Money, Power, Politics, by Joyce Purnick: on Education

Mike Bloomberg: Ban the use of cell phones in public schools

His stubborn insistence on banning the use of cell phones in public schools mystified and angered New Yorkers, more convinced than ever that the mayor, personally BlackBerry-addicted, was out of touch with day-to-day concerns of parents and students.

Mike Bloomberg: All social problems are ameliorated by better education

"You show me one social problem that won't be obliterated or ameliorated if people had a better education. I don't think you can," he says. The subject triggers a memory of one of the new movies Bloomberg has watched from opening to closing credits--"Charlie Wilson's War," the 2007 film about a Texas congressman who had covert dealings with Afghanistan. In the last scene, Bloomberg noted, Wilson (played by Tom Hanks) could not persuade his congressional colleagues to appropriate $1 million to rid Afghanistan of the Soviets. "They wouldn't have a million dollars for education. It's a fact. I go to the movies once a year and I fall asleep. I didn't fall asleep this time."

Nothing on Bloomberg's agenda has generated as much attention as education.

Mike Bloomberg: Liberate 1.1 million students from deadly bureaucracy

For starters, he was going to win control of the public schools, liberate 1.1 million students from a deadly bureaucracy and a greedy teachers' union--a goal that had defeated his 3 immediate predecessors. Getting kids through high school at last, with diplomas they deserved because they really learned something, was going to be his enduring contribution to a future America.

Mike Bloomberg: Increased school budget from $12B to $20B

As Bloomberg ran for his 3rd term, [others] confidently predict that the city schools--more than 70% black or Hispanic--will be the 1st urban system to match the performance of students as a whole around the state.

Improvement in the schools under Bloomberg is indisputable. Questions turn on the extent of that improvement--what the numbers mean and whether they are really reliable.