George Counts

George Sylvester Counts
Counts c. 1941
New York State Chairman of the
American Labor Party
In office
August 21, 1942  April 8, 1944
Preceded byLuigi Antonini
Succeeded bySidney Hillman
Personal details
BornDecember 9, 1889
Baldwin City, Kansas, United States
DiedNovember 10, 1974(1974-11-10) (aged 84)
Belleville, Illinois, United States
Political partyAmerican Labor (before 1944)
Liberal (after 1944)

George Sylvester Counts (December 9, 1889 – November 10, 1974) was an American educator and influential education theorist.

An early proponent of the progressive education movement of John Dewey, Counts became its leading critic affiliated with the school of Social reconstructionism in education. Counts is credited for influencing several subsequent theories, particularly critical pedagogy. Counts wrote dozens of important papers and 29 books about education. He was also highly active in politics as a leading advocate of teachers' unions, the head of the American Federation of Teachers, the founder of the New York State Liberal Party, and as a candidate for the U.S. Senate.