Bruce Deitrick Price

Why no large-scale testing of American education ideas?

So much of modern, progressive education pretends to be based on big insights and massive research.

An Executive’s Guide To Today’s Under-Educated Employees

Big Business (and the Pentagon) often complain that teenagers are not prepared for work in the real world.

Education: What a Wonderful World It Would Be

What a wonderful world it would be if, for example, the people in charge of our public schools really believed in knowledge. If, for example, the National Council of Teachers of English, really loved English. If the National Council of Teachers of Math, really loved math. Alas, that does not seem to be the case.

Public school education—there’s bad news and good news

The bad news is that John Dewey’s “progressives” are winning big. They mobilized every educational front group and every pedagogical gimmick to achieve the goal of controlling what goes on in the schools, as a way of achieving a fundamental transformation of America, to coin a phrase.

Education: None Dare Call Them Commies

Historically, Socialism and Communism were sometimes synonyms. But generally there was a sense that Socialism was softer. If you had enough power, you moved on to Communism, which was more coercive.

New World Order: “In your face, peasants!”

Or as Marie Antoinette said: “Let them eat cake.” For most people, the field of education is now a big swamp of claims and counterclaims that never seem to be resolved. People give up trying to make sense of it. It’s a safe bet that the Education Establishment likes this surrender just fine.

Education as Covert Op

If you say to someone, "Your life can be improved, here is a set of rules, follow them and you will be a better and happier person," that's a legitimate approach. That's Buddhism with its Eightfold Path, Christianity with its Ten Commandments, the Boy Scouts with their Code.

Teachers, Facilitators, Babysitters: is there a difference?

A few years ago the city of Virginia Beach paid a Harvard consultant to come down and announce the big news: teachers must stop teaching.

They mean well. They just can't get their act together

Perhaps the most repeated cliché in American education is this: "They mean well. They just can't get their act together."

Biggest bullies in the public schools: the Education Establishment

We hear a lot about bullying as if it’s as common as cheering at a football game.

The K-12 Lobotomy

An acquaintance sent this note: “My sister tells of teaching math to college freshmen. The question was: If X plus 5 = 10, what is the value of X? It took her an entire week to get the kids to finally say ‘5.’ So the following Monday, just on a hunch, she gave them another problem: If Y plus 5 = 10, what is the value of Y? And no one could answer!”

English Hieroglyphics are fun and easy to read

Hey, wait a minute, you’re thinking. There’s no such thing as English hieroglyphics. There are Egyptian hieroglyphics, Sumerian hieroglyphics, maybe some others. But English? No way.

Is your child suffering from schoolitis??

Observe your child carefully. Does he have trouble reading even simple materials? Does he struggle with elementary arithmetic? Does your child seem to be learning very little basic knowledge? Is your child anxious and unhappy? Is he reluctant to go to school, to the point where he seems to be sick a lot? 0h oh, your child has it bad. Schoolitis.

What really happened to boys?

Four years ago, psychologist Leonard Sax (MD, PhD) wrote a well-received book titled “Boys Adrift.” The doctor tried to answer the question, why have so many young males fallen into passivity and indifference?

Bogus reading instruction is the 800-pound quack in many classrooms

The single most important aspect of education is reading. If children are not reading, their entire education comes to a halt. That’s what has happened in millions of lives.

SIght-Words Remain Biggest Problem in Reading

Ever since progressive educators introduced sight-words into American public schools in 1930, the country has been wracked by high levels of illiteracy. It is not just a useless pedagogy, it is a dangerous pedagogy because it creates cognitive damage such as dyslexia and ADHD.

When children are not learning, where can parents look for answers? Who will tell the truth?

The experts, you say? The same people, you mean, who shaped and controlled the schools where these kids aren’t learning? These experts do not inspire confidence. There are too many signs of failure and dysfunction. It’s as if we glanced into the kitchen of a restaurant and saw insects scurrying on counters. No matter how fancy the decor, we should be suspicious.

College professors should be more involved in K-12 education

College professors should be more involved in K-12 education.

Everyone Should “Oppose” Public Education

It’s a long-running motif in American intellectual history. Critics of public schools are said to be misinformed, vicious people who want only to destroy education.

Imagine making children illiterate

Not all at once, by some surgical procedure. No, this will be a slow, subtle process, taking place over years. Every step will be conducted with utmost seriousness. Scientific validity will be claimed. Endless research will be constantly referenced.