Renowned education author Alfie Kohn will give a lecture titled ?The Standards-and-Testing Juggernaut: Rescuing Education from ?School Reform?? on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2013, at 7:30 p.m. in the Perkins Student Center Auditorium. This lecture is free and open to the public.
According to Kohn, politicians have imposed a corporate-style, test-driven series of mandates and one-size-fits-all approach in the name of higher standards and accountability. The effect has been to squeeze the intellectual life out of our schools, hurt those who most need help, divest local school districts of autonomy, and ultimately undermine public education.
In his talk, Kohn explains how this heavy-handed version of school reform, which is typically defended in terms of economic competitiveness rather than what?s best for students, is inconsistent with good practice, research, and values. He argues that it is not a fact of life to be accepted but a political movement that can be opposed.
Kohn is the author of twelve books, including Punished by Rewards, The Schools Our Children Deserve, What Does it Mean to be Well Educated?, The Homework Myth, and, most recently, Feel-Bad Education. He has been described by Time magazine as ?perhaps the country?s most outspoken critic of education?s fixation on grades [and] test scores.? Kohn lives (actually) in the Boston area and (virtually) at www.alfiekohn.org.
This presentation is part of the Arts and Lecture series. For more information, contact the Office of Student Life at 610-396-6076.