Special interest : teachers unions and America's public schools

Terry M. Moe

Public education is among the most contentious areas of American public policy. The stakes are huge, for children and for the nation. Yet despite a quarter century of perpetual effort, reformers have largely failed to effect major change. Why are the schools still burdened by ineffective organization? Why has reform been so difficult and disappointing? A frustrated public is increasingly looking at the powerful teachers unions. From the Race to the Top program to Waiting for Superman, the unions seem to be at the center of the action-and the inaction. Despite their huge influence, teachers unions have been the subject of relatively little serious study. In Special Interest, longtime education analyst Terry Moe fills that void. His treatment of the unions is kaleidoscopic in its coverage-of their rise to power, the organizational foundations of that power, the ways in which they've exercised it in collective bargaining and the political process, and the consequences for America's schools. How do we explain their intentions and strategies? Are unions a necessary component of public schooling? Or are they obstacles to reform, putting their own interests ahead of their students? The time is right for a thorough, honest, and intellectually sound analysis that helps us understand these pivotal players in U.S. education. Moe clearly illustrates how unions have used their power to shape the public schools in ways that are ill-suited for effective performance and to stifle reforms. He sees union power as a fundamental problem, and unless that problem is somehow overcome-no small challenge-the nation's schools will never be organized to provide children with the best possible education. In his final chapter, however, Moe describes a light at the end of the tunnel. The nation now stands at a critical juncture-with the stars lining up to enable a long-term (but slow) decline in union power, and with it a true breakthrough in education reform. In part, this is due to a sea change in the politics of education, with the unions increasingly and many Democrats-their traditional allies-demanding reform. But there is a more overwhelming force at work here, as well. The revolution in information technology is destined to transform public education and in the process weaken the unions considerably. The combination will be bring about a new era for America's schools-an era in which the unions are no longer the dominant power, and schools can be organized in the best interests of kids.

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この本の情報

書名 Special interest : teachers unions and America's public schools
著作者等 Moe, Terry M.
出版元 Brookings Institution Press
刊行年月 c2011
ページ数 x, 513 p.
大きさ 25 cm
ISBN 9780815721291
NCID BB05660325
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言語 英語
出版国 アメリカ合衆国
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