A Richer, Brighter Vision for American High Schools

Nel Noddings is Lee L. Jacks Professor of Education, Emerita, at Stanford University, California. She is the author of nineteen books, including Critical Lessons: What our Schools Should Teach (2006), Peace Education: How We Come to Love and Hate War (2011) and Education and Democracy in the 21st Century (2013).

• Introduction; 1. Unity of purpose; 2. Vocational programs; 3. What might have been: women's traditional interests; 4. A better adult: continuing the search; 5. Parenting; 6. The Common Core Standards; 7. Critical thinking; 8. Collegiality, caring, and continuity; 9. The curriculum and its setting; 10. Planning, enacting, evaluating; 11. The professional preparation of teachers; 12. Reflecting on the brighter vision.

'It is no small feat to write about truth, beauty, love, and goodness as aims of education. But Noddings does it with aplomb, making clear how high schools must change through the democratic conversations she envisages. Conversations about invigorating vocational education. About integrating parenting, peace, and poverty into every course. About ensuring that each student can choose a path with pride. Noddings warns us that her recommendations are controversial. Controversial to some, perhaps. But essential for us all.' Rena Upitis, Queen's University, Ontario