Josh Beach--he goes by J.M. Beach in his writing--is a big believer in literacy. But he insists that literacy goes far beyond reading and writing, and our educational systems have to do a better job promoting it.
Beach recently published two books on the subject, Can We Measure What Matters Most and The Myths of Measurement and Meritocracy.
The first deals with the pitfalls of constantly measuring student achievement in K-12 education, and the second is about higher education.
Beach founded his own nonprofit, 21st Century Literacy, to guide new approaches to education and the measurement of its success.
He visits to discuss his philosophy and its components.