Reading Against Democracy: The Broken Promises of Reading Instruction

by Patrick Shannon

Thoughtful teachers, chafing at restrictions and mandates, are asking themselves, “How did it come to this?” Patrick Shannon's book provides fascinating, thoroughly-researched answers, with an empowering perspective and a hopeful path out of this current nonsense. - Randy and Katherine Bomer Authors of For a Better World Education is not a disinterested process, nor does it foster many innocent bystanders or casual observers. Pat helps us understand the players, the policies and the programs that influence classroom practices, research agendas, and literacy assessments, and provides the “big picture” of literacy education that enables us to comprehend today's educational landscape. - Frank Serafini Author of Lessons in Comprehension This book is certain to inspire educators who are discouraged by recent developments to continue their work for equity, humanity, and social justice in our schools. It reminds us that we do not stand alone, but that there are, and there will continue to be, scores of dedicated educators seeking humane and thoughtful ways of helping children to learn. - Catherine Compton-Lilly Author of Confronting, Racism, Poverty, and Power Patrick Shannon's Broken Promises was hailed by Language Arts as one of nine seminal references on literacy and inequality in education. But so much has changed, and worsened, since its publication that instead of revising his classic Shannon has written an almost entirely new book. The result, Reading Against Democracy , is Shannon's fully documented, up to date, and utterly convincing look at how businesses and political interests broke the promise that American education would teach students how to think, read, and write as citizens. Shannon describes how business, government, and educational experts have consistently trumped the civic rationales for education with the economic. He explains how attempts to make instructional outcomes more predictable for business have led to a curricular formula that serves American students poorly at home as well as, ironically, in the global economy. Think the goal of America's schools is to immerse students in literate behaviors so they can participate in America's rich democratic tradition? Think again. Reading Against Democracy is the book that lays out the whole story of where literacy education has gone wrong, where it's headed, and what steps we can take to make sure our children are educated like people, not trained like employees.

288 pages, Paperback

First published February 13, 2007

Reviews

[Smoran8m · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extremely dense but informative. If you want to know why education is in trouble today, this book can walk you through the history, the politics, and the influences that have made our education system what it is.

[Synthia Salomon, Ed.S. · Rating 2 out of 5]

“Business leaders have directed public schools for at least a century... the retreat of government from its traditional responsibility made the steps more transparent as business leaders sought to manipulate American social structures in order to control the costs of doing business” (p. 134).

[Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most well articulated arguments I've read about how government policy decisions don't always support what is best for students. Although I don't entirely buy his argument that the government is out to do away with public education, he has shown how ineffective the current industrialized, over-tested, rigid system is by looking at specific gaps in basal readers and tests. A fascinating read that I'll come back to again and again.

[ResearchOnDIBELS]

Page 141 describes the relationship between Reading First and DIBELS authors.