Politics, Markets, and America's Schools [Paperback]

John E. Chubb (Author), Terry M. Moe (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0815714092 | ISBN-13: 978-0815714095 | Publication Date: July 1, 1990

During the 1980s, widespread dissatisfaction with America's schools gave rise to a powerful movement for educational change, and the nation's political institutions responded with aggressive reforms. Chubb and Moe argue that these reforms are destined to fail because they do not get to the root of the problem. The fundamental causes of poor academic performance, they claim, are not to be found in the schools, but rather in the institutions of direct democratic control by which the schools have traditionally been governed. Reformers fail to solve the problem-when the institutions ARE the problem. The authors recommend a new system of public education, built around parent-student choice and school competition, that would promote school autonomy- thus providing a firm foundation for genuine school improvement and superior student achievement.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

John E. Chubb is a founding partner of Edison Schools and a nonresident senior fellow in Governmental Studies at the Brookings Institution.

Terry M. Moe is professor of political science at Stanford University and senior fellow at the Hoover Institution. He has written extensively on American education and American political institutions.

Product Details

• Paperback: 340 pages
• Publisher: Brookings Institution Press (July 1, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0815714092
• ISBN-13: 978-0815714095
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #345,826 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Foundational book for those serious about improving public schools!, February 22, 2011

By 

M Fredenburg - See all my reviews

This review is from: Politics, Markets, and America's Schools (Paperback)

Politics, Markets and America's schools was published over 20 years ago, but having stayed current in the debate I can highly recommend this book as still being highly relevant for today's debate on how to reform public education.

First and foremost any one star reviewer labeling this as right-wing propaganda did not read it or is willing to lie about what they read.

The Brooking Institute is hardly a conservative think-tank. In fact it is notably a moderate think tank. At the time of publication both Terry Moe and John Chubb were distinguished professors at Stanford University. They are hardly right-wing ideologues. What they are is very knowledgeable and credible academics concerned about the dismal state of public education.

In fact Politics, Markets and America's schools is a scholarly, yet accessible treatment of the factors that contribute to successful schools.

Moe and Chubb do cross-sectional studies of dozens existing studies that examine educational performance and come to their conclusions based upon real data, not ideology.

This book is not an attack on the concept public education, but instead is a critique of what public education has become and how it is structured. Moe and Chubb point out exactly why pubic education is failing and will continue to fail unless some fairly radical actions are taken.

If you want a book that provides a unbiased view of the state of public education (everything they said in 1990 is even more true today) and then makes concrete suggestions on how to improve it, then Politics, Market's and America's Schools is an excellent read that provides a great foundation for this very important debate.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An important work to consider on school choice, June 15, 2010

By 

Steven A. Peterson (Hershey, PA (Born in Kewanee, IL)) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Politics, Markets, and America's Schools (Paperback)

How can we enhance students' performance in America's schools? This is a question raised by many people. One answer has been to enhance choice--whether through vouchers or charter schools or. . . .

One of the most important recent work advocating choice is Chubb and Moe's Politics, Markets, and America's Schools. They present a three part argument: (1) private schools have lower levels of bureaucratic influence; (2) less bureaucratic influence makes school organization more functional; (3) better organized schools produce greater achievement gains among their students. Three separate multiple regression statistical analyses provide modest support for their contentions.

While I do not see any evidence that there is one single "silver bullet" that can magically transform American schools, this book is important to look at as part of a wider dialogue. I think that choice by itself won't make a huge difference; however, it might be one part of a larger picture. And this book is an important component of that debate. . . .

2 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Hacks, December 17, 2010

By 

Robert B. Rogers (ramona, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Politics, Markets, and America's Schools (Paperback)

Chubb and Moe are the worst examples of extreme right wing academics who have no first hand knowledge of public schools and work to replace the world's best system of public education (hardly perfect, but continuously improving --in spite of NCLB, etc.) with privatization. This book is a good example of propaganda intended to mislead, misinform, and misdirect.