The New York Times Thomas Lepuschitz, one of 46 Austrians recruited by New York City to help ease the shortage of math and science teachers, told a New York Times reporter recently that he thought it strange that the state required even the slowest students to take math and science in order to graduate. It’s […]
Robert Reich
Robert B. Reich, a co-founder of The American Prospect, is a professor of public policy at the Goldman School of Public Policy at the University of California at Berkeley. He is the author of Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few, one of the books featured in the Prospect’s High School Essay Contest.
Posted inEducation in America
How Selective Colleges Heighten Inequality
The Chronicle Review Not long ago, the president of a prestigious university (not the one in which I now teach) was explaining his strategy to me. “We’re very selective, but we need to become even more selective,” he said. “Our SAT’s are rising, but not as fast as I’d like. We should be on par […]
Posted inEducation in America
The Case for ‘Progressive’ Vouchers
The Wall Street Journal Education tops the list of Americans’ concerns. But there’s no agreement on what to do about it. The biggest emerging battle is between people who advocate school choice and those who want more money for schools. George W. Bush wants to give vouchers to poor kids in failing schools so they, […]
Posted inArticle
Drop Your Standards
The Times Higher Education Supplement The latest rage in education on both sides of the Atlantic is standardized tests. Tests have been around for a long time, of course, but have never been employed to the extent they are now. Young people are now being tested and then retested a year or two later, and […]
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Stop ‘Spinning’ and Start Fixing the Economy
The Los Angeles Times Almost everyone agrees that the economy needs a kick. Anxieties about terrorism, job losses and record household debt are causing consumers to pull in their belts. Businesses have all but stopped spending. So why is the federal government’s much-heralded “stimulus plan” getting nowhere? Blame politics. Senate Democrats and House Republicans are […]
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Lost Jobs, Ragged Safety Net
The New York Times The economic fallout from terrorism is hitting some Americans much harder than others, and we need to respond. Last year, when the slowdown began, layoffs and pay cuts hit hardest at manufacturing workers, white-collar managers and professionals. But since the terrorist attacks, consumers have cut their spending, and now a different […]
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Why Bush’s Trade Agenda Is Going Nowhere
Broadcast November 8, 2001 The trade talks starting this weekend are a side show to the main trade event. That’s a bill that the White House has been pushing to give the president what’s now dubbed “trade promotion authority.” It would allow Congress to vote yes or no on any new trade treaty, but not […]
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Prescription Drugs and More
Broadcast August 16, 2001 Just about the only thing George W. Bush and Al Gore agreed on during that interminable campaign last year was a prescription drug benefit for the elderly. Well, the first 100 days of the Bush administration came and went and still no prescription drug benefit, which isn’t surprising. Prescription drugs are […]
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Security and Privacy
Aired September 12, 2001 Before yesterday, national security was mainly a matter of protecting our borders and containing foreign aggressors. We assumed that with enough border guards, a large enough missile defense shield and a sufficiently equipped military, we could keep bad things out. Inside `Fortress America,’ we could lead our private lives pretty much […]
Posted inArticle
Finding our Enemy
Broadcast September 13, 2001 This morning the cleanup and grieving continue, and America is getting back to work. Talk also continues about retribution and war. Some Americans are feeling impatient to strike back at those who participated in any way in these horrific events. There is mounting public pressure to retaliate against our enemies, to […]