One: Diane Ravitch’s The Death and Life of the Great American School System. Ravitch, a former advocate of testing and accountability, explains why she changed her mind and now supports the traditional public-school system.
I have a review in the next NR (March 22 cover date, Al Gore on the cover, should be arriving over the next week or so). I highly recommend the book, but I didn’t find it entirely convincing. Subscribers can read my piece already here — just sign up for a free digital account with your subscriber number.
The second: Primary Sources: America’s Teachers on America’s Schools, a report from the Gates Foundation and Scholastic Inc.