Stop Beating the Dead Horse: Why the System of Public Education in the United States Has Failed and What To Do About It

People like to blame someone for problems. Many people blame the president, Congress, local school boards, administrators, or teachers for the shortfalls of the public school system. The problem is not that the educators and lawmakers aren’t trying to improve the system; it’s that they just haven’t realized the proverbial horse is dead. If the basic system doesn’t work, all the money and strategies and dedication in the world will not help unless the system itself is replaced. One of the most crucial things the system has failed to do is differentiate between equal educational opportunity for all and equal (or identical) education for all. Instead of trying to make everybody the same, an educational system must ensure equal rights for everyone while still allowing them to develop at their own rate and in their own way. Only then can we have the diversity, creativity, and ingenuity needed to compete in the world today. In this book. I explain why our system has failed (The Dead Horse) and what we can do about it (A New Horse).