The Age of Accountability

The Assault on Public Education Since the Time of A Nation at Risk

Dominic Belmonte

• Publisher: Myers Education Press
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN:
  9781975503673
  9781975503666
• eBook ISBN:
  9781975503697
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education Theory & Practice

A 2021 SPE Outstanding Book Award Winner

It's clear that American public education has been under assault for more than the last 30 years. So much of this current "age of accountability" has focused on blame, both of teachers and those who prepare them. Somehow, unlike in other professions, declarations were made to the effect that anyone could teach better than teachers, including business leaders and people from tony universities without teacher preparation.

The Age of Accountability scrutinizes the attack on teachers through weaponized data. While an effective corporate tool to improve bottom-line goals, its use in education became more sinister and misanthropic. International PISA scores imply the mediocre ability of American students, fueling a belief that American education needed more than an upgrade. The only answer that would placate many was a complete upheaval, a redefinition of a teacher and who should be permitted to become one. We teachers ceded authority to these business and legislative forces. Their subsequent fervor for testing overwhelmed teaching and drove the joy out of schooling for students. It is time for a recounting of what has been done to the profession and to our children. Young teachers need encouragement and veteran teachers need reminding of their valiant and effective efforts.

Perfect for courses such as: History of Education | Assessment in Teacher Evaluation | Value-Added Metrics | Urban Education | University Teacher Preparation | Teaching and Learning

Table of contents

• Cover
• Halftitle
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Introduction: Sifting Through Detritus
• Chapter 1: An Old Dream
• Chapter 2: What Echoes On
• Chapter 3: False Prophets and Misdirection
• Chapter 4: The Coarsening of Our Discourse
• Chapter 5: Premise
• Chapter 6: Permutations
• Chapter 7: Impact on the Profession
• Chapter 8: The Pipeline Thereby Suffers
• Chapter 9: Computer Impact
• Chapter 10: Arrows Aimed at Academia and the Archers Admired
• Chapter 11: Real Stress, Real Anxiety, Real Harm
• Chapter 12: Hey, You Want to be Finnish? Then Listen to the Finns!
• Chapter 13: The Wane of Reading in Favor of the Testable
• Chapter 14: Here’s an Idea: Take the Best Teachers and Kill Them with Work!
• Chapter 15: The Attack on Tenure
• Chapter 16: Contemporary Disruptors to the Classroom Experience: The Computer and the Assailant
• Chapter 17: America, Where Everyone Holds an Idea About Teaching
• Chapter 18: Terms for Moving Forward Together
• Bibliography
• Index