E.D. Hirsch Jr.

E.D. Hirsch Jr. is a professor of education and humanities at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. He is also the author of Cultural Literacy and The Schools We Need and Why We Don’t Have Them. In the following viewpoint, Hirsch argues that public schools should be guided by conservative educational policies that emphasize traditional instructional methods such as phonics, fact memorization, and knowledge-based learning. Liberal educational policies that de-emphasize the need for basic skills, rigor, and challenging subject matter lead to a decline in academic achievement and an increase in educational inequities, Hirsch contends. As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to Hirsch, how do the educational theories of Antonio Gramsci and Paulo Freire differ"

2. Why is “individualized instruction” often ineffective, in the author&rsquo...