Deliberate Dumbing Down of America Public Education

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The Serious Seventies : c. 1972

two or more choices?” JACKSON: “No question in my mind that Joyce is onto something of great importance. Problem here has to do with claims of effectiveness rather than evidence of effective ness. Relationship between teacher behavior and student achievement.” (UNKNOWN PANEL MEMBER) “There are thousands of investigations to support Skinner strategies.” The following excerpt from the “Models of Teacher Repertoire Training”—which includes most of the highly controversial behavior modification methods in existence—is taken from Models of Teaching by Joyce and was furnished to this writer by the Maine Facilitator Center in Auburn, Maine in 1985. 4 Direct Instruction—Benjamin Bloom, Madeline Hunter, James Block and Ethna Reid [How interesting that Joyce identifies the four most influential devel opers and promoters of Skinnerian “Mastery Learning/Teaching” with “Direct Instruction,” which is the method attributed to Siegfried Engelmann and called for in the Reading Excellence Act of 1998 , ed.] (2) Personal Family—How does each person develop his/her unique possibilities? Nondirective Teaching—Carl Rogers Synectics—Thomas Gordon Classroom Meetings—William Glasser (3) Social Models—How does the individual relate to society or other people? Jurisprudential Inquiry—Oliver and Shaver Role Playing—Shaftel, Chesler and Fox (1) Information Processing—how do students acquire and act on information? Concept Attainment—Jerome Bruner, Goodnow, Austin Inductive Thinking—Hilda Taba

(4) Behavioral Models—How is visible behavior changed? Training Model Stress Reduction—Decker Assertiveness Training—Wolpe, Lazarus

[Ed. Note: The writer has given extensive coverage to Models of Teaching since these teacher behavior modification training programs have been in effect for thirty years and are probably the most inclusive. It includes many, if not all of the controversial methods about which parents complain, if they are lucky enough to find out they are being used. Most parents are unaware of these manipulative methods intended to change their children’s behavior. Considering the prevalence of behavior modification in the schools it is a wonder our schools and our children are not in worse shape than they are. There has obviously been immense teacher and student resistance to this type of manipulation.]

P RESIDENT R ICHARD N IXON CREATED THE N ATIONAL I NSTITUTE OF E DUCATION (NIE) IN 1972. Serving as a presidential assistant at that time, Chester Finn (who would later be appointed assistant secretary of education, Office of Educational Research and Improvement under