School of Dreams

I finished reading School of Dreams, by Edward Humes, this weekend. It's a nonfiction account of a year at Whitney High School, in Cerritos, California, one of the top public high school in the country. I was struck by a variety of things, but namely the fact that the school is hugely successful by doing things that aren't necessarily in vogue right now in education (eg, sticking to a traditional college-prep curriculum). Students tended to have a ton of affection for their curriculum, even when it was kicking their butts. It reminded me of discussions we'd have at Bryn Mawr, where we'd end up begrudgingly admitting that we saw the benefit in the strict set of core requirements. The book as a whole is a pretty serious indictment of "No Child Left Behind," and the strongest statements made in criticism of new testing initiatives and new technology initiatives are made by students themselves. A pretty fascinating read, especially for people like me who have an interest in public education.