WSJ.com - Twenty-Five Years Later, A Nation Still at Risk

If you're interested in K-12 education reform, see my note below.  -John

 

Powered by           Today marks the 25th anniversary of "A Nation at Risk," the influential Reagan-era report by a blue-ribbon panel that alerted Americans to the weak performance of our education system. The report warned of a "rising tide of mediocrity that threatens our very future as a nation and a people." That dire forecast set off a quarter century of education reform that's yielded worthy changes – yet still not the achievement gains we need to turn back the tide of mediocrity. And just as "A Nation at Risk" warned, other countries are beginning to eat our education lunch. While our outcomes remain flat, theirs rise. Half a dozen nations now surpass our high-school and college graduation rates. International tests find young Americans scoring in the middle of the pack.             Click the following to access the sent link:       WSJ.com - Opinion: Twenty-Five Years Later, A Nation Still at Risk* This article will be available to non-subscribers of the Online Journal for up to seven days after it is e-mailed.                 Get your EMAIL THIS Browser Button and use it to email content from any Web site. Click here for more information.   *This article can also be accessed if you copy and paste the entire address below into your web browser. http://online.wsj.com/wsjgate?subURI=%2Farticle%2FSB120916804732546311-email.html&nonsubURI=%2Farticle_email%2FSB120916804732546311-lMyQjAxMDI4MDI5ODEyNjg4Wj.html

 

 

Readers: Since my oldest is nearing school age, I've become very interested in educational thought and I have begun to research the debate about the best way to educate our children.  I know I still have much to read and learn on this topic, but I recently finished a book by E.D. Hirsch called "The Schools We Need & Why We Don't Have Them."  It's more than a decade old, but I found his arguments and diagnosis still very much on the mark for what continues to be argued today.  I highly recommend this book. 

Here's a link to Amazon book reviews:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0385484577/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books  

If any of you have read other books on this topic, I'd like to hear any suggestions you have for future reading.

- John