INTRODUCTION: Whatever happened to common sense?

PART I: Some things are fundamental

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Chapter 1: Subject matter matters

By the end of high school virtually all students must be able to read critically, write effectively, and perform basic mathematics. Equally, school graduates must be familiar with the important ideas and achievements in the sciences, literature, and the arts, and have a basic understanding of their nation’s history, society, and government.

Chapter 2: Tests are good for students

Tests, particularly standardized tests, are commonly criticized as a poor way of measuring the academic achievement of students. We defend the use of such tests, and explain why they should be used along with teacher-created tests and other forms of assessment.

Chapter 3: Students need discipline

Students learn best in an environment that is structured to achieve educational goals and ensures their safety. These objectives are best achieved with good disciplinary policies and practices. Specific behavioral expectations and consequences for violating them are necessary so that unruly students do not interfere with the education of others.

Chapter 4: Inclusion should not be exclusion

We believe that all children are entitled to an appropriate education, consistent with their abilities and needs. We express some reservations about the utility and fairness of the practice of integrating all special needs students into regular classrooms, called mainstreaming or inclusion, because some of these students require special instruction and support.

Chapter 5: Some teachers are better than others

Virtually everyone knows that some teachers are better than others. We identify four well-established characteristics of effective teachers, and suggest how principals, superintendents, and school boards can recruit and retain these teachers.

Chapter 6: Some schools are better than others

Most people know that some schools are better than others. We identify the six most important characteristics of effective schools, and suggest how such schools can be created and sustained. In the interests of improving the effectiveness of schools, we argue that parents must have reliable information about the success of all schools and they must be able to choose the schools that are best for their children.

PART II: Some things are practical

Chapter 7: Classrooms should be teacher-centered

Romantic progressive educators recommend that subject matter and teaching methods should be student-centered. But teachers are professionals who must be responsible for choosing the methods that are best suited to their students and their educational objectives; they are not mere facilitators of learning.

Chapter 8: Direct instruction is good teaching

Some educators recommend that traditional methods of teaching be discarded in favor of ones that they consider to be progressive. Nevertheless, direct instructional practices that include formal explanation, demonstration, and phonics, are effective ways of teaching and should be used.

Chapter 9: Rote learning and practice are important

Rote learning that involves memorization and repetitive practice is often derided by progressive educators. But these traditional techniques should be part of a teacher's repertoire because they help students learn.

Chapter 10: A little homework doesn’t hurt

Some modern educators argue that homework is of no value. However, a moderate amount of carefully designed homework reinforces in-school learning by providing practice in the acquisition of fundamental knowledge and skills.

Chapter 11: Grades should reflect achievement

Many school districts are adopting grading policies that make it difficult for teachers to accurately report student achievement. We challenge such policies and recommend that grading procedures must accurately reflect the students’ achievement and must be easily understood by the students and their parents.

Chapter 12: A pass should be earned

Too often students are passed from grade to grade even when they have not mastered the required subject matter and skills. We challenge the practice of social promotion, and argue that students must demonstrate that they have the requisite knowledge and skills in order to be promoted.

PART III: Some things are distracting

Chapter 13: Teachers’ unions don’t always put students first

Teachers’ unions sometimes claim that they know what is best for the education of children. But their opposition to standardized testing and greater parental choice of schools has more to do with advancing the unions’ special interests. As such, parents, educators, and citizens should be skeptical of the claims that teachers’ unions make.

Chapter 14: There is too much edu-babble

As with other occupational groups, educators have their own specialized vocabulary for discussing their work. However, a number of the terms and expressions they use are confusing or meaningless. We urge that incomprehensible and esoteric terms peculiar to education—edu-babble—be eliminated from serious discussions about teaching and learning.

CONCLUSION: Using common sense to obtain better schools

Chapters Include

• Tests are good for kids

• Some Teachers are Better than others

• A Little Homework Doesn’t Hurt

• A Pass Should be Earned

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