reviews
Nov 30, 2011
Bird Brian
rated it: 
I just want to say...
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I am a product of the American public school system, and I owe a whole hell of a lot to all the teachers who taught me, and whose patience and thoughtfulness guided me or set an example I could follow. My experience with public school teachers has overwhelmingly been that they care about their students far beyond what their paychecks warrant. I hope it is clear that the criticisms I offer are with the higher school leadership, with flaws inherent to the ar
33 comments
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(25 people liked it)
Jan 21, 2008
Heather
rated it: 
Book online at the author's website
Ah, for the good old days, back before child labor laws, back when no had time for such inventions as "adolescence", back when one could sing a cute song about darkies or niggers without being a racist, back when flogging children in the name of civility was a good thing, though Gatto seems to be of mixed opinion about his own whipping for mispronouncing French verbs.
This book could have started in Chapter 17 and made many of t More...
Ah, for the good old days, back before child labor laws, back when no had time for such inventions as "adolescence", back when one could sing a cute song about darkies or niggers without being a racist, back when flogging children in the name of civility was a good thing, though Gatto seems to be of mixed opinion about his own whipping for mispronouncing French verbs.
This book could have started in Chapter 17 and made many of t More...
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(12 people liked it)
Nov 29, 2007
Rob
rated it:
six stars. where do i click to give six stars?
i don't even know how to convey the wonderfulness of this book. john taylor gatto taught 8th grade english for 30 years in NYC. in his final few years he was named NYC and NY State Teacher of the Year. then he quit in disgust, his resignation letter ending up published in the Wall Street Journal. he quit because he finally realised that universal compulsory schooling does ghastly harm to every human life it consumes. after he quit, More...
i don't even know how to convey the wonderfulness of this book. john taylor gatto taught 8th grade english for 30 years in NYC. in his final few years he was named NYC and NY State Teacher of the Year. then he quit in disgust, his resignation letter ending up published in the Wall Street Journal. he quit because he finally realised that universal compulsory schooling does ghastly harm to every human life it consumes. after he quit, More...
Feb 25, 2009
Marisa
rated it: 
I'm a little disenchanted with this book, I will probably be disowned from the Homeschooling world for this review, but here it goes. I thought it had some really good/interesting points, some great figures such as George Washington and Benjamin Franklin became great men without formal schooling. Literacy rates went down when kids were required to go to public school. Men like Carnegie and Rockefeller did promote and fund public education to help "produce" workers, not thinkers. Teach
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(3 people liked it)
Sep 25, 2008
Ann
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I read this book a number of years ago and was blown away. The book is written by a former public school teacher ... he taught in the public school system of NY City. He has extensively researched the history of public education in America and put it together in an amazing expose. He chronicles how socialist/communist influences have been encroaching into the agenda of public education for YEARS. Some of the conclusions he arrives at seem a bit like "conspiracy theories" and yet if e
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5 comments
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(2 people liked it)
Jul 15, 2009
Chad
rated it:
John Taylor Gatto’s The Underground History Of American Education is freely available online, although not in the most convenient form imaginable. It is not particularly well written and the text seems to meander somewhat randomly through a variety of topics, but the ideas within are worth considering.
I do not agree with Gatto’s version of American exceptionalism, nor his belief (endemic among Libertarians, of which I am one) that highly successful people like Ben Franklin and George More...
I do not agree with Gatto’s version of American exceptionalism, nor his belief (endemic among Libertarians, of which I am one) that highly successful people like Ben Franklin and George More...
Aug 21, 2011
Lissa
rated it:
Warning this is one disturbing book and is written by a libertarian. But it has been one of the more educational reads in my life dating back to when I was reading things like Summerhill and Steal this Book in my early adolescence. I went on to work for a school improvement grant given by the State of California to my highschool and became quite alarmed at the results of that attempt to improve my highschool. What happened was the promotion to two new upperlevel administrators, a lockdown of the
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Sep 24, 2011
Natalie
rated it: 
This book [seems as if] it is a massive collection of essays by Mr. Gatto. While I do agree with his philosophy of education, his writing style just isn't my favorite. I feel like it's just all over the place. He just writes and writes and it gives me a bit of a headache to read it. (Sorry, just being honest.) So, for that, I'm giving it 2 stars.
However, let me share some quotes I liked:
"You aren't compelled to loan your car to anyone who wants it, but you are com More...
However, let me share some quotes I liked:
"You aren't compelled to loan your car to anyone who wants it, but you are com More...
Feb 17, 2008
mark
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
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Feb 16, 2011
T. P.
rated it:
Could anything be more frightening then a book documenting with infinite annotation and footnote the brainwashing of American youth for the purposes of making a more compliant society? I don't think so. This is a must read for every American left that can still think for themselves. Even if you don't have the money to buy a copy, because you can read it for free here.
You can also have the book read to you by the incomparable Lyn Gerry at Unwelcome Guests episodes about 317-372. Che More...
You can also have the book read to you by the incomparable Lyn Gerry at Unwelcome Guests episodes about 317-372. Che More...
Sep 11, 2010
Stephen
rated it: 
More in depth, but at the same time more in need of editorial work than the much-shorter "Weapons of Mass Instruction", Underground History is part diatribe and in part a journey through the obscured inception of the modern school system in general, and the US education system in particular.
This is not an impartial academic review of the subject, but the author does not claim it is. It is more akin to a guerrilla raid into the dark bowels of the schooling monolith.
More...
This is not an impartial academic review of the subject, but the author does not claim it is. It is more akin to a guerrilla raid into the dark bowels of the schooling monolith.
More...
Jan 20, 2008
Christi
rated it:
I was so angry when I read this book. I realized I have been robbed of an education. I am changing that now.
3 comments
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Dec 30, 2009
Elizabeth
rated it:
This book really opens your eyes to some of the major forces behind mass education--essentially, social Darwinists and corporations (Rockefeller foundation). Anyone who teaches can see the effects for themselves--kids who aren't lucky enough to have literate parents don't read, hate reading, and the movements in education have played a large role, whole language theory being only one of the causes. The author's train of thought is a bit hard to follow, but there are enough hard facts and histori
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Mar 26, 2010
Courtney
rated it:
Very interesting. Some of his ideas sound a little like conspiracy theories, but he admits it himself. I will do more research before I decide if all this is true or not. But a lot of it makes sense. The main premise of his book is that Big Business has, since the mid 1800s, been organizing the education system for its own purposes: to cull the bright and turn them into management, while reducing the other students so that they will be willing to sit for 8 hrs a day and do mind-numbing work. If
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Nov 29, 2011
Caris
rated it:
This one was really hard for me.
I am not happy with my public school education. It really bothers me that I was taught one thing in elementary school, only to learn that the truth was actually this other thing in junior high, but, wait, the real super truth was this thing they taught in high school. Only to find in college, of course, that I had been misinformed again.
Example:
Elementary school: Columbus discovered America, befriended the Indians
Junior More...
I am not happy with my public school education. It really bothers me that I was taught one thing in elementary school, only to learn that the truth was actually this other thing in junior high, but, wait, the real super truth was this thing they taught in high school. Only to find in college, of course, that I had been misinformed again.
Example:
Elementary school: Columbus discovered America, befriended the Indians
Junior More...
37 comments
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(25 people liked it)
Jul 02, 2011
WOW! I have only read 5 pages and I am saying "Amen Brother" at least once on each page.
Still reading. Now on page 70. This isn't an easy read. He has some great points, but his writing is cumbersome and sometimes confusing. One of the chapters is also very ANGRY, so recognize that as you read the book. Currently reading about "whole language learning" which has thankfully started to disappear from schools. Sometimes his points seem redundant, but perhaps he is tr More...
Still reading. Now on page 70. This isn't an easy read. He has some great points, but his writing is cumbersome and sometimes confusing. One of the chapters is also very ANGRY, so recognize that as you read the book. Currently reading about "whole language learning" which has thankfully started to disappear from schools. Sometimes his points seem redundant, but perhaps he is tr More...
Jul 23, 2011
Aaron
rated it:
In the study of something as insidious as the origins of modern schooling (as differentiated from education; the two are not synonymous), it is easy to see conspiracies. However, we are reminded that God laughs at the plots of the evil.
The book is fascinating, although flawed. Mr. Gatto has a profound misunderstanding of Calvinism, believing the doctrine of predestination leads to a caste system(!). He is also against positive/negative reinforcement.
He rambles considerably, a More...
The book is fascinating, although flawed. Mr. Gatto has a profound misunderstanding of Calvinism, believing the doctrine of predestination leads to a caste system(!). He is also against positive/negative reinforcement.
He rambles considerably, a More...
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(1 person liked it)
Dec 08, 2008
Chris
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P. 65 "Growth and mastery come only to those who vigorously self direct. Initiating, creating, doing, reflecting, freely associating, enjoying privacy--these are precisely what the structures of schooling are set up to prevent."
P. 98 Dr. Seuss on writing the Cat in the Hat for a textbook publisher from a list of 223 words.
P. 117 "Process kids like sardines and don't be suprised when they come out oily and dead."
P. 182 "The truth is tha More...
P. 98 Dr. Seuss on writing the Cat in the Hat for a textbook publisher from a list of 223 words.
P. 117 "Process kids like sardines and don't be suprised when they come out oily and dead."
P. 182 "The truth is tha More...
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(1 person liked it)
Jun 23, 2008
Jessica
rated it:
Let me begin by admitting that I have not finished the book, and I do not intend on ever doing so. The book provides a lot of beliefs and plenty of historical backround to support it, but provides no actual solution. Though it is intresting to view school in a different manner (One that I admit to believing myself) I can not come to support Gatto fully.
Sure school is draining, and ultimately one of the biggest hypocritical stages of our society. (It has us believing that we can do a More...
Sure school is draining, and ultimately one of the biggest hypocritical stages of our society. (It has us believing that we can do a More...
3 comments
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(1 person liked it)
Dec 11, 2007
Alex
rated it:
Basically, the nature of the compulsory school system in the United States encourages a disinterest in learning as kids are forced to learn arbitrary subjects that have no relation to their lives except as a big happy A or a big sad F. Grubby competition is spurned leading to a tedious life throughout school, but the people who are the most unfortunate are those who do not want to learn when it is "time to learn," and are therefore punished by the system and cast into educational perdi
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Oct 10, 2009
Eric
rated it:
Everyone that is concerned about education and the reasons that American education is the way it is needs to read this book. It is not the best written book out there but the connections that it draws with astound and enlighten you. I am listening to a interview with the author on Unwelcome Guests (a radio show that you can listen to online at http://www.radio4all.net/index.php?op=re... [listen to program number 483:]). Please read this book!
Apr 07, 2011
Mark
rated it:
A great deal of interesting, useful information and analysis sandwiched with a lot of dubious history and social speculation. The man has several axes to grind and grinds them well, but some of his conculsions about where we arrived at our current educational predicament are on par with the best conspiracy theorists one can name, although he takes pains to point out he does not believe a conspiracy is involved, not a hidden, devious kind anyway.
Mar 03, 2010
Christine
rated it:
It's not history as in primary source stuff; more like a sociological review of other histories. But I love his lens. I think we need to free students up to preserve intellectual vitality. People are not widgets who can be produced to a "standard." Intellectual vitality and flexibility will be necessary for feeling fulfilled and moving ahead, creatively, into a positive future. (I think I read a pre-release version purchased directly off JTG's website.)
Sep 19, 2010
wally
rated it:
this is well worth the time and effort to read. maybe it offers an explanation for things. i believe it does. when the man documents his presentation w/facts that show a decline....well...an enlightening book. well worth the time required to read it. i only wish he had used those nasty footnotes....there is a list of suggested other reading, books that i began to pursue and peruse, trying to test the facts, so to speak. and so it goes.
Feb 21, 2008
Heather
rated it:
After having read further into this, I will still say that it is incredibly interesting. Gatto has a definite perspective, and a tendency to sound over-zealous. Then again, he is passionate about what he is writing about and really wants folks to think through the current system. I don't necessarily buy everything he is saying, but do think he brings all sorts of items up that are worth addressing.
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I've just started this book, but it is an amazingly though-provoking read about t More...
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I've just started this book, but it is an amazingly though-provoking read about t More...
Oct 06, 2010
David
rated it:
A book supposedly critical of the whole school enterprise.
Possibly in the tradition of Ivan Illich, an ex-priest who preached de-institutionalization in a rather utopian way.
A friend, now a professor of anthropology, once responded to one of my rants about schools by asking why I was surprised that schools prepared/socialized/indoctrinated children for adult roles in the society as it is.
Good question, that.
____________
Since the above e More...
Possibly in the tradition of Ivan Illich, an ex-priest who preached de-institutionalization in a rather utopian way.
A friend, now a professor of anthropology, once responded to one of my rants about schools by asking why I was surprised that schools prepared/socialized/indoctrinated children for adult roles in the society as it is.
Good question, that.
____________
Since the above e More...
Nov 14, 2010
Melinda
rated it:
Simply THE best book on what is going on in the American educational system, and why it is the way it it. John Taylor Gatto has the credentials to speak to this. He lived the life of a teacher in New York City, and was named Teacher of the Year on 3 different occasions. He quit his teaching job when he decided he didn't want to hurt children anymore, and he saw the results of the public education system on his students.
He provides a stunning and well documented history of why educ More...
He provides a stunning and well documented history of why educ More...
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Sep 05, 2009
Greg
rated it:
My problem with this book is that he doesn't cite anything and seems to buy into some of the more outlandish claims that he makes. However, it is actually pretty eyeopening and I buy it, because, really, it's true. The psychological analysis is enough to make be buy it, even without the rest.
Aug 12, 2009
Djunqx
rated it:
This changed my viewpoint for life and many suspicians came true. A scary book, it will make you want to home school your children or something! It partially explains why I oftren have difficulty keeping a job but the students and parents love me....because it is not about that.
Jun 19, 2009
LaDawn
rated it:
Gatto has a unique perspective on education, having been a teacher for many years, even winning national awards.
He claims he is not a conspiracy theorist, yet a lot of what he says comes across that way.
However, so much of what he says rings so true to me!
He claims he is not a conspiracy theorist, yet a lot of what he says comes across that way.
However, so much of what he says rings so true to me!
