This book examines the changes in educational policy in the U.S. and Britain over the last twenty-five years. The author contends that education in the States and Britain has been significantly transformed, through efforts to create curricular standards, increased emphasis on accountability measured by standardized tests, and efforts to introduce market competition and private services into educational systems. The writer offers an alternative to the conception of society and education, citing examples of parents who reject the current emphasis on individual success and of schools that promote civic-mindedness. Contents include: (1) Situating the personal in the political; (2) Demystifying education: Theorizing practice and practicing theory; (3) Years of struggle and hope; (4) Conflicting visions of schooling and teaching: The historical and political context; (5) The rise of high-stakes testing at the state and federal levels: New York, Texas and No Child Left Behind; (6) Chicago's Renaissance 2010: The reassertion of ruling-class power (David Hursh and Pauline Lipman) ; and (7) Imagining the future: Alternatives to high-stakes testing and neoliberalism.