Thomas Sowell argues that the educational establishment of the United States - a vast tax-supported empire existing quasi-independently within American society - is morally and intellectually bankrupt. He suggests in a top-to-bottom tour of the mismanaged insitutions, cynical leadership and tendentious programmes of American education, that "deceptions and dogmas" have concealed or sought to justify the steep and dangerous decline in educational standards and practices across the board.

This book is a MUST read for EVERY parent! Regardless of where or how your children receive their education, the information is pertinent. The first thing that I noticed is that Mr. Sowell must provide the most extensive list of sources I have ever seen in a single book not labeled "reference material". There are nearly 50 pages (single spaced) of cited articles, books, studies, and speeches. While some may be turned off by the opening chapters thinking that it only serves to "bash" the public school system, I encourage you to read on and garner the full effect. Anyone recently graduating (since 1960!) will be shocked to recognize some of the "teaching" they received that has nothing to do with education. The invasion of our children's everyday lives by people who have agendas (whether it be shaping their "values" or simply to ingrain brand loyalty) is a serious and pervasive problem. Parents of "minority" children (or those that may be identified by University admissions as minority) should be especially interested in the chapters regarding "New Racism" and affirmative action. All parents should be aware that there are many things going on throughout the education system that undermine core values and are especially destructive to Christians. Ultimately, our children (from pre-school to Graduate school) are being taught WHAT to think, not HOW to think all at the whim of the latest politically active group regardless of forethought to future impact on our children's physical, emotional, or spiritual lives.

There is decline, deception and dogmas. Do you know what they are?

I admire Sowell very much for doing such a good job with this subject. I learn a lot from his style of laying out his arguments. That makes it a very valuable and enjoyable read for me.

It does, however, reinforce my own perception that the country has been screwed, blued and tattooed with the "attitude-changing" psychological methods used on children. Sowell calls it "brain-washing", and I believe he is right about that. He clearly explains what he states.

Included in the brain-washing is the effort to make pariahs of parents. To put students in doubt as to what is right and what is wrong. Then there are the dogmas and the euphemisms. "bilingual education" has little to do with education, but has everything to do with zealous minority organizers holding power and deriding American and western values.

So many of these "Multicultural Diversity" programs have no track record to recommend them, but the education establishment hide behind dogmas such as "students need diversity training to work in the global marketplace". Sowell debunks that myth by pointing out that Japan has no such belief in multicultural diversity, yet Japan is a top competitor in world trade. And how multicultural is China? You can almost hear them laughing at you.

I know he's right. I see it in the culture today. The disintegration of the family and the lack of moral values, values which represent the good judgment learned by the earlier generations. The loss of academic skills. The inability to reason. And all in the name of secular humanism.

Sowell begins citing not only the well-known international pupil achievement comparisons, but also a comparison between top science-scoring 13-year-old Korean pupils vs. bottom-scoring Americans at varying levels of reasoning. American performance on "everyday facts" was nearly as good as the Koreans; however, as the level of analysis was raised, our pupils fell further and further behind. Ironically, American pupils thought much more highly of their performance than did the Koreans.

Sowell also rebuts the allegation that test scores have declined because of lowered dropout rates, pointing out that scores have declined at the top - more than 116,000 were above 600 on the verbal SAT in '72, but less than 71,000 ten years later. Further, virtually all 13-year-olds are still in school in the nations compared, and Japan has an even higher proportion of graduates. Finally, Sowell also cites a Rand study comparing unselected youngsters placed in Catholic schools (tuition paid for by others) - they did significantly better than their peers remaining in the public schools.

Refutation of Typical Explanations: Japan averages 41 students/class, vs. 26 in the U.S.; in mathematics the disparity is even greater - 43 vs. 20. American elementary and secondary pupils receive more educational expenditures than most Western Europeans, more than in Canada, and over 50% more than those in Japan or Australia. Inner-city pupils are not to blame - their performance is increasing. "We are turning out some of the most expensive incompetents anywhere."

At the college level, professors have taught fewer and fewer classes, while expenditures have increased. In the 1940s a typical college professor spent 15 hours/week in the classroom. Today 35% of faculty teach undergrads no more than 4 hours/week; at research universities its 51%. Total time spent on duties related to instruction averages about 15 hours/week among faculty at research universities. (Sowell should also have mentioned in the same context that much of their pay also comes from research sources.) During a recent span at MIT, 3 out of 4 nontenured recipients of eg. "teacher-of-the-year" awards were denied tenure due to lack of publication.

Public school teachers consistently are at or near the bottom in achievement test scores. Further, there is no evidence that teachers having college education degrees do better at teaching.

Sowell then complains about brainwashing, cultural relativism, and bilingualism in the public schools, as well as racial admission preferences, political correctness in the colleges and universities. He also points out that college admissions offices usually cite the SAT of those accepted, not that of those actually enrolled, and also often omit scores of those admitted under special provisions - eg. athletes, minorities.

An NCAA survey found that the vast majority of athletic programs lose money. Division I-A basketball players spend 50 hours/week on their sport, and 60 for football. Athletes, not surprisingly, also have lower graduation rates, take phony courses, and have "special advisers."

In some states the local NEA and AFT affiliates contribute more donations than all other political organizations in the state, combined.

Sowell's Recommendations: Greater competition among schools, less faculty involvement in peripheral issues (eg. ROTC presence), and breaking the monopoly on teacher supply held by colleges of education.

Millionaire in 365 Days: The Daily Plan to Get There

Wow....what an education I got from this book...The book begs the title, "WHAT AMERICAN EDUCATION?".....this is a necessary read to know what is really happening in the educational system....and maybe you can become mad enough to go to your Board of education meetings and scream....!

You might think that a book published so long ago (1992) would be out of date by this time. The sad fact is that all the problems discussed in this book are not only still around, but have gotten worse. And the people who are causing the problems are even more sure that they are right.

The second chapter deals with schoolteacher incompetence and some of its causes. The next chapter deals with schoolroom procedures, more familiarly known as brainwashing. This long chapter gives the details on how it is done and what content is being pushed, including anti-Americanism. The fourth chapter discusses current dogmas (multiculturalism, sensitivity, racism) as well as various kinds of "psychobabble".

Part II deals with universities, beginning with a chapter on the problems of Admissions. Chapter 6 deals with the reverse racism involved in college admissions and its resulting "new racism:" i.e. the emergence of racism among college students, traditionally the supporters of civil rights. (Sowell does not seem to connect the fact that reverse racism is inimical to civil rights.) Nonetheless, it's a good, thorough chapter on the problem. Chapter 7 deals with the bias of colleges: doing everything to permit and protect the Ideology, doing nothing to protect those who question the Ideology.

A more thorough and recent exposition of exactly what the New Ideology is and how it is supporting and promoting some of the most dire threats in our nation's history can be found in the book While America Sleeps: How Islam, Immigration and Indoctrination Are Destroying America From Within. It will be seen there that indoctrination underlies every major problem that we are having today, and indoctrination insures that these problems will not be solved.