The Twelve-Year Sentence

We force youngsters to stay in school until thru are 16 or so, but what does it achieve? There are some who are uneducable, others whose parents scruple against what is taught in public schools, others who ought not be tied to a Procrustean bed of standardized education. Now a group of discerning radical scholars and attorneys has written a major attack upon compulsion in education, a book that will jar the whole public education establishment. Compulsory schooling guarantees jobs for teachers and secure positions for school administrators - but does it provide the best, most diverse instruction? A number of canny scholars say no: it simply mass produces mediocre multitudes.