Synthesizing the Readings
1. Now that you have read a wide variety of texts on the topic of education, you have enough schema, or background information, to begin to synthesize the material and build arguments of your own. It’s helpful, though, to pause and discuss how the various readings “converse” with one another before you jump right into a writing assignment. Here are some post-reading discussion questions to help direct your thinking:
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. What is the debate about charter schools in America today? How does it compare to the debate about other forms of school choice, such as vouchers for private schools?
2. Public education is largely funded through taxes. Should education be a public responsibility? Why or why not?
3. What are the benefits of standardized testing in education? What are the drawbacks?
4. Is standardized testing the best way to determine academic success? Why or why not? If not, what are other, possibly better ways to determine success? What are the benefits and drawbacks of other methods?
5. How do charter schools differ from traditional public schools?
6. Based on the readings in this chapter, what are the major arguments against charter schools? What are the major arguments for charter schools?
7. What connections can you make between Ravitch’s and Rosenfeld’s ideas? What connections can you make between Robinson and Chang’s article and Maranto and Shuls’s article?