This is not a drill, stupid

For while editors sell newspapers and controversialists sell books based on conflict and crisis, the reality is that the industrial and policy landscape of today is far more harmonious than in previous decades that were riven by sectarianism and disputation.

For example, in New South Wales legislation has established a truly universal school Council under the Institute of Teachers, comprising representatives of public schools, the Department of Education, Catholic schools, Independent schools, the Teachers' Federation, the Independent Education Union, the Board of Studies and parents' groups. Such a body is far better able to produce sound standards and policies that can be implemented by the whole profession and supported by the community, than could any scheme cooked up by fiat in a minister's office, or by a columnist with an axe to grind.

The authors even favourably cite the federal funding model of Canada, where multiple levels of government manage to co-operatively fund schools - but one level of government agrees to "keep out of the way" in operations. Australia is yet to master this knack of multi-level co-operation.

One clear but controversial warning from the book is the authors' belief that our democratic values will weaken and eventually collapse without the support of an all-inclusive and well-resourced public school system. They are certainly in eminent company with this view, such as Geoffrey Robertson's address to the 2006 Cornerstones conference on public education:

Public education should compete effectively in the parental market place. Not only is it free, it has the great advantage of secularity. In a world where religion is becoming the greatest threat to rationality, surely secular learning should be regarded as a plus. Not to mention diversity, the value of children and teenagers mixing with a wider variety of fellow human beings from different social classes, different ethnic groups and levels of advantage and performance. And the virtue of locality ... the saving of so much time on trains and buses. That doesn't seem to count with too many of today's parents.
(Robertson, 2006, Cornerstones conference paper)

Although the intensity of Bonner and Caro's belief is clear, I doubt whether their thesis will alter anybody's preconceptions about such questions. Thus if their aim was to change minds, it is difficult to regard The Stupid Country as a success.

However, if The Stupid Country can tell us anything new about the question of school "choice", it is that we do have more choices than to exit a burning building. We can choose to put out the fire. We can fireproof the building. And we can deactivate the false alarms.

And if that awareness is all the book manages to achieve, it will have done us all a great service.