Meaning Over Memory

“A scholarly but accessible and thoughtful contribution to the ongoing debate on alternative futures for humanities education.” — Booklist

“Succeeding on a macro-educational scale, Stearns has written a blueprint for the kinds of changes needed in the teaching of history and the humanities. This book demands a wide, national audience; it should be a spark for productive critical debate, and ultimately for reform, at all levels of teaching.” — Robert Blackey, coauthor of Revolution and the Revolutionary Ideal

“Peter Stearns offers a thoughtful attempt to find a middle ground between the 'traditionalists' and the 'radicals' in the teaching of the humanities. The book, which embodies both his intellectual range as a scholar and his long experience in the classroom, should especially appeal to the many teachers and parents who share his commitment to sanity and balance in education.” — Elizabeth Fox-Genovese, author of Feminism Without Illusions: A Critique of Individualism

“Stearns argues cogently for a new stance that would replace memorization of plot lines and lists of names and events with instruction that teaches students how societies function and change. . . . A significant and provocative argument about a topic of current interest and enduring import.” — CHOICE