SCHOOL: The Story of American Public Education
, with Carl Kaestle, Diane Ravitch, James Anderson and Larry Cuban; foreword by M. Beacon, $35 (208pp) ISBN 978-0-8070-4220-5
Chronologically arranged in four sections (1770–1890, 1900–1950, 1950–1980, 1980–2000), this anthology covers much ground (charter, common, frontier and dame schools) at a brisk, engaging pace. These five eminent scholars catalogue the experiences of African-Americans, Catholics, Native Americans, Mexican-Americans, people with disabilities and girls in an educational system originally designed for Protestant white boys. Tyack and company nimbly chart changing educational philosophies (Horace Mann, John Dewey, the Gary Plan, Archbishop John Hughes) and public debates, such as those aroused by the introduction of IQ tests in the 1920s, the 1957 launching of Sputnik (prompting fear that Soviet education outshone U.S. education) and the 1983 publication of
Reviewed on: 08/27/2001
Genre: Nonfiction