Growth and Value Plan	6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2012
Spinoff and Related Activities Disclosure [Abstract]
Growth and Value Plan	Growth and Value Plan On September 12, 2011, we announced that our Board of Directors have unanimously approved a comprehensive Growth and Value Plan that includes separation into two public companies: McGraw-Hill Financial, focused on content and analytics for the financial markets, and McGraw-Hill Education, Inc. focused on education services and digital learning. The separation will be accomplished through a series of transactions in which the assets, liabilities and operations of the current McGraw-Hill Education segment ("MHE") of McGraw-Hill on a global basis will be transferred to McGraw-Hill Education, Inc. or entities that are, or will become prior to the separation, subsidiaries of McGraw-Hill Education, Inc. Each shareholder of McGraw-Hill will receive one share of McGraw-Hill Education, Inc. common stock for every three shares of McGraw-Hill common stock held on the record date for the share distribution. Current holders of McGraw-Hill stock will also retain their shares of McGraw-Hill. We received a favorable tax ruling from the Internal Revenue Service on April 23, 2012, which provides that the separation of McGraw-Hill Education, Inc. will be tax free to the Company and its shareholders. In addition, we filed the initial McGraw-Hill Education, Inc. Form 10 registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on July 11, 2012. We expect to complete the separation by the end of 2012 through a spin-off of the education business to the Company’s shareholders, subject to various conditions and regulatory approvals, including final Board approval. While we are pursuing a separation as described above we are also actively evaluating other options to deliver shareholder value, including a potential sale of MHE. For the three and six months ended June 30, 2012, we recorded $42 million and $75 million, respectively, of Growth and Value Plan related costs. These are costs necessary to enable separation, reduce our cost structure, accelerate growth and increase shareholder value. Specifically, these costs relate to professional fees, transaction costs for our S&P/Dow Jones Indices, LLC joint venture, severance charges, and for the six months, a charge related to a reduction in our lease commitments, and are included in selling and general expenses in the consolidated statements of income. Total costs incurred to date related to the Growth and Value Plan are $85 million.

Growth and Value Plan

On September 12, 2011, we announced that our Board of Directors have unanimously approved a comprehensive Growth and Value Plan that includes separation into two public companies: McGraw-Hill Financial, focused on content and analytics for the financial markets, and McGraw-Hill Education, Inc. focused on education services and digital learning. The separation will be accomplished through a series of transactions in which the assets, liabilities and operations of the current McGraw-Hill Education segment ("MHE") of McGraw-Hill on a global basis will be transferred to McGraw-Hill Education, Inc. or entities that are, or will become prior to the separation, subsidiaries of McGraw-Hill Education, Inc. Each shareholder of McGraw-Hill will receive one share of McGraw-Hill Education, Inc. common stock for every three shares of McGraw-Hill common stock held on the record date for the share distribution. Current holders of McGraw-Hill stock will also retain their shares of McGraw-Hill.

We received a favorable tax ruling from the Internal Revenue Service on April 23, 2012, which provides that the separation of McGraw-Hill Education, Inc. will be tax free to the Company and its shareholders. In addition, we filed the initial McGraw-Hill Education, Inc. Form 10 registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on July 11, 2012. We expect to complete the separation by the end of 2012 through a spin-off of the education business to the Company’s shareholders, subject to various conditions and regulatory approvals, including final Board approval. While we are pursuing a separation as described above we are also actively evaluating other options to deliver shareholder value, including a potential sale of MHE.

For the three and six months ended June 30, 2012, we recorded $42 million and $75 million, respectively, of Growth and Value Plan related costs. These are costs necessary to enable separation, reduce our cost structure, accelerate growth and increase shareholder value. Specifically, these costs relate to professional fees, transaction costs for our S&P/Dow Jones Indices, LLC joint venture, severance charges, and for the six months, a charge related to a reduction in our lease commitments, and are included in selling and general expenses in the consolidated statements of income. Total costs incurred to date related to the Growth and Value Plan are $85 million.