The politics of education. (Among the Periodicals).

Preservice teachers and even a few practicing teachers are sometimes surprised to learn that education and politics are strongly connected. In truth, every aspect of schooling is politically based. The international nature of this topic is reflected in these articles about education in Russia, Israel, England, and the United States.

REFORM OF THE SYSTEM OF EDUCATION: What We Are Losing. EKO (Vserossiiskii ekonomicheskii zhurnal), Russian Education and Society, 2002, 44(5), 5-31. This article describes the opinions of "specialists from the system of higher and secondary specialized education, the general education schools, and scientists" (p. 5) in Russia as they contemplated the new round of reforms influencing their education system. Participants discussed the nature of current reforms, the strengths and weaknesses of Russian education, their recommendations for the direction reform should take, and the issue of whether or not to charge tuition and its impact on learning.

In debating these points, many leaders in education and science focused on the use of uniform or standardized tests and the importance of good instruction. Personal qualities of teachers also were considered, in addition to a strong knowledge of individual content area disciplines. The problem of teacher shortages, particularly in the rural areas, also was noted, as was the lack of resources.

While the emphasis of this article was on scholarly debates related to the politics of education reform in Russia, many of the comments made by the teachers and scientists easily could have been made in any other country. It was interesting to note that while each country has its own issues and politics, many of the trends related to education reform are universal.

ROLE CONFLICT AND THE DILEMMA OF PALESTINIAN TEACHERS IN ISRAEL. Makkawi, I., Comparative Education, 2002, 38(1), 39-52. Ibrahim Makkawi "explores the dynamics of conflicting role expectations among Palestinian teachers in Israel while focusing on the ways by which these expectations are generated and shaped by the broader sociopolitical context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and its impact on the educational system" (p. 39). This article provides a comprehensive background of Palestinian education, both before the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948 and after. Another strong point of the article was a table comparing the education goals for teaching history in Jewish schools and in Arab schools in Israel.

The author points out that Palestinian teachers in Israel face a dilemma because they are employed by the Israeli government, yet many have strong feelings about the establishment of a Palestinian state. Palestinian teachers in the West Bank and Gaza, and those who teach in Arab countries, do not face the same potential conflict of interests.

The development of the home-school connections between Arab parents and Israeli schools is also a major challenge. Makkawi effectively describes the conflict between the goals of Palestinian parents and the schools their children attend in Israel: "Since the Palestinians in Israel realized their lack of ability to impact on their formal educational system, they turned to their own non-formal education organizations to foster national identity and cultural pride in their youth" (p. 51).

Educators interested in learning more about Palestinian education in Israel or those wanting to know more about how political conflicts influence the curriculum should find this article informative, thought provoking, and controversial. Furthermore, professionals interested in examining relationships among students, teachers, parents, and the school in a system in which each of these stakeholders has different goals also should find this article of value.

ENCOURAGING ACTIVE CITIZENSHIP. Davies, I., & Evans, M., Educational Review, 2002, 54(1), 6978. This article focuses on the results of teachers', administrators', students', and community agency personnel's perceptions of citizenship education in one local education agency. Three central questions were asked of these participants: 1) What are your plans for developing citizenship education?, 2) How do you characterize citizenship education?, and 3) What do you suggest for the development of a project on citizenship education?

While the local school system was not identified, it was apparent, based on the references to the National Curriculum and the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, that it was located in the United Kingdom. The overwhelming majority of participants in this study supported citizenship education, but many were unsure about the nature of current practices or the "prospects of further development" (p. 69). However, most believed that citizenship education should focus on real-world issues, be inclusive, and also be valued by a wide range of individuals.

Although the content of what is taught in schools is political in nature, this is especially the case with citizenship education. What does it mean to be a good citizen? How should this be taught? The authors conclude that the results of their study could not be generalized. However, other school systems interested in encouraging active citizenship may want to compare their situation to the one the authors described.

SCHOOLING IN CAPITALIST AMERICA REVISITED. Bowles, S., & Gintis, H., Sociology of Education, 2002, 75(1), 1-18. The authors originally published a book titled Schooling in Capitalist America in 1976, which dealt with human development, inequality, and social change. This article was a review of their book in light of the research that has occurred since then.

The authors quote numerous studies conducted over the past quarter of a century that supported their claims in the book; they also report what they now believe were the main shortcomings of the text. Their original book compared what schools actually do and are in the capitalist United States, as opposed to what they should be. While the authors appear to support capitalism and believe that reforms of capitalism are the best way to pursue education goals and objectives in the U.S., they also point out that the original book provided "little guidance to policy makers, teachers, or students who are seeking practical positive steps to bring about long-term improvements in educational structure and practice" (p. 15).

The authors appeared to have a thorough, well-grounded research base that still supports the claims of their original book. Based on their research and other supporting evidence, I hope the authors will provide a sequel to Schooling in Capitalist America that will provide guidance about how to improve education.

EDUCATION POLITICS AND MIDDLE LEVEL BEST PRACTICE: The Clash Continues. Erb, T., Middle School Journal, 2002, 33(4), 4, 6. Developmentally and culturally appropriate programs for middle school students are being eroded by the politics of both district administrations and state teacher certification requirements. For example, middle schools in Kansas no longer can use the process of looping, due to changes in that state's teacher certification process, and because some school and district administrators believe that middle schools should return to a school day of 7 or 8 periods, with subjects taught separately and in an unintegrated manner.

What teachers and researchers know about good middle school education is not what is being implemented. Erb points out that both district and state administrators tend to ignore the research and do what is expedient for the educational bureaucracy. He ends the article by asking the salient question, "Who will advocate for the best interests of young adolescents?" (p. 6).

THE WASHINGTON SCENE. Lewis, A., The Education Digest, 2002, 68(1), 67-71, and 68(2), 66-70. Anne C. Lewis, the current Washington, D.C., correspondent for The Education Digest, has focused some of her recent columns on the No Child Left Behind Act and its ramifications for teacher qualifications, reading, and early childhood education.

In the first article reviewed here, Lewis points out that the federal government's development of guidelines for qualified teaching "never even mentions the idea of having developmental knowledge about children and young people or using research about the ways in which students learn" (p. 67).

Under the No Child Left Behind Act, state and local proposals for reading instruction must include five components: phonics, phone mic awareness, vocabulary, fluency, and text comprehension. However, critics say that important elements such as independent reading are missing, and that too much emphasis is being placed on phonics.

As early childhood programs also are influenced by reading and writing issues, the federal government has set about trying to improve family literacy initiatives in Head Start and Even Start programs. The programs are administered through separate agencies. The current push is for more cooperation between Even Start and Head Start, particularly in the implementation of family literacy programs.

In the second article reviewed here, Lewis emphasizes the impact of the No Child Left Behind Act on teacher education and literacy, focusing on alternative teacher certification and on content tests. However, a majority of Americans surveyed believe that having teachers who are good at designing learning environments and materials and inspiring children are the most important qualities of a good teacher.

In terms of the literacy skills of white students, compared with black or Hispanic students, Lewis reports that "the inequality in skills among students in this country is higher than in nearly all other high-income countries" (p. 68). The No Child Left Behind Act aims to combat this disparity through supplementary services, early intervention, and the community schools movement.

There is no question that the No Child Left Behind Act is highly political. It would be interesting to see how many educators, as opposed to politicians, were involved in its development. Let's hope that No Child Left Behind doesn't turn into Every Teacher Left Behind. To make sure this doesn't happen, educators need to remember the powerful intersection of education and politics and become political activists in seeking the best programs for all children.