Sacred Trust

Peter W. Cookson, Jr. is the founder of Ideas without Borders, a Washington DC-based educational consulting firm focusing on human rights and 21st century learning. A sociologist of education he has taught and held leadership positions at several leading colleges and universities including Teachers College, Columbia University. After working as a case worker in New York City, Cookson started his teaching career as a fifth grade social studies and English teacher in rural New England. He writes extensively on the topics of equality of educational opportunity, 21st century learning, and school choice. Some of his works include School Choice: The Struggle for the Soul of American Education (Yale University Press), Expect Miracles: Charter Schools and the Politics of Hope and Despair (Westview Press) and What Would Socrates Say? in Educational Leadership.He holds a doctorate in the sociology of education from New York University and a master’s degree from Yale Divinity School, where he held the Katsuso Miho Scholarship in Peacemaking.

"Some of the ideas in this motivating book really push the envelope. I love the idea of establishing an educational trust fund for every American child! Wow, can you imagine how amazing this would be if it really came to fruition?"

• ForewordAcknowledgementsAbout the AuthorIntroduction: A Measure of Our SoulChapter One: The Power of People and the Purpose of Public EducationAll Children DreamEducationally Experimenting on the PoorMadison was Right: A New Policy FrameworkTurning Dreams into RealityThe Obtainable UtopiaBook Study QuestionsPossible Action StepsSuggested Further ReadingChapter Two: The Right to a Safe, Healthy, World-Class Pubic SchoolRight Number 1: The right to a neighborhood public school or a public school of choice that is funded for excellenceThe Great UnequalizerGetting to the Real IssuesMoney---Spent Wisely---Does MatterReclaiming Horace′s DreamBook Study QuestionsPossible Action StepsSuggested Further ReadingRight Number 2: The right to physical and emotional health and safetyDo No Harm: The First ObligationBasic Justice Requires Basic CareHealth and Social HealthBook Study QuestionsPossible Action StepsSuggested ReadingsChapter Three: The Cultural and Individual Rights of StudentsRight Number 3: The right to have his or her heritage, background, and religious differences honored, incorporated in study, and celebrated in the culture of the schoolUnity Within DiversityThe Open Mind and the Open SocietyThe Empathic CivilizationThe Classroom Is the WorldBook Study QuestionsPossible Action StepsSuggested Further ReadingRight Number 4: The right to develop learning styles and strategies to the greatest extent possibleDoubt and Its VirtuesThe Mismatch Between Research and PracticeMaximizing Children′s Talent Through IndividualizationInquiry as a Way of LifeBook Study QuestionsPossible Action StepsSuggested Further ReadingChapter Four: The Right to High Quality Instruction and School LeadershipRight Number 5: The right to an excellent and dedicated teacherWhy Don′t We Ask the Teachers?Elevating TeachingPractical Idealism WorksBook Study QuestionsPossible Action StepsSuggested Further ReadingRight Number 6: The right to a school leader with vision and educational expertiseLeadership for 21st-Century SchoolsNational Educational LeadershipA School Without Vision Is LostBook Study QuestionsPossible Action StepsSuggested Further ReadingChapter Five: The Right to World-Class 21st-Century Curriculum and TechnologyRight Number 7: The right to a curriculum based on relevance, depth, and flexibilityBoredom--The Lucky Two PercentVirtual SocratesEradicating BoredomBook Study QuestionsPossible Action StepsSuggested Further ReadingRight Number 8: The right of access to the most powerful educational technologiesLearning in the Electronic EraWhy a Right to 21st-Century Communication Technologies?Technology, Technopoly, and Cyber SanityWhat Would Socrates Say?Book Study QuestionsPossible Action StepsSuggested Further ReadingChapter Six: The Right to Equality of Educational OpportunityRight Number 9: The right to fair, relevant, and learner-based evaluationsIn the Belly of the BeastWhy a Right to Fair Evaluation?The Einstein Factor, the Picasso Possibility, and the Sanctity of Natural GeniusBook Study QuestionsPossible Action StepsSuggested Further ReadingRight Number 10: The right to complete high schoolThe Tragic Consequences of Educational NeglectWhy a Right to Graduate?What Would the Founders Say?Book Study QuestionsPossible Action StepsSuggested Further ReadingChapter Seven: The Right to Good Government21st-Century Government and a "Sense of the People"A New Department of Education---A National "Seminary of Learning"Organizing for LearningThe Dream RecapturedBook Study QuestionsPossible Action StepsSuggested Further ReadingResource 1: The Historic Issue of Equity and ExcellenceResource 2: The Virginia Declaration of RightsResource 3: Education and the Peace DividendResource 4: Principles of Multicultural EducationReferencesIndex