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The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America's Public Schools
Knopf
January 2013
On Sale: January 5, 2013
416 pages
ISBN: 0385350880
EAN: 9780385350884
Kindle: B00BRUQ376
Hardcover / e-Book
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Non-Fiction
From one of the foremost authorities on education in the United States, former U.S. assistant secretary of education, βwhistle-blower extraordinaireβ (The Wall Street Journal), author of the best-selling The Death and Life of the Great American School System (βImportant and rivetingββLibrary Journal), The Language Police (βImpassioned . . . Fiercely argued . . . Every bit as alarming as it is illuminatingββThe New York Times), and other notable books on education history and policyβan incisive, comprehensive look at todayβs American school system that argues against those who claim it is broken and beyond repair; an impassioned but reasoned call to stop the privatization movement that is draining students and funding from our public schools. In Reign of Error, Diane Ravitch argues that the crisis in American education is not a crisis of academic achievement but a concerted effort to destroy public schools in this country. She makes clear that, contrary to the claims being made, public school test scores and graduation rates are the highest theyβve ever been, and dropout rates are at their lowest point. She argues that federal programs such as George W. Bushβs No Child Left Behind and Barack Obamaβs Race to the Top set unreasonable targets for American students, punish schools, and result in teachers being fired if their students underperform, unfairly branding those educators as failures. She warns that major foundations, individual billionaires, and Wall Street hedge fund managers are encouraging the privatization of public education, some for idealistic reasons, others for profit. Many who work with equity funds are eyeing public education as an emerging market for investors. Reign of Error begins where The Death and Life of the Great American School System left off, providing a deeper argument against privatization and for public education, and in a chapter-by-chapter breakdown, putting forth a plan for what can be done to preserve and improve it. She makes clear what is right about U.S. education, how policy makers are failing to address the root causes of educational failure, and how we can fix it. For Ravitch, public school education is about knowledge, about learning, about developing character, and about creating citizens for our society. Itβs about helping to inspire independent thinkers, not just honing job skills or preparing people for college. Public school education is essential to our democracy, and its aim, since the founding of this country, has been to educate citizens who will help carry democracy into the future.
 Media BuzzPBS News Hour - March 28, 2014
Daily Show with Jon Stewart - October 30, 2013
Morning Edition - September 27, 2013
On Point - September 17, 2013
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