This year will be a big one for education policy as the Obama administration launches its major initiatives aimed at both K-12 and college schooling. Congress will take up reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the legislation that in its most recent incarnation, brought us No Child...

We hear so much about education these days -- test scores, reform battles -- but little that we hear gets to the heart of why education matters. That's why I wrote "Why School?", to get us to think about why we send kids to school and often return to school...