Education Policy and Practice: Bridging the Divide Book

There are many things to like about Formation of Character. Mason has some solid contributions to educational and character driven thought. However, there are many reasons that I liked this book, but didn't like it a lot, and especially didn't love it.

Firstly, I'll say that I am a reformed Christian with presuppositions on the authority, inerrancy, and sufficiency of God's revealed word through the Bible. What I will say below in critique is informed almost completely by that:

Mason, given her background and insights into philosophical and sociological education of children has an immense treasury of insight to bring to the table, but when it comes to the formation of a child's character, seeing that Scripture (both the Old and New Testaments) is my go-to guide for how character is formed in the lives of humanity, seems to be throwing darts at a mark. Some darts nail it, while others don't even hit the target at all. I saw a great deal of mingling of modern psychology, behavioral conditioning, and even compromise on topics which I see are clearly laid out in the Bible for how to raise children. While I was hoping she would stick to the Text that she has mostly stuck with in her previous volumes, it seems that here she largely deviates from roots sown in Home Education. What most concerns me about this book was that it subtly shifts the foundational standard from the roots of the Word of God and into what society is now replete with: behaviorism, let kids be kids, and moralistic therapy.