Diane Ravitch

Sometimes the most brilliant and intelligent minds do not shine in standardized tests because they do not have standardized minds.

The greatest obstacle to those who hope to reform American education is complacency.

Teachers' working conditions are students' learning conditions

What should we think of someone who never admits error, never entertains doubt but adheres unflinchingly to the same ideas all his life, regardless of new evidence? Doubt and skepticism are signs of rationality. When we are too certain of our opinions, we run the risk of ignoring any evidence that conflicts with our views. It is doubt that shows we are still thinking, still willing to reexamine hardened beliefs when confronted with new facts and new evidence.

Can teachers successfully educate children to think for themselves if teachers are not treated as professionals who think for themselves?

Unless the schools provide our children with a vision of human possibility that enlightens and empowers them with knowledge and taste, they will simply play their role in someone else's marketing schemes. Unless they understand deeply the sources of our democracy, they will take it for granted and fail to exercise their rights and responsibilities.

Without knowledge and understanding, one tends to become a passive spectator rather than an active participant in the great decisions of our time.