As I can't actually read the book, mind if we turn this into a discussion of education reform issues? I personally went to a "good" public school, but as far as I'm concerned, after Elementary, I could have taught myself better than the school did. It just is so inept at dealing with differing learning styles. As such, I am a supporter of allowing school choice and the expansion of the charter school system where you can go with more ecclectic curriculum and instruction method.

However, I am greatly distraught with the manner in which the current school choice advocates are proceeding. I think the main push from the far right has bad intentions. I think it is more about religion and privatization than actually helping students learn.

I would go on but I have my thoughts on the subject more coherently written in my blog.

My definition of can't is that I couldn't find the link to the text...initially. Oops, now I look silly.

Ok, skimmed the Prologue...I think I'll try to find a copy of the book (at library or cheap, I'm stingy like that) and read it in more detail...don't like reading online. I do think there are a lot of ideas he states that I agree with. One thing I get frustrated about is how we've started demanding certain degrees rather than certain knowledge as requirement for various positions. It's as if people forgot that learning is possible outside of a school setting. However, this author seems to be pushing towards the end of the public school system completely. This is an extreme that I'm not willing to agree with. I think major reforms are needed, but I do think there needs to be some form of educational guidance...especially for those from lower economic areas whose parents are not as free to take that chore upon themselves and are not able to pay for others to offer any real supervisory capacity.

I mean, I came from a upper-middle family so I would have the ability to, instead of going to school, make sure I had a way to get to the library or buy certain aides in my self-learning process. People of lower income, even if they have the mind and desire for a self-guided quest for knowledge (and I believe many of them do and it isn't encouraged currently), they may not have the means to satisfy that quest.

As someone who just recently graduated from private school, I can say that I am extremely grateful that my parents made the choice to send me to private school in six grade. I think it opened my mind to so many things which wouldn't have gotton any play in public school, I feel I ended up at the college that I did largly thanks to the good education I received from private school.

thank you for this, loth the mode of presentation is reminiscent of "amusing ourselves to death" by neil postman. if you haven't read it, i'd recommend it to you.

i think you'd like it, i haven't thought about a book so much in aaages. it certainly would run circles around a lot of people.