Reflecting on the 2008 election, Prudence Carter challenges the popular notion that President Obama's victory is symbolic of a postracial society in the United States. Citing statistics about the opportunity gap that still exists in our nation's schools--as well as the recent Supreme Court cases that served to halt racial desegregation--Carter…

In this essay, Wayne Au carefully considers the educational stance of Barack Obama by exploring the president's speeches and his personnel and policy choices. Au considers the election of Obama as a moment of possibility for change in American education, but also questions whether Obama's hopeful message about education will be fully realized,…

In this open letter, Eve Tuck calls on communities, researchers, and educators to reconsider the long-term impact of "damage-centered" research--research that intends to document peoples' pain and brokenness to hold those in power accountable for their oppression. This kind of research operates with a flawed theory of change: it is often used to…

Over the last generation, a new politics of education has evolved throughout the United States. Since the 1983 watershed report "A Nation at Risk" (National Commission on Excellence in Education, 1983), the country's most influential business and political leaders--and, more recently, mayors--have spearheaded efforts to improve student achievement…

Advocates for education reform are becoming increasingly frustrated with the pace of progress in school districts across the United States, especially those in urban communities. Low student achievement appears to be a fact of life in most of these districts, particularly among poor students and students of color. Results of the National…

The author suggests that conservative economic and school policy is responsible for a decline in the quality of teaching, basing his analysis on observation of the current reform wave. He suggests that teacher education must be critical, multicultural, student-centered, oriented toward equality, and desocializing if it is to prepare inspirational…

The authors argue that many of the recently recommended public-school reforms either sidestep or abandon the principles underlying education for a democratic citizenry developed by John Dewey and others. The authors outline a teacher education curriculum that links the critical study of power, language, culture, and history to the practice of a…

Addresses the corrosive effects of corporate culture on the academy and society, arguing that neoliberal discourses of privatization and commercialization reduce citizenship to self-interest. Maintains that corporate culture ignores social injustices while emphasizing unfettered market forces, threatening understanding of democracy and the meaning…

Investigates the psychological, social, and sexual dynamics of the feminist classroom. Presents a feminist critique of patriarchy and analyzes student resistance to it. Shares feminist teaching practices intended to alter the gendered status quo of the classroom interaction between women and men. (SK)

The author maintains that the discourse of critical pedagogy is based on rationalist assumptions that give rise to repressive myths. She reflects on her role as a White, middle-class woman and professor developing an antiracist course with a diverse group of students. She critiques the concepts of empowerment, student voice, dialogue, and critical…

A case study of a state university illustrates the overt and covert limitations of study and discussion of gay, lesbian, and bisexual issues on campus. Although the university is committed to the advancement of human understanding, gay, lesbian, and bisexual faculty and students feel their civil rights are threatened, and research pertaining to…

This critique of the current educational system challenges educators to examine potentially dangerous educational practices that foster specialization while ignoring the need to develop critical thinking. Examples demonstrate that, without the ability to interpret the world critically, people are subject to political manipulation, a state…

Academic achievement of historically oppressed groups is affected by the societal power relations reproduced in schools and by the "deficit" perspective. Culturally responsive education and strategic teaching are humanistic approaches that respect and use the culture, history, and perspectives of the students in educational practice. (SK)

Historically, such testing programs as intelligence tests and Chapter I minimum competency testing have inadvertently perpetuated inequalities. An equitable national testing program must look beyond the mystique of testing technologies, clearly define purposes of assessment, recruit minorities into the testing field, and establish an independent…

Reveals and calls into question Hirsch's core assumptions, locating them within neoconservatism. Assumptions include the following: progressivist monopoly in schools; curriculum incoherence; education as a cognitive-technical process; deficits in children's cultural background; and the existence of a common culture. (SK)