This analysis of educational practices in the United States takes the position that a number of practices, including the way teachers are trained, textbooks selected, and college and university faculty rewarded, have become institutionalized and endure in spite of the reform efforts of the past decade. These practices, once established on a large scale, became both counterproductive and resistant to change. A reform agenda is suggested, establishing and encouraging alternatives. These include: (1) parental choice of elementary/secondary schools; (2) alternative paths to certification for prospective teachers; (3) alternatives to the mechanical criteria commonly used to select textbooks; (4) alternatives to the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) such as the National Assessment of Educational Progress; (5) inservice opportunities for teachers to study their subjects; (6) paths to recognition and reward for college faculty that emphasize teaching as well as research; and (7) well-informed choices for college selection for students and parents. The value of cultural and educational programs--"the parallel school" offered by museums, libraries, the theater, and exemplary television presentations--is discussed. (140 endnotes) (JD)