Format :
Retail CD (In Stock)
-
2 Formats: Retail CD
-
2 Formats: MP3 CD
-
$39.99
ISBN: 9798200139873
-
$45.95
ISBN: 9798200139880
| Runtime: | 5.62 Hours |
| Category: | Nonfiction/Educational |
| Audience: | Adult |
| Language: | English |
Summary
Summary
In these affectionate letters to Francesca, a first grade teacher at an inner-city school in Boston, Jonathan Kozol vividly describes his repeated visits to her classroom while, under Francesca's likably irreverent questioning, also revealing his own most personal stories of the years that he has spent in public schools.Letters to a Young Teacher reignites a number of the controversial issues that Kozol has powerfully addressed in recent years: the mania of high-stakes testing that turns many classrooms into test-prep factories where spontaneity and critical intelligence are no longer valued, the invasion of our public schools by predatory private corporations, and the inequalities of urban schools that are once again almost as segregated as they were a century ago.
But most of all, these letters are rich with the happiness of teaching children, the curiosity and jubilant excitement children bring into the classroom at an early age, and their ability to overcome their insecurities when they are in the hands of an adoring and hard-working teacher.
Editorial Reviews
Editorial Reviews
“Kozol’s love for his students is as joyful and genuine as his critiques of the system are severe. He doesn’t pull punches.” —Washington Post
“[Charts] the positive tension between his lifelong indignation and the renewable joy of being in the classroom, something essential to all good teaching.” —Los Angeles Times
“Overall, the book will delight and encourage first-year (or for that matter, fortieth-year) teachers who need Kozol’s reminders of the ways that their beautiful profession can bring joy and beauty, mystery and mischievous delight into the hearts of little people in their years of greatest curiosity. But his encouraging words rarely lapse into treacle. In fact, he offers tough observations on American education addressed to a larger audience. His forceful opinions are convincingly argued.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“His letters offer a revealing, heartfelt look at the state of education and his own joy and agony in reporting on it. The letters provoke recollections of his early days as a teacher and, as a reporter, the humbling experience of visiting classes and maintaining relationships with the people on the frontlines of teaching, while he observes and writes. Kozol offers encouragement, advice, reflection, and admiration for all the teachers like Francesca, who pour their souls into their jobs. The letters explore the challenges of teaching in the inner cities: bureaucracies and standardized tests that take the creativity out of teaching; distrustful, defiant children who take away time and attention from those who want to learn; the heartbreaking irony of teaching diversity in schools that are clearly racially segregated. A beautiful book that offers an intimate look at the challenges and joys of teaching and one that will inspire and inform teachers and all those interested in public education.” —Booklist
“In lovingly supportive letters to a young woman on her first job as a first grade teacher, Kozol brings us heartwarming stories of the magic of kids who delight in words like ‘wiggly’ and ‘wobbly,’ ‘bamboozle’ and ‘persnickety’–and who could resist a child called Pineapple? This remarkable book is a testament to teachers who not only respect and advocate for children on a daily basis but who are the necessary guardians of the spirit. Every citizen who cares about the future of our children ought to read this.” —Eric Carle, author of The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Encouraging…forceful…convincingly argued —Publishers Weekly Starred Review
Author
Author Bio: Jonathan Kozol
Jonathan Kozol is the multiaward–winning author of several books, including Death at an Early Age, winner of the National Book Award, as well as the New York Times bestsellers Savage Inequalities, Amazing Grace, and other award-winning books about young children and their public schools. He travels and lectures about educational inequality and racial injustice.
Titles by Author
Details
Details
| Available Formats : | Retail CD, MP3 CD |
| Category: | Nonfiction/Educational |
| Runtime: | 5.62 |
| Audience: | Adult |
| Language: | English |
To listen to this title you will need our latest app
Due to publishing rights this title requires DRM and can only be listened to in the Blackstone Wholesale app
To listen to this title you will need our latest app