Lawrence W. Reed

In the following viewpoint, Lawrence W. Reed argues that the low quality of teacher training hampers public education. Standards have been lowered in many liberal arts and education courses in American universities, resulting in incompetent and unqualified teachers, the author reports. Reed is president of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, a free-market research and educational organization headquartered in Midland, Michigan.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to Reed, what percentage of high-school seniors rated as proficient in science and writing in Michigan in 1996"

2. What tends to get emphasized in college freshman composition courses, according to the author"

3. In the opinion of Peter T. Koper, quoted by Reed, why is the teaching of grammar “quintessentially democratizing"”

The sad story of poor student performance in America’s public schools...