker and Heilman ultimately bring us back to the promise made in the title, and layout a framework for reclaiming education for democracy. If the past eight years have taught us anything, it is that the promises made in NCLB are not only simplistic, they are damaging. This book helps us start down a path of change that recognizes complexity, and honestly engages us in a conversation about what our schools should be, and how we can support a democratic vision in education. | ||