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BOOK REVIEW The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids by Alexandra Robbins Hyperion - August 2006 Read an Excerpt from this Book
Reviewed by Dr. Jonathan Dolhenty This is a very disturbing book, but the problems with which it deals should come as no surprise to anyone who keeps up on current affairs and what is happening in the education "business." Furthermore, the facts and anecdotes related in this book constitute an indictment of the way in which "schooling" in this country is perceived and administered by education "experts," political "leaders," the students involved, their families, and our society in general. In my opinion, The Overachievers presents its case well and its author, Alexandra Robbins, deserves a note of thanks for addressing the issues she does and bringing them to national attention at this time. The reason I say this is simple: It appears again that the federal educational bureaucrats implementing the latest "fads" in teaching and administration, under pressure from political leaders more interested in votes and public-opinion polls than what is best for the students in our schools, and with the "blessing" of large companies who make huge profits providing educational "services" and products, have created an environment where undue, unhealthful, and un-academic practices are promoted in the name of "educational progress." The main thrust of Robbins' book is ably stated on the inside of the dust jacket: "High school isn't what it used to be. With record members of students competing fiercely to get into college, schools are no longer primarily places of learning. They're dog-eat-dog battlegrounds in which kids must set aside interests and passions in order to strategize over how to game the system. In this increasingly stressful environment, kids are defined not by their character or hunger for knowledge, but by often arbitrary scores and statistics." How sad, and how counterproductive to what genuine schooling is supposed to provide. I spent over seventeen years in the public schools as a teacher, administrator, and college professor, and edited an education newsletter for five years after leaving that sector. At that time, I was becoming increasingly concerned about the way in which schooling was being viewed by all parties involved: teachers, administrators, policy makers, students, parents, and so forth. I was always insisting that education was not a "competitive" enterprise and that the concern with letter-grades, test scores, and all those statistics that were dear to the hearts of so many was leading our nation toward a crisis wherein the proper aim of schooling would be abandoned and other, less laudable objectives would become dominant. Robbins' book provides evidence for my concern at that time. Unfortunately, I am not allowed enough space here to write a thorough review of this book, as I would like to do. So let me concentrate on two points that Robbins discusses that I think are especially significant: (1) The issue of educational testing and measurements, and (2) the issue of so-called "prestigious" colleges and universities. I will address the second issue first. After noting that "The obsession over name-brand schools is the most frenzied it has ever been...," Robbins writes that a 1999 research study "sent shock waves through Ivyland when [it] concluded after a twenty-year study that graduates of prestigious colleges did not earn more than graduates of other schools." Furthermore, according to Robbins, "...surveys of top business leaders do not support the idea that a degree from an elite institution is necessary for success. By 2005 the percentage of CEOs at S&P 500 companies who did not graduate from an Ivy League school had risen to 90 percent from 84 percent in 1998." I am not the least surprised at these findings. I have met quite a few Harvard and Yale graduates, none of whom particularly impressed me. I know professors at some of these so-called "prestigious" colleges and they are not any more knowledgeable or scholarly that most I know from other institutions which are not generally considered "elite." I graduated from a small liberal arts college in the Pacific Northwest (500 or so students) and consider to this day (more than 40 years later) that I received a superb educational experience. My master's and doctorate are from state universities not "recognized" to be in the top-ranked institutions in this country, and yet I will challenge any Ivy League graduate to a debate about any general subject of current concern. (I might say here that both 2004 presidential candidate John Kerry and our current president George Bush graduated from Yale, and neither is noteworthy regarding "academic learning" or "scholarly pursuits.") Regarding the testing matter, particularly the SAT and allied measurements, Robbins makes a couple of important points. Parents and students drive themselves crazy over scoring well on these tests, yet "One problem is that so much effort and faith are put into a test that for decades researchers have proved to be flawed..." and, moreover, "...[S]everal researchers have concluded that the SAT assesses little more than test-taking skills." And what makes all this frenzy more suspect, in my view, is that, after the SAT underwent changes after being criticized by some observers, is that "... the test-prep industry has profited enormously from the new SAT." Is this another all-too-common case of an industry artificially "creating a problem" because it has developed a "solution" that it can sell at enormous profit to an unwary consumer? Tests and measurements in education have an important role to play in schooling. They ought to be used to evaluate a student's performance relative to improvement. They should be used to diagnose where improvement is necessary. They should be used to plan a program for improvement relative to the objectives sought. They should not be used to compare one student with another, particularly regarding entrance into higher education or some career path. Enough said. There is a lot more to be said about Robbins' book but space prohibits. It is important reading especially for parents and college-bound students. It is vital reading for school administrators and educational policy makers. I highly recommend The Overachievers to all readers concerned with this issue. Much food for thought and reflection. 
Read an Excerpt from this Book Order at Amazon.com The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids, by Alexandra Robbins Order at Powell's Books The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids, by Alexandra Robbins |
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