James Wm Noll, Noll James

Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Educational Issues, Expanded

• Broschiertes Buch

Produktbeschreibung

TAKING SIDES: EDUCATIONAL ISSUES, 15/e EXPANDED presents current controversial issues in a debate-style format designed to stimulate student interest and develop critical thinking skills. Each issue is thoughtfully framed with an issue summary, an issue introduction, and a postscript. An instructor's manual with testing material is available for each volume. USING TAKING SIDES IN THE CLASSROOM is also an excellent instructor resource with practical suggestions on incorporating this effective approach in the classroom. Each TAKING SIDES reader features an annotated listing of selected World Wide Web sites and is supported by a book website. Visit www.mhcls.com.

Produktdetails

• Taking Sides: Educational Issu
• Verlag: McGraw Hill LLC
• Revised
• Seitenzahl: 420
• Erscheinungstermin: Februar 2009
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 238mm x 154mm x 28mm
• Gewicht: 607g
• ISBN-13: 9780073545653
• ISBN-10: 0073545651
• Artikelnr.: 26180621

Inhaltsangabe

Unit 1 Basic Theoretical Issues
Issue 1. Should Schooling Be Based on Social Experiences?
YES: John Dewey, from Experience and Education (Macmillan, 1938)
NO: Robert M. Hutchins, from The Conflict in Education in a Democratic
Society (Harper & Row, 1953)
Philosopher John Dewey suggests a reconsideration of traditional
approaches to schooling, giving fuller attention to the social
development of the learner and the quality of his or her total
experience. Robert M. Hutchins, noted educator and one-time chancellor
of the University of Chicago, argues for a liberal arts education
geared to the development of intellectual powers.
Issue 2. Should the Curriculum Be Standardized for All?
YES: Mortimer J. Adler, from "The Paideia Proposal: Rediscovering the
Essence of Education," American School Board Journal (July 1982)
NO: John Holt, from Escape from Childhood (E. P. Dutton, 1974)
Philosopher Mortimer J. Adler contends that democracy is best served by
a public school system that establishes uniform curricular objectives
for all students. Educator John Holt argues that an imposed curriculum
damages the individual and usurps a basic human right to select one's
own path of development.
Issue 3. Should Behaviorism Shape Educational Practices?
YES: B. F. Skinner, from Beyond Freedom and Dignity (Alfred A. Knopf,
1971)
NO: Carl R. Rogers, from Freedom to Learn for the Eighties (Merrill,
1983)
B. F. Skinner, an influential proponent of behaviorism and professor of
psychology, critiques the concept of "inner freedom" and links learning
and motivation to the influence of external forces. Professor of
psychology and psychiatry Carl R. Rogers offers the "humanistic"
alternative to behaviorism, insisting on the reality of subjective
forces in human motivation.
Issue 4. Is Constructivism the Best Philosophy of Education?
YES: David Elkind, from "The Problem with Constructivism," The
Educational Forum (Summer 2004)
NO: Jamin Carson, from "Objectivism and Education: A Response to David
Elkind's 'The Problem with Constructivism'," The Educational Forum
(Spring 2005)
Child development professor David Elkind contends that the
philosophical positions found in constructivism, though often difficult
to apply, are necessary elements in a meaningful reform of educational
practices. Jamin Carson, an assistant professor of education and former
high school teacher, offers a close critique of constructivism and
argues that the philosophy of objectivism is a more realistic and
usable basis for the process of education.
Issue 5. Should Global Competition Steer School Reform?
YES: Marc Tucker, from "Charting a New Course for Schools,"
Educational Leadership (April 2007)
NO: Herb Childress, from "A Subtractive Education," Phi Delta Kappan
(October 2006)
Marc Tucker, president of the National Center on Education and the
Economy, summarizes the work of the New Commission on the Skills of the
American Workforce on which he served as vice chairman. Herb Childress,
director of liberal studies at the Boston Architectural College, argues
for a completely different approach to improvement of our efforts to
educate.
Unit 2 Current Fundamental Issues
Issue 6. Can the Public Schools Produce Good Citizens?
YES: Stephen Macedo, from "Crafting Good Citizens," Education Next
(Spring 2004)
NO: Chester E. Finn, Jr., from "Faulty Engineering," Education Next
(Spring 2004)
Princeton politics professor Stephen Macedo expresses confidence in the
public schools' ability to teach students to become active participants
in our democracy, suggesting that naysayers may wish to undermine all
public institutions. Thomas B. Fordham Foundation president Chester E.
Finn, Jr. contends that the diversity of the American population makes
the public schools ill-equipped to produce the engaged citizens our
democracy requires.
Issue 7. Has Resegregation Diminished the Impact of Brown?
YES: Gary Orfield, Erica D. Frankenberg, and Chungmei Lee, from "The
Resurgence of School Segregation," Educational Leadership (December
2002/January 2003)
NO: William G. Wraga, from "The Heightened Significance of Brown v.
Board of Education in Our Time," Phi Delta Kappan (February 2006)
Harvard professor Gary Orfield and his research associates present
evidence that school resegregation has been increasing almost
everywhere in recent years, placing a cloud over the fiftieth
anniversary celebration of the Brown decision. Education professor
William G. Wraga offers a different perspective, concentrating on the
fundamental democratic ideals bolstered by Brown that are in need of
further attention.
Issue 8. Can Federal Initiatives Rescue Failing Schools?
YES: Andrew Rotherham, from "A New Partnership," Education Next
(Spring 2002)
NO: Paul D. Houston, from "The Seven Deadly Sins of No Child Left
Behind," Phi Delta Kappan (June 2007)
Education policy expert Andrew Rotherham argues that new federally
imposed accountability standards will enhance opportunity and overhaul
failing schools. Paul D. Houston, executive director of the American
Association of School Administrators, offers a totally new agenda to
replace the current federal legislation.
Issue 9. Do High-Stakes Assessments Improve Learning?
YES: Nina Hurwitz and Sol Hurwitz, from "Tests That Count," American
School Board Journal (January 2000)
NO: Ken Jones, from "A Balanced School Accountability Model: An
Alternative to High-Stakes Testing," Phi Delta Kappan (April 2004)
High school teacher Nina Hurwitz and education consultant Sol Hurwitz
assemble evidence from states that are leading the movement to set high
standards of educational performance and cautiously conclude that it
could stimulate long-overdue renewal. Teacher education director Ken
Jones believes that much more than test scores must be used to develop
an approach to school accountability that effectively blends federal,
state, and local agencies and powers.
Issue 10. Should "Public Schooling" Be Redefined?
YES: Frederick M. Hess, from "What Is a 'Public School'? Principles for
a New Century," Phi Delta Kappan (February 2004)
NO: Linda Nathan, Joe Nathan, Ray Bacchetti, and Evans Clinchy, from "A
Response to Frederick Hess," Phi Delta Kappan (February 2004)
Frederick M. Hess, a resident scholar at the American Enterprise
Institute, advocates a broadening of the definition of "public
schooling" in light of recent developments such as vouchers, charter
schools, and home schooling. Linda Nathan, Joe Nathan, Ray Bacchetti,
and Evans Clinchy express a variety of concerns about the conceptual
expansion Hess proposes.
Unit 3 Current Specific Issues
Issue 11. Has the Supreme Court Reconfigured American Education?
YES: Charles L. Glenn, from "Fanatical Secularism," Education Next
(Winter 2003)
NO: Paul E. Peterson, from "Victory for Vouchers?" Commentary
(September 2002)
Professor of education Charles L. Glenn argues that the Supreme Court's
decision in Zelman v. Simmons-Harris is an immediate antidote to the
public's school's secularist philosophy. Professor of government Paul
E. Peterson, while welcoming the decision, contends that the barricades
against widespread use of vouchers in religious schools will postpone
any lasting effects.
Issue 12. Do Charter Schools Merit Public Support?
YES: Joe Williams, from "Games Charter Opponents Play," Education Next
(Winter 2007)
NO: Marc F. Bernstein, from "Why I'm Wary of Charter Schools," The
School Ad ministrator (August 1999)
Journalist Joe Williams, a senior fellow with Education Sector, reviews
the development of the charter school movement and finds multiple
unwarranted bureaucratic impediments to its acceptance. School
superintendent Marc F. Bernstein sees increasing racial and social
class segregation, church-state issues, and financial harm as
outgrowths of the movement.
Issue 13. Is Privatization the Hope of the Future?
YES: Chris Whittle, from "Dramatic Growth Is Possible," Education Next
(Spring 2006)
NO: Henry Levin, from "Déjà Vu: All Over Again?" Education Next
(Spring 2006)
Chris Whittle, founder and CEO of Edison Schools, contends that public
school systems still operate in an eighteenth-century mindset and
offers an "independent learning" model as a replacement. Professor of
economics and education Henry Levin criticizes the assumptions on which
Whittle bases his prediction of successful operation of schools by
for-profit management organizations such as Edison.
Issue 14. Is Full Inclusion of Disabled Students Desirable?
YES: Richard A. Villa and Jacqueline S. Thousand, from "Making
Inclusive Education Work," Educational Leadership (October 2003)
NO: Karen Agne, from "The Dismantling of the Great American Public
School," Educational Horizons (Spring 1998)
Education consultant Richard A. Villa and education professor
Jacqueline S. Thousand review the implementation of the Individuals
with Disabilities Education Act and suggest strategies for fulfilling
its intentions. Education professor Karen Agne argues that legislation
to include students with all sorts of disabilities has had mostly
negative effects and contributes to the exodus from public schools.
Issue 15. Can Current High School Reform Curtail Dropouts?
YES: Thomas Toch, Craig D. Jerald, and Erin Dillon, from "Surprise-High
School Reform Is Working," Phi Delta Kappan (February 2007)
NO: Robert Epstein, from "Why High School Must Go: An Interview with
Leon Botstein," Phi Delta Kappan (May 2007)
Thomas Toch, Craig D. Jerald, and Erin Dillon, think-tank researchers
at Education Sector, review recent efforts at high school reform by the
Gates Foundation, the National Governors Association, and other groups,
identifying many signs of progress. Scholar, author, and editor Robert
Epstein, interviewing college president Leon Botstein, explores the
abolition of high school as it now exists.
Issue 16. Is "Intelligent Design" a Threat to the Curriculum?
YES: Mark Terry, from "One Nation, Under the Designer," Phi Delta
Kappan (December 2004)
NO: Dan Peterson, from "The Little Engine That Could . . . Undo
Darwinism," The American Spectator (June 2005)
Biology teacher and science department administrator Mark Terry warns
of the so-called Wedge Strategy being employed by the Discovery
Institute to incorporate the "intelligent design" approach into the
public school science curriculum. Attorney Dan Peterson presents
fact-based arguments that separate "intelligent design" from previous
campaigns for inclusion of "creation science" in the biology curriculum
and cause evolution theorists to possibly adjust their standard
positions.
Issue 17. Is There a Crisis in the Education of Boys?
YES: Michael Gurian and Kathy Stevens, from "With Boys and Girls in
Mind," Educational Leadership (November 2004)
NO: Sara Mead, from "The Truth About Boys and Girls," An Education
Sector Report (June 2006)
Michael Gurian and Kathy Stevens, researchers in gender differences and
brain-based learning at the Gurian Institute, contend that our schools,
structurally and functionally, do not fulfill gender-specific needs and
that this is particularly harmful to boys. Sara Mead, a senior policy
analyst at Education Sector in Washington, DC, assembles long-term data
from the federally sponsored National Assessment of Educational
Progress to show that the "crisis" emphasis is unwarranted and detracts
from broader social justice issues.
Issue 18. Should Homework Be Abolished?
YES: Etta Kralovec and John Buell, from "End Homework Now,"
Educational Leadership (April 2001)
NO: David Skinner, from "The Homework Wars," The Public Interest
(Winter 2004)
Learning specialist Etta Kralovec and journalist John Buell attack the
assignment of homework as a pedagogical practice, claiming that it
disrupts family life and punishes the poor. Editor David Skinner
negatively reacts to Kralovec and Buell's book, The End of Homework,
citing research to undermine their position.
Issue 19. Do Computers Negatively Affect Student Growth?
YES: Lowell Monke, from "The Human Touch," Education Next (Fall 2004)
NO: Frederick M. Hess, from "Technical Difficulties," Education Next
(Fall 2004)
Lowell Monke, an assistant professor of education, expresses deep
concerns that the uncritical faith in computer technology in schools
has led to sacrifices in intellectual growth and creativity. Frederick
M. Hess, while sharing some of Monke's observations, believes that the
tools of technology, used appropriately, can support innovation and
reinvention in education.
Issue 20. Should Alternative Teacher Training Be Encouraged?
YES: Robert Holland, from "How to Build A Better Teacher," Policy
Review (April & May 2001)
NO: Linda Darling-Hammond, from "How Teacher Education Matters,"
Journal of Teacher Education (May/June 2000)
Public policy researcher Robert Holland argues that current
certification programs are inadequate, especially given the growing
shortage of teachers. Education professor Linda Darling-Hammond offers
evidence of failure among alternative programs and responds to
criticism of standard professional preparation.
Issue 21. Can Merit Pay Accelerate School Improvement?
YES: Steve Malanga, from "Why Merit Pay Will Improve Teaching," City
Journal (Summer 2001)
NO: Al Ramirez, from "How Merit Pay Undermines Education," Educational
Leadership (February 2001)
Steven Malanga, a senior fellow of the Manhattan Institute, draws on
examples from the corporate world and from public school systems in
Cincinnati, Iowa, and Denver to make his case for performance-based
merit pay for teachers. Associate professor of education Al Ramirez
contends that merit pay programs misconstrue human motivation and
devalue the work of teachers.
Unit 4 Bonus Issues
Issue 22. Are Undocumented Immigrants Entitled to Public Education?
YES: William J. Brennan, Jr., from Majority Opinion in Plyler v. Doe
(June 15, 1982)
NO: Warren Burger, from Dissenting Opinion in Plyler v. Doe (June 15,
1982)
Justice William Brennan argues that the action of the Texas state
legislature to authorize local school districts to deny enrollment in
public schools to children not "legally admitted" to the country
violates the Fourteenth Amendment. Chief Justice Warren Burger, in
dissent, counters that the Court has no business assuming a
policymaking role simply because the legislative branches of government
fail to act appropriately.
Issue 23. Is No Child Left Behind Irretrievably Flawed?
YES: Sharon L. Nichols and David C. Berliner, from "Testing the Joy Out
of Learning," Educational Leadership (March 2008)
NO: Dianne Piché, from "Basically a Good Model," Education Next (Fall
2007)
Education professors Sharon L. Nichols and David C. Berliner cite
evidence of the negative effects of test-dominated schooling under the
influence of NCLB. Dianne Piché, executive director of the Citizens'
Commission on Civil Rights, supports the testing and accountability
measures of the federal law as the best way to advance the interests of
the poor and minorities.