Bruce Shortt's book, The Harsh Truth about Public Schools, combines a sound Biblical basis, rigorous research, straightforward, easily read language, and eminently sound reasoning. Whether one is a parent or parent-to-be, pastor, church staff member, or educator, this book has much to offer. It is based, first of all, upon a clear understanding of God's educational mandate to parents. Its second foundation is a thoroughly documented description of the inescapably anti-Christian thrust of any governmental school system and the inevitable results: moral relativism (no fixed standards), academic dumbing down, far-left programs, near absence of discipline, and the persistent but pitiable rationalizations offered by government education professionals.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
139 of 145 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I've known Bruce Shortt for several years. His critics,
and there will be many in the education establishment
when they catch wind of his book, will find the truth
about Bruce hard to take: He is an excellent home schooling
father; from what I can tell, an excellent husband; and
he is certainly an honest researcher into the state of
school-by-government in America today.
Unlike many who carp about "public schools," Bruce does
not believe that if he and his pals could just get in
charge that everything would be OK. He recognizes that
the whole idea of having the government run schools makes
as much sense as having government run factories, farms,
insurance companies, etc.
His critique is not aimed at the PEOPLE in the system.
His critique is about the system itself---that "public
schools" from the beginning were intended to reduce the
role of the family and increase the role of government.
His purpose is not to advise on how to "fix the system."
His advice is to parents: Get your children out of the
system! Home school them if you can. If that's not possible,
find a private school where the textbooks, teachers, and
other parents will be reinforcing what you and your spouse
are teaching your children.
and there will be many in the education establishment
when they catch wind of his book, will find the truth
about Bruce hard to take: He is an excellent home schooling
father; from what I can tell, an excellent husband; and
he is certainly an honest researcher into the state of
school-by-government in America today.
Unlike many who carp about "public schools," Bruce does
not believe that if he and his pals could just get in
charge that everything would be OK. He recognizes that
the whole idea of having the government run schools makes
as much sense as having government run factories, farms,
insurance companies, etc.
His critique is not aimed at the PEOPLE in the system.
His critique is about the system itself---that "public
schools" from the beginning were intended to reduce the
role of the family and increase the role of government.
His purpose is not to advise on how to "fix the system."
His advice is to parents: Get your children out of the
system! Home school them if you can. If that's not possible,
find a private school where the textbooks, teachers, and
other parents will be reinforcing what you and your spouse
are teaching your children.
100 of 106 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Shortt lauches a broadside at the government school system. Some may recall that Mr Shortt was one of the sponsors of a push to get Christians to pull their children en-masse from the public schools. Although the resoltuin never passed Shortt was added to the long list of enemies of the DOE and NEA.
Shortt fires his broadside with a number of weapons, some from the Christian perspective, but most should be of issue to nay parent concerned about the childrens future.
While you can go about whether schools should exclude religion from the curriculum or not - this argument has proponets on both the Christian and secular sides, Shortt's most powerful criticisms have nothing to do with religion.
In my view the points made by the author are very strong indeed and boil down to basically the schools are "dumbing down" the curriculum, children are bored silly and many have to be drugged ( Ritalin, etc ) in order to put up with the hours of stupifying boredom in the dumbed down classes.
Shortt makes a good case. He argues also that reform efforts are futile since the system is structed in a way that will resist any attempts to reform any thing other than cosmetic features.
There are many fine works on the history of public education, and we don't need to go into them extensively here, but Shortt points out that the current system was modeled after the old Prussian system, Prussian schools considered children to be the property of the state. The state treated them that way. They were taught to be obedient to the state and their main purpose is to advance the interests of the state.
For this goal, real education was unnecessary and even counter to the overall intention of public schools. The author makes a strong case that the US public schools are designed exactly in this format.
It certainly explains the current level of literacy in the country. Some states even keep statistics on the illiteracy rate of high school graduates!
This was only the case here in the country AFTER the adoption and evolution of the public schools to it's current form. Many argue that public schools are a failure. Shortt seesm to present the argument that they are accomplishing exactly what they are designed to do: mold the children into willing consumers of the products of big business and obedient servants of government.
The aims of state schools were to transform thinking, highly individualistic and very literate citizens into an unthinking, collectivized mass. The slow but steady decline in literacy of all kinds was a by-product. I have to agree, that is what they are designed to do are succeeding.
Shortt points out that , "The truth is harsh, but simple. Those who control government schools want your children and they want your money. They don't want you sticking your nose into what they consider their business ... " (p. 323).
Shortt's recommendation: vote with your feet. Shortt has an plethora of reasons why Christians ought to homeschool their children or place them in private Christians schools. His arguments ought to be listened to by non-Christians. The dysfunction that has fallen over government-sponsored education, after all, affects Christian and non-Christian children alike.
The truth be known, homeschooled children excel over their public educated couterparts by a wide margin. Most hoemschooled chilren at at least 4 grade levels above their public educated friends.
As Philosopher Stevn Yates points out:
"The "harsh truth about public schools" is that they are an enemy not just of Christianity but of academics, personal and intellectual independence, and even children's safety.
They cannot educate, which is unsurprising since over the past couple of decades their focus has been on inculcating political correctness and teaching job skills ... Their aim has not been education but the production of desirable forms of mass behavior. The government-sponsored educational system is thus the major contributor to the dumbing down of the country."
All parents and not merely Christians owe it to their children to read this book.
Shortt fires his broadside with a number of weapons, some from the Christian perspective, but most should be of issue to nay parent concerned about the childrens future.
While you can go about whether schools should exclude religion from the curriculum or not - this argument has proponets on both the Christian and secular sides, Shortt's most powerful criticisms have nothing to do with religion.
In my view the points made by the author are very strong indeed and boil down to basically the schools are "dumbing down" the curriculum, children are bored silly and many have to be drugged ( Ritalin, etc ) in order to put up with the hours of stupifying boredom in the dumbed down classes.
Shortt makes a good case. He argues also that reform efforts are futile since the system is structed in a way that will resist any attempts to reform any thing other than cosmetic features.
There are many fine works on the history of public education, and we don't need to go into them extensively here, but Shortt points out that the current system was modeled after the old Prussian system, Prussian schools considered children to be the property of the state. The state treated them that way. They were taught to be obedient to the state and their main purpose is to advance the interests of the state.
For this goal, real education was unnecessary and even counter to the overall intention of public schools. The author makes a strong case that the US public schools are designed exactly in this format.
It certainly explains the current level of literacy in the country. Some states even keep statistics on the illiteracy rate of high school graduates!
This was only the case here in the country AFTER the adoption and evolution of the public schools to it's current form. Many argue that public schools are a failure. Shortt seesm to present the argument that they are accomplishing exactly what they are designed to do: mold the children into willing consumers of the products of big business and obedient servants of government.
The aims of state schools were to transform thinking, highly individualistic and very literate citizens into an unthinking, collectivized mass. The slow but steady decline in literacy of all kinds was a by-product. I have to agree, that is what they are designed to do are succeeding.
Shortt points out that , "The truth is harsh, but simple. Those who control government schools want your children and they want your money. They don't want you sticking your nose into what they consider their business ... " (p. 323).
Shortt's recommendation: vote with your feet. Shortt has an plethora of reasons why Christians ought to homeschool their children or place them in private Christians schools. His arguments ought to be listened to by non-Christians. The dysfunction that has fallen over government-sponsored education, after all, affects Christian and non-Christian children alike.
The truth be known, homeschooled children excel over their public educated couterparts by a wide margin. Most hoemschooled chilren at at least 4 grade levels above their public educated friends.
As Philosopher Stevn Yates points out:
"The "harsh truth about public schools" is that they are an enemy not just of Christianity but of academics, personal and intellectual independence, and even children's safety.
They cannot educate, which is unsurprising since over the past couple of decades their focus has been on inculcating political correctness and teaching job skills ... Their aim has not been education but the production of desirable forms of mass behavior. The government-sponsored educational system is thus the major contributor to the dumbing down of the country."
All parents and not merely Christians owe it to their children to read this book.
61 of 63 people found the following review helpful
By qrnow
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
First of all I am not a Christian so I don't have an axe to grind with regards to that point of view. I do have an M.Ed. and 4 children 3 of whom have graduated from college and another in his second year majoring in Chemical Engineering and doing quite well. That said after reading Shortt's book here are my brief perceptions since some excellent reviews have already been written.
The book is very well researched and annotated with an extensive bibliography. The Christian theme is not overbearing and does not detract from the information presented. The points that Shortt makes are cogent and significant and validated by ample research and anecdotal examples.
The fact that Shortt is not a teacher should not impact on one's decision to read the book. Teachers have been indoctrinated by the same educational system that they are now a part of and very naturally participate in supporting a $500 Billion system which provides them with their livlihood. How objective can we expect them to be? That's like asking a fish swimming in polluted water to evaluate the quality of the water he is living in. (Assuming, of course, that we are dealing with an educated fish who can converse intelligently with us as well.)
The fact is, teachers have a lot at stake and are not apt to rock the boat and make any kind of appreciable difference in the system that they help to support. And even if they did, controls from the top would probably suppress it in some way that maintained an even keel in the status quo and made sure that no meaningful or lasting change in direction would actually take place.
Rather than rehash other reviews let me just say this. As a life long self educator who is constantly reading and the father of four children who are products of the public school system had I have read this book sooner, my children would either have been home schooled, privately educated or given a private religious school education. The present system is not a system of education but rather a system of indoctrination. We are dumbing down our children and they are being injected with the viewpoints of controlling elites who do not want their lies being passed off as truth, questioned by inquisitive open minds.
As Shortt points out in his chapter- School Reform: A Popular Delusion, it is very unlikely that any real reforms will take place within the system. It is too entrenched and the amount of money at stake is astronomical. Plus the NEA and educational lobby is very powerful and as mentioned before would be one of the forces to suppress real reform which is probably not likely to happen anyway.
Shortt also points out with a well documented example from Kansas City where a school district was given all the money they wanted to overhaul their system and the end result was a decline in educational performance not an increase. So money doesn't appear to be the answer as well although educators would have you believe different as our school taxes continue to rise.
My suggestions would be to acquire the book if you have any interest in the education of your children and/or grand children and read it and make your own decisions. It is well researched and written in an easy to read and interesting manner.
Additionally, Shortt does not leave you without resources and alternatives if you wish to pursue a different educational direction for your own or other's children as he provides many links and sites and additional reading to help you to launch your own research into the alternatives.
If you are not Christian, I would not that be an issue preventing you from examining the material presented. Shortt does not proselytize to the point of distraction in this book. Quite frankly, I came away with a softer view of a potential Christian educational orientation. I would rather have my children be provided with a Christian moral compass (even if I do have some issues with it) than the immoral, free for all being passed off in the educational system today.
Plus, you remember that fish that I was talking with earlier? Well, he also highly recommends the book as well. And if a fish recommends it.....well I think that just speaks for itself, don't you?
The book is very well researched and annotated with an extensive bibliography. The Christian theme is not overbearing and does not detract from the information presented. The points that Shortt makes are cogent and significant and validated by ample research and anecdotal examples.
The fact that Shortt is not a teacher should not impact on one's decision to read the book. Teachers have been indoctrinated by the same educational system that they are now a part of and very naturally participate in supporting a $500 Billion system which provides them with their livlihood. How objective can we expect them to be? That's like asking a fish swimming in polluted water to evaluate the quality of the water he is living in. (Assuming, of course, that we are dealing with an educated fish who can converse intelligently with us as well.)
The fact is, teachers have a lot at stake and are not apt to rock the boat and make any kind of appreciable difference in the system that they help to support. And even if they did, controls from the top would probably suppress it in some way that maintained an even keel in the status quo and made sure that no meaningful or lasting change in direction would actually take place.
Rather than rehash other reviews let me just say this. As a life long self educator who is constantly reading and the father of four children who are products of the public school system had I have read this book sooner, my children would either have been home schooled, privately educated or given a private religious school education. The present system is not a system of education but rather a system of indoctrination. We are dumbing down our children and they are being injected with the viewpoints of controlling elites who do not want their lies being passed off as truth, questioned by inquisitive open minds.
As Shortt points out in his chapter- School Reform: A Popular Delusion, it is very unlikely that any real reforms will take place within the system. It is too entrenched and the amount of money at stake is astronomical. Plus the NEA and educational lobby is very powerful and as mentioned before would be one of the forces to suppress real reform which is probably not likely to happen anyway.
Shortt also points out with a well documented example from Kansas City where a school district was given all the money they wanted to overhaul their system and the end result was a decline in educational performance not an increase. So money doesn't appear to be the answer as well although educators would have you believe different as our school taxes continue to rise.
My suggestions would be to acquire the book if you have any interest in the education of your children and/or grand children and read it and make your own decisions. It is well researched and written in an easy to read and interesting manner.
Additionally, Shortt does not leave you without resources and alternatives if you wish to pursue a different educational direction for your own or other's children as he provides many links and sites and additional reading to help you to launch your own research into the alternatives.
If you are not Christian, I would not that be an issue preventing you from examining the material presented. Shortt does not proselytize to the point of distraction in this book. Quite frankly, I came away with a softer view of a potential Christian educational orientation. I would rather have my children be provided with a Christian moral compass (even if I do have some issues with it) than the immoral, free for all being passed off in the educational system today.
Plus, you remember that fish that I was talking with earlier? Well, he also highly recommends the book as well. And if a fish recommends it.....well I think that just speaks for itself, don't you?
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Irrefutable evidence, great book
I won't elaborate on my impressions on the book, as I would be repeating what the rest of the reviewers are saying. Read more
Published 1 month ago by David L. Maddox
5.0 out of 5 stars
Extremely insightful
As a former public school teacher who taught in the Maryland public school system for twenty years and a person who has been in life for seventy years, this book is spot on in its... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Mike
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Landmark Book
Why are you educating your children at a pagan seminary?
This question, posed by Bruce Shortt, deserves to be asked to thousands of Christian parents. Read more
This question, posed by Bruce Shortt, deserves to be asked to thousands of Christian parents. Read more
Published 9 months ago by J McMurdo
5.0 out of 5 stars
Every Christian should read this book
This is an OUTSTANDING and well written expose' on the problems with the government system of schooling. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Veritas
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Tragic Truth About Public Education
First, a disclaimer. Shortt writes as a Christian who feels that Christian children must have a godly education. It's safe to predict that Christians will appreciate this book. Read more
Published on November 18, 2010 by Bruce Deitrick Price
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Harsh Truth About Public Schools
After my naval career, I became a public school teacher in Maryland for seventeen years wherein I had confirmed all of my fears about public education that I suspected as a father... Read more
Published on October 15, 2009 by Michael B. Greenstreet Sr.
5.0 out of 5 stars
The truth is harsh alright
If you believe that the public schools are basically good, you're in for a shock. The truth is, as the title suggests, very harsh. Read more
Published on October 9, 2007 by The Actor
5.0 out of 5 stars
A must read for all parents!!!
I have 3 children, two girls ages 6 and a half, one 3 year old and my son is 18 months. My husband and I decided to homeschool this year due to the deterioration of the system we... Read more
Published on September 10, 2007 by Brandi
5.0 out of 5 stars
Loud and Clear Warning
Bruce Shortt's book is one of best I've ever read on America's public school system, and I've read about two dozen of them. Read more
Published on July 5, 2007 by R. C. Murray
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brace yourself for brutally honest information
This is our 18th year of home-educating and I've read many books on public school education. When I ordered it, I couldn't imagine how much different this book could be. Read more
Published on November 9, 2006 by R. Sundeen
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