Slaying Goliath

The Passionate Resistance to Privatization and the Fight to Save America's Public Schools

By: Diane Ravitch

Narrated by: Amanda Carlin

Length: 13 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's summary

From one of the foremost authorities on education and the history of education in the United States, Slaying Goliath is an impassioned, inspiring look at the ways in which parents, teachers, and activists are successfully fighting back to defeat the forces that are trying to privatize America’s public schools.

Diane Ravitch writes of a true grassroots movement sweeping the country, from cities and towns across America, a movement dedicated to protecting public schools from those who are funding privatization and who believe that America’s schools should be run like businesses and that children should be treated like customers or products.

Slaying Goliath is about the power of democracy, about the dangers of plutocracy, and about the potential of ordinary people - armed like David with only a slingshot of ideas, energy, and dedication - to prevail against those who are trying to divert funding away from our historic system of democratically governed, nonsectarian public schools. Among the lessons learned from the global pandemic of 2020 is the importance of our public schools and their teachers and the fact that distance learning can never replace human interaction, the personal connection between teachers and students.

©2020 Diane Ravitch (P)2020 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“A fervent defense of public education with abundant examples of how privatization has failed to deliver on its promises.” (Kirkus Reviews)

“[A] thought-provoking, painstakingly researched account.... A rallying cry." (The Washington Post)

A better way forward for our students

Why disrupt/defund public schools so a few can siphon public funding while dodging taxes which families (including teachers) dutifully pay? A thoughtful analysis and critique of woefully misguided attempts to capture the public education market for personal and corporate profit at the expense of school children, teachers and people who must work for a living and pay income and social security taxes.

Great and informative book with robotic narration

Great and informative book from a trustworthy education expert. Unfortunately this book has robotic narration that is displeasing.

A glimpse of hope

this book gave a tremendous amount of hope and examples of triumph in a seemingly impossible situation

Data-backed Slap to the Face of the Privatization Movement in Education

While I seriously struggled with the narration, I think that EVERYONE, especially those with children, should read this book and learn about the dark money and shady political tactics being aimed at the nation’s schools. The American Public Schools has been strong, and will stay strong thanks to the dedicated teachers willing to stand up for ALL children in the US. Read this book!

Outstanding

Every public school system needs to listen to this book for motivation to stay sustainable

Great Subject, Careful On Voicing

I absolutely live this perspective and applaud the in depth evaluation of an industry that needs to be in the hands of the people not profiteers.

I think the author has brilliantly laid out both side of this topic and has given us her important analysis of a world thar is often mired in dark money and powerful elites.

However, whether directed to or not, I felt the voicing of this book was often tainted by the narrator's glib opinion of the opposing side. I agree much of the elite point of view is worthy of dismissal, however THEY believe it is rational and won't listen to counter argument if they are being talked down to.

That said, this book is important, and I applaud the author for her work on it.

Great perspective, way too long

Great information from a knowledgeable author with terrific perspective. However, I really struggled to finish. I understood all the main points at the halfway mark and kept waiting on new ones. Could have been half this length.

Sounds like Gladius from Porthole when sped up

Very compelling book. The narration was so robotic I thought I was listening to a machine. Slugged through it and made it work.

Informative but very preachy

Lots of enlightening information repeated past redundancy, and the bias was downright vitriolic. Weird combination.