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Abstract
An argument is made that American social distress is exacerbated by the decline of public education, a decline fostered and maintained by systematic self-deception. Americans hold cherished beliefs about education, teaching, and learning that they know are not nol1J, or cannot be, true. America’s educational policies both reflect popular beliefs and give direction. Baffling public policy can make sense when seen in the broader context of publie perceptions, beliefs, sentiments, ideologies, values, and opinions. This context shifts over time, circumstance, and group. Although this conceptual mix varies with geographic location and media attention, in this paper I have tried to touch on widely accepted, thus potent, national illusions that have confounded our understanding of public education and have misdirected educational policy.