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If all humor does indeed come from pain, then American educational policymaking has been a petri dish brimming with hilarity. Even before Betsy DeVos ascended to her perch atop the U.S. Department of Education, her predecessors had offered up an excruciating decade of fodder for satire. Ably assisted by a bevy of billionaires, foundations, and advocacy think tanks, these policymakers unleashed a torrent of rhetorical gibberish and evidence-free “innovations” on the nation’s children and their schools.
Potential Grizzlies: Making the Nonsense Bearable is one researcher’s attempt to laugh instead of cry. The book will bring back memories of policymakers from more innocent times, from Michelle Rhee to Arne Duncan to Chris Christie. Sit back and relax with fond thoughts of your favorite policies, from testing to school choice to “parent trigger.” Or maybe just smile and imagine a day when policymakers turn to research evidence and knowledgeable educators to build a sound future for our children.
Foreword by David Berliner.
Acknowledgements.
Introduction.
Chapter 1. The Use of Research (or Not) By Policymakers.
Chapter 2. Reforminess.
Chapter 3. School Choice.
Chapter 4. Reading Wars.
Chapter 5. Billionaires and Their Buddies.
Chapter 6. Those Dreadful Teachers.
Chapter 7. Deregulation, Crisis, and Closure.
Chapter 8. Parent Trigger.
Chapter 9. Budget Reduction.
Chapter 10. Class Size.
Chapter 11. Stratified Opportunity.
Chapter 12. Growth Mindset.
Chapter 13. Screen Time.
Chapter 14. MOOCs.
Chapter 15. Higher Ed Grade Inflation.
Chapter 16. Guns.
Chapter 17. Childhood Obesity and Marketing.
Chapter 18. COVID-19.