Common good recommended reading
CG Publications is a collection of op-eds, speeches, resource binders, polls and fact sheets from Common Good.
Other Sources lists education books, studies and links of interest to Common Good readers.
Below are a few selections from each category to get you started.
Common Good Publications Op-ed: Why Freer Schools Are Better Schools
Philip K. Howard, Wall Street Journal, March 25, 2010
Philip K. Howard argues that, while “President Obama's proposed overhaul of No Child Left Behind is long overdue," the 2002 law "is not the root cause of school failure." “Public school failure,” he explains, “can be traced directly to the technique of reform: centralized legal dictates. A steady accretion of law since the 1960s has smothered personality and individual responsibility in schools. There's no oxygen left for educators to build healthy school cultures.” The cure, Howard relates, is in giving teachers and principals the authority to run their classrooms and schools and holding them accountable for their results. "America's schools can never be fixed as long as teachers and principals go through the day responding to rules instead of their common sense," he writes. "We must let the humans take charge again. The guiding principle should be to replace legal dictates with individual responsibility."
Click to view more op-eds Poll: Is Law Undermining Public Education? A Summary of Common Good Poll Results, 2004
July 1, 2004
The fear of lawsuits and the morass of legal bureaucracy in America's public schools is undermining classroom order, hindering learning, and hampering the ability of educators to use their best judgment in day-to-day decisions. The legal culture in public schools has led to second guessing and defensive teaching by educators, who must deal with students and parents increasingly willing to challenge their judgment. In 2004, Common Good commissioned two polls, "Defensive Teaching in Our Public Schools" and "'I'm Calling My Lawyer': How Litigation, Due Process and Other Regulatory Requirements Are Affecting Public Education," to explore these topics with teachers, principals and parents. The results demonstrate the need for change.
Click to view more polls Speech: Howard Speaks at White House Economic Conference
December 15, 2004
Common Good Chair Philip K. Howard was invited by the President to speak at the White House Economic Conference on December 15, 2004.
Click to view more speeches Resource binder: The Effects of Law on Public Schools
A CG Law and Education Resource Binder
Compiled for Common Good's forum entitled, "Is Law Undermining Public Education?"
Click to view more resource binders Fact sheet: Trends in American Justice Click to view more fact sheets Other Sources  Book: Books by CG Chair Philip K. Howard
Read The Collapse of the Common Good: How America's Lawsuit Culture Undermines our Freedom, by CG Chair Philip K. Howard. Also check out his national bestseller, The Death of Common Sense: How Law is Suffocating America.
Click to view more books Link: The Center for Education Reform Click to view more links Study/report: I'm Calling My Lawyer: How Litigation, Due Process and Other Regulatory Requirements Are Affecting Public Education
Public Agenda, November 2003
Click to view more studies/reports | 
