With a straightforward, fluid tone which requires little intellectual stretching for those who are not completely caught up in the domain of K12 education but will strike a pitch-perfect chord with practicing teachers (making it a great gift for anyone), Cody not only calls into question the reasons for Gates' interest in "fixing" public schools but offers common sense, research-supported, best-practice-informed options to truly, fully address issues like poverty, teacher quality and retention, and student achievement.
For example, he attacks Gates' faith in Value-Added Measures of teacher effectiveness, citing research which shows poverty is a much more pervasive factor than a classroom teacher when it comes to affecting students' academic outcomes on certain types of assessments. Cody suggests focusing on the root causes of poverty (along with racial isolation) and eliminating them would be a more appropriate way for Gates to spend his time and money if he is serious about improving learning conditions.
He challenges Gates' and other reformers' penchant for focusing on college- and career-readiness as the goals of K12 systems and favors instead the goal of allowing "every child to develop his/her talent, and bring[ing] each one of the into full membership in our economic, cultural, and social community" (88). He advocates for teacher autonomy, creativity, and trust in a setting free from oppressive top-down mandates and high-stakes testing.
Though Cody never accuses Gates of profiteering from his reform efforts, he does assert Gates' pro-market influence regarding public education is deeply flawed and undermines democracy, local control, and Gates' own spoken goals of making education more equitable.
A lack of appendix makes note-taking in the margins of utmost import, though Cody does cite additional sources via numbered end notes. Despite the omission of an appendix for the erudite and those in need of quick references -- and readers will want to return to the text again and again to help inform their thinking, make their own points, and influence their constituencies -- if I were teaching a course on Contemporary Education Reform, Cody's The Educator and the Oligarch would make for splendid required reading alongside Reign of Error and Chronicle of Echoes. I recommend it for everyone teaching, interested in teaching, or concerned with American public education.
(Read more from Anthony Cody at his blog *Living in Dialogue * and review his archives for *Education Week.*)
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