Deeply rooted societal concerns about what role democratic ideals should play within systems of education, and how much sway the federal government should hold over educational institutions, have been at the forefront of American educational policy for decades. These questions have more recently been brought into the limelight once again within the context of the implementation of charter schools and the controversial No Child Left Behind act, and its subsequent failure. The expressed goal of this paper is to provide an examination of what philosophies and ideals of so-called democratic education are have played major roles in developing the discourse surrounding, and the implementation of, US federal policy in K-12 education. Through a brief survey of the philosophical writings which have largely informed US policy, an analysis of these writings within the context of the rise of American charter schools and the NCLB, and a reflection on the common problems that such philosophies are fraught with, this paper seeks to provide some hope for transforming future models of American education for the better. Specifically, this study aims at forging a more nuanced understanding of the underlining beliefs that have driven recent educational legislation, and how democratic education has further marginalized low-income and traditionally underrepresented students
