Peter Curran travels to the land of the free to find out who controls the schools. He travels across the mid-west, meeting communities who are fighting for influence over the education system.
In Nebraska, Curran visits a one-room school house with 11 pupils. The teacher here is very much in control and even writes her own tests to suit the children.
Curran then speaks to the state's only black senator who is trying to give Omaha's black community more control over their children's education.
Further south, in Kansas, he learns that religion is one of the most divisive subjects in American education. The religious community here feel angry that God has been taken out of the classroom, particularly when it comes to the science curriculum.
Finally, Curran visits Milwaukee where he sees the positive and negative results of a school voucher programme, which gives parents more control over their children's education.
