Reclaiming the Teaching Profession

Transforming the Dialogue on Public Education

By (author) J. Amos Hatch

Publication date:

26 February 2015

Length of book:

178 pages

Publisher

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

ISBN-13: 9781475810301

Reclaiming the Teaching Profession gives educators (especially teachers and future teachers) and their allies a clear overview of the massive effort to dismantle public education in the United States, which includes a direct attack on teachers. The book details, and provides a systematic critique of, the shaky assumptions at the foundation of the market-based reform initiatives that dominate the contemporary education scene. It names and exposes the motives and methods of the powerful philanthropists, politicians, business moguls, and education entrepreneurs who are behind the reform movement. It provides counter narratives that public school advocates can use to talk back to those who would destroy the teaching profession and public education. It includes examples of successful acts of resistance and identifies resources for challenging reformers’ taken for granted primacy in the education debate. It concludes with strategies educators can use to “speak truth to power,” reclaim their professional status, and reshape the education landscape in ways that serve all of America’s children and preserve our democracy.

Preface: We’re Not Paranoid: They Are Out to Get Teachers
Part I: Debunking the Assumptions of the Education Reform Agenda
1. Assumption 1: Public schools are failing
2. Assumption 2: Teachers are inept
3. Assumption 3: Teachers will only work hard to avoid punishment or earn external rewards
4. Assumption 4: Standards-based testing for accountability is the best way to reform schools
5. Assumption 5: Test scores accurately assess what teachers are teaching and students are learning
6. Assumption 6: Public schools need to be privatized
7. Assumption 7: Business models have direct application to education
8. Assumption 8: Teachers’ unions are a major reason why schools are so bad
9. Assumption 9: Alternative teacher licensure programs are better than traditional teacher education
10. Assumption 10: Wealthy individuals, entrepreneurs, and politicians know more about education than school professionals
Part II: Speaking Truth to Power
11. Exposing the Forces Behind Educational Reform
12. Talking Back to Those Who Would Destroy Public Education
13. Strategies for Reclaiming Our Profession
Appendixes
Index

J. Amos Hatch has done us all a great service in writing his provocative, engaging book. Coming at a time when our national debate over education reform is rolling at full boil, this fast-paced tome systematically addresses the unchallenged assumptions upon which so much of the corporate education reform movement is based. A thorough debunking of each of corporate reform's foundational myths in Part I makes this book an indispensable addition to the library of anyone who is interested in the future of public education in the United States. Part II contains timely and practical tips for those committed to preserving a democratic public education system open to all students. The appendices at the end of the book provide further resources that public education stakeholders will find invaluable.