| Description |
324 pages ; 24 cm |
| Summary |
"The untold story of the root cause of America's education crisis--and the seemingly endless cycle of multigenerational poverty. It was only after years within the education reform movement that Natalie Wexler stumbled across a hidden explanation for our country's frustrating lack of progress when it comes to providing every child with a quality education. The problem wasn't one of the usual scapegoats: lazy teachers, shoddy facilities, lack of accountability. It was something no one was talking about: the elementary school curriculum's intense focus on decontextualized reading comprehension "skills" at the expense of actual knowledge. In the tradition of Dale Russakoff's The Prize and Dana Goldstein's The Teacher Wars, Wexler brings together history, research, and compelling characters to pull back the curtain on this fundamental flaw in our education system--one that fellow reformers, journalists, and policymakers have long overlooked, and of which the general public, including many parents, remains unaware. But The Knowledge Gap isn't just a story of what schools have gotten so wrong--it also follows innovative educators who are in the process of shedding their deeply ingrained habits, and describes the rewards that have come along: students who are not only excited to learn but are also acquiring the knowledge and vocabulary that will enable them to succeed. If we truly want to fix our education system and unlock the potential of our neediest children, we have no choice but to pay attention"-- Provided by publisher. |
| Contents |
Part one: The way we teach now : all you need is skills. The water they've been swimming in ; A problem hiding in plain sight ; Everything was surprising and novel ; The reading wars ; Unbalanced literacy ; Billions for education reform, but barely a cent for knowledge -- Part two: How we got there : the history behind the content-free curriculum. Émile meets the common core ; Politics and the quest for content -- Part three: How we can change : creating and delivering content-focused curriculum. The Common Core : new life for knowledge, or another nail in its coffin? ; No more jackpot standards ; Don't forget to write ; Scaling up : can it be done? -- Epilogue. |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 271-307) and index. |
| Subject |
Language arts (Elementary) -- United States.
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Education, Elementary -- Curricula -- United States.
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Educational change -- United States.
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Children with social disabilities -- Education (Elementary) -- United States.
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Poor children -- Education (Elementary) -- United States.
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EDUCATION / Educational Policy & Reform / General.
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FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS / Education.
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EDUCATION / Curricula.
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Children with social disabilities -- Education (Elementary)
(OCoLC)fst00855666
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Education, Elementary -- Curricula.
(OCoLC)fst00902959
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Educational change. (OCoLC)fst00903371
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Language arts (Elementary) (OCoLC)fst00992313
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Poor children -- Education (Elementary)
(OCoLC)fst01071179
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United States. (OCoLC)fst01204155
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| Added Title |
Hidden cause of America's broken education system -- and how to fix it |
| ISBN |
9780735213555 (hardcover) |
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0735213550 (hardcover) |
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9780735213579 (ebook) |
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