Education myths - The longer they live, the dumber we become...

Jay Greene does a great job debunking "Education Myths" in this article that I found through Renew America.

The "money myth"...the "teacher pay myth"...the "myth of insurmountable problems"...the "class size myth"...the "certification myth"...the "rich school myth"...the "myth of ineffective school vouchers". Read 'em and spread the truth!

Myths aren't lies. They are beliefs that people adopt because they have an air of plausibility. But myths aren't true, and they often get in the way during serious problem-solving. This essay identifies seven common myths that dominate established views of education these days. Dispelling these misconceptions could open the door to long-awaited improvement in our nationÍs schools.

Read the rest here.

Here's the closing:

... Over the past 30 years, many of our education policies have been based on beliefs that clear-eyed research has recently shown to be false. Virtually every area of school functioning has been distorted by entrenched myths. Disentangling popular misconceptions from our education system--and establishing fresh policies based on facts that are supported by hard evidence--will be the work of at least a generation.

That work will be especially difficult because powerful interest groups with reasons to protect and extend the prevailing mythology will oppose any rethinking. But with time, and diligent effort by truth-tellers, reality and reason have triumphed over mythology in many other fields. There is no reason they can't prevail in schoolhouses as well.

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