The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education - by Diane Ravitch

This may be my favorite book of the year and I am not an education policy geek. Ravitch goes through the major educational reform movements and shows the successes and failures of each. She demonstrates why the worst reform movements are the ones that treat schools like businesses. From New York to San Diego, Ravitch puts in countless hours of research before writing up her findings in surprisingly readable prose. This is a good book that gives great insight into why large urban districts are "failing". I first heard about this book on The Daily Show. The conclusion I drew from the book is that we are much better off with educators in charge of education.