|
Diane Ravitch is a historian of education, an educational policy analyst, and former United States Assistant Secretary of Education who is now a research professor at New York University's Steinhardt School of Education. She was born in 1938 in Houston, Texas, where she went to public schools. She is a graduate of Wellesley College, has a Ph.D. from Columbia University, and lives in Brooklyn, New York City. Her most recent book The Language Police (2003) was a criticism of both left-wing and right-wing attempts to stifle the study and expression of views deemed unworthy by those groups. (See political correctness and multiculturalism). The book asserts that "pressure groups from the political right and left have wrested control of the language and content of textbooks and standardized exams, often at the expense of the truth (in the case of history), of literary quality (in the case of literature), and of education in general". [1] Publishers Weekly wrote: "Ravitch contends that these sanitized materials sacrifice literary quality and historical accuracy in order to escape controversy." [2] Ravitch began her career as an editorial assistant at The New Leader magazine, a small journal devoted to democratic ideas. In 1975, she became a historian of education with a Ph.D. from Columbia University. At that time she worked closely with Teachers College president Lawrence A. Cremin. Her critique of multiculturalism and her calls for higher standards in public life have drawn fire. However, she is not easy to characterize politically as she was appointed to public office by both President of the United States George H. W. Bush and his successor Bill Clinton. In her political views and in her record she is independent. Her eight honorary degrees include degrees from Reed College, Williams College, Amherst College, State University of New York, St. Joseph's College in Patchogue, New York, Ramapo College, Union College, and Middlebury Language Schools. In 2005, she received the John Dewey Award from the United Federation of Teachers of New York City; the Gaudium Award from the Breukelein Institute of Brooklyn; and the Uncommon Book award from the Hoover Institution. She is also a board member of the Albert Shanker Institute. She has participated in a "blog debate" with Steinhardt School colleague Deborah Meier on the website of Education Week since February 26th, 2007.[3]
|
