Ron Miller (4) (1956–)

With over 25 years of activism under his belt, Ron Miller delivers a good synopsis of the alternative education movement in this 2008 book. He condenses his writing from two PhD dissertations. While his views appear revolutionary, you might be supremely disappointed with the final chapter, which promises little in practical ways of moving the counter-education revolution forward. He offers no discussion of writing your congressperson or departmental bureaucrats (they're in cahoots with show more capitalists) to engage and hammer out issues. Yet, throughout, he considers a revolution in a democracy to be sensible. As an educator, I feel there are many ways to fund and implement educational alternatives to secondary and post-secondary institutions, beyond the entrenched Montessori and Waldorf schools, or the private non-profit edifices which purport to provide a liberal arts education. That aside, Miller's a great writer and makes the case FOR educational alternatives very strong. To innovate and create entrepreneurial spirit, education needs less emphasis on formal standards and testing, and more emphasis on collaboration in the classroom. show less

Sort of dry, but comprehensive overview of the free and democratic school movement. Nice to see everything from Dewey to Summerhill to Holt to Kozol in one academic but sympathetic place. Definitely helped to refine some of my own thinking in terms of where I stand in the "progessive" education continuum as I think about our own homeschooling journey, Curiosity Guild, and education policy advocacy at the community level.

12/5/22