Forty years ago today, the Reagan administration released the influential “A Nation at Risk” report, detailing how America’s educational system was failing many students and recommending school leaders to adopt new standards and to reevaluate teacher preparation and pay. (See our special documentary: The inside story of the 36 pages that changed American education)
To mark today’s anniversary, ˶ sat down with a trio of leading education experts to look back at the past four decades of school reform and student progress: Former Education Secretary Margaret Spellings, the Fordham Institute’s Chester E. Finn, and USC Education Professor Morgan Polikoff. — and how America’s schools have performed in the generation since.
—Directed by James Fields; Produced by Emmeline Zhao