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Simply Great 2002-08-10

Reviewer:

In On Mis-Education, the noted activist and scholar Noam Chomsky puts forth a well reasoned analysis of the failure of public eduction in America. Consequently, it should come as no surprise that many americans do not even know how many states are in the United States, or even who their senator or even president is (not that the last matters very much). On the contrary these same citizens can tell you countless bits of information on even the most obscure of Hollywood personalities. The failure that this represents, however, is not completely the fault of the people themselves, although they do bear a vurden for their own lack of intellectual curiosity, it is primarily due to the conserted and intense barage of mindless drivel constantly transmited through our media outlests and schools. In this era of information, TV is often seen as the fountain of truth and as the previous review shows, this is not an all too uncommon thing. Fortunately for us, Chomsky lays it all out and exposes how the media shapes what passes for knowledge in today's world, which comes down to a simple equation of profit and cost.

Misleading title 2001-10-12

Reviewer: Bakari Chavanu

Chomsky and Macedo should have known better: the title of their book is misleading. It should of been titled "Chomsky on Mis-Political Education." I don't have a problem with Chomsky's political analysis, but I was expecting him to talk more about the public and private school system in this country. He only does this in the first chapter, and then rest of this short book focuses on what Chomsky knows best: domestic and international politics. A better book on this subject is "Educating the 'Right' Way: Markets, Standards, God, and Inequality," by Micheal W. Apple.

It wasn't about education 2001-07-27

Reviewer: Gabriella

I wish I could have given this book more stars. I admire Chomsky on many different levels and I was very excited to see this book. I am a teacher as is my husband and we feel there are a lot of anti-teacher, anti-public education, anti-students, etc. attitudes facing us, and we feel many are instigated by the corporate attack on the U.S. We thought, "Great! If there is anyone who can break these issues down and do them justice, it's Chomsky." Unfortunately, like the previous reviews stated, he relied on what he knows best which, as always, is well-argued and very peruasive. Yet, education in the U.S. didn't really fit into the big picture. We are disappointed that we bought a book that we have read before (a pastiche of earlier books). I am very let down that there was no exploration of the current state of education. Any analysis of U.S. education would have been nice. The title is deceptive and I am hurt that he didn't write about an issue that hits close to home for me.

A disappointment, but not really surprising 2000-10-14

Reviewer: Duncan Mitchel

I hate to say it, but this book disappointed me, as a consumer. Be warned, if you have read much Chomsky before, that very little in this book will be new to you, or is unavailable elsewhere, and very little bears on education, mis- or otherwise.

The first chapter is a brief, and I do mean brief, interview of Chomsky by the book's editor, Donaldo Macedo...It does address educational issues, and is interesting except for Chomsky calling Macedo's expressed doubts about claims to objectivity -- Chomsky dismisses this as "postmodernism," which is not only ridiculous but shows one place where the Master jumps on a trendy bandwagon, using "postmodernism" as a term of abuse the way many people use, say, "Political Correctness."

Chapter 2 is a long chapter from Chomsky's 1989 book Necessary Illusions, with some minimal updating in the footnotes. It's a good chapter, and I didn't mind rereading it, but its bearing on education is extremely indirect: it's simply an example of Chomsky's trademark dissection of media/government collusion and lies.

Chapter 3 was delivered as a lecture in South Africa in 1997, originally published there and in the Boston radical magazine Z. It's a good article, analyzing and documenting myths of "free trade" and "free markets." But education? Nope.

Finally, chapter 4 is a transcription of a TV "debate" from the 1980s between Chomsky and the notorious John Silber, then president of Boston University. It's about aid to the contras, the US proxy army against the Sandinistas. This has been excerpted in the documentary Manufacturing Consent. It makes interesting reading now, and it's mildly entertaining to observe a demented and delusional Silber accusing Chomsky of monopolizing the US media on Central American issues. But what does it have to do with education?

The overwhelming bulk of the book, then, has nothing to do with its ostensible topic. Especially if you're new to reading Chomsky, it's not a waste of time to read, but it's not worth your money. If you are curious about Chomsky, get The Chomsky Reader, which as I recall has more material about education than this book does. Shame on Rowman and Littlefield.

this is chomsky 2000-10-08

Reviewer: Jose Berlin

It would not be in the spirit of the book or Chomsky's views if I called him the greatest living American intellectual. He would ask what that means, and perhaps deny that he is.

If one disregards for a moment his thoughtful political activism and his watershed work in lingustics, Chomsky is still one of the most insightful thinkers I have ever come across. In this book, he turns his attention to the way we learn. He concerns himself with the whole learning process, the education system, its flaws. He exposes them with wit and eloquence. Chomsky, as ever, writes without condescension and without pretension.

Even if you disagree with his thoughts, you cannot deny his sheer intellect, his astounding command facts, and his unwavering determination to be clear. As always I'm amazed at his abilities as a scholar and his ability to dissect major probles in our country. This book, as any book, by Chomsky is definitely important.

(A note: This book is published by Rowman & Littlefield; they have accomplished to be a respected publisher of alternative views in academia. Almost anything they publish is important.)