Here we go again!

The New York Book Review, where Diane Ravitch’s review of Steven Brill’s Class Warfare: Inside the Fight to Fix America’s Schools, doesn’t have a space for reader comments (so far as I can see) so I decided to just post my response on our blog.

After reading Ravitch’s scathing article concerning Steven Brill’s book on education reform, there was no question as to where she stood on the major issues facing American education today. Ravitch criticized Brill for his stance on education reform, which defames teachers unions and suggests that poor teachers are responsible for the current education crisis facing America. He suggests (much to Ravitch’s chagrin) that standardized test scores are a valid marker of the success of public school education.

There is no doubt that greater accountability is necessary for schools and teachers, however, basing the success of schools/teachers off of standardized test scores is misleading and detrimental. The policy changes Brill suggests for improving American education are not based on reality and ignore some serious problems in the American education system today, such as poverty and underfunded schools in depressed areas. Essentially, the difference in opinion between Brill and Ravitch seems to be related to experience and idealism/realism. In Brill’s perfect, ideal world, basing funding and accountability off standardized test scores would lead to stronger teachers and stronger schools. However, Ravitch has spent time and research in the schools and sees the reality that using test scores for accountability purposes only contributes to a vicious cycle, which proves to widen the gab between the upper and lower class – the successful and unsuccessful.

Ultimately, I felt Ravitch made several strong points and criticisms of Brill’s (and the removed, governmental system he represents) ideology. However, at times she was so vehement it almost read as more of a hysterical rant than a well-written review. Despite this, Ravitch made her points loud and clear and quite honestly drove her “opponent” into the ground.

*a side note: I must've created a blog with this site a while ago and picked this slightly embarassing screen name type thing.... is there a way I can change that? haha ehhh