A no-holds-barred assault on outdated teaching methods--with dramatic and practical proposals on how education can be made relevant to today's worl...
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Nov 30, 2011
Emma
rated it: 
Probably the only useful thing that's come out of the university based portion of my teaching course so far. Postman advocates for large-scale change to the school system which would move the child back to the centre instead of the focus being on teaching. I can't say anything about anywhere else but I can see how elements of his ideas have been incorperated in the UK, with the idea of student-focused lessons and moving away from transmission-learning, but at the end of the day it's all the same
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May 16, 2009
John
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This is an amazing book -- written in 1968 by always smart Neil Postman and Charles Weingartner, it's ostensibly a book about education reform -- and it's a very good one to read about that. But it also reads like it could have been written in the last year or so, about what we're all experiencing with the incredible pace of change on the connected Internet. Postman's ability to see what the future had in store -- along with great minds like McLuhan -- is totally astounding. The first couple of
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Nov 15, 2010
Spencer
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This book was written primarily as a manifesto for inquiry based learning. It is reasonably convincing as such, but has a major flaw. While discussing the problems brought about by the educational bureaucracy he fails to even consider the schooling model most suited to an inquiry based learning environment, homeschooling. Not only are parents not included as potential teacher or implementers of his strategies he fails to consider them even as parents or the impact that parents have either as
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Oct 06, 2009
Guida
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Si tuviera que elegir qué libro me ha provocado más ganas de ser maestra, diría que ha sido éste que leí en castellano en los 80. Por la convicción en el poder de la educación para construir la identidad.
Resumen del libro en castellano elaborado por el profesor Mario Núñez Molina.
Fuente: http://www.vidadigital.net/blog/2009/09/...
Estas sugerencias que hizo Neil Postman en su libro “Teaching as a Subversive Activity” van a cumplir unos 40 años pero de manera sorp More...
Resumen del libro en castellano elaborado por el profesor Mario Núñez Molina.
Fuente: http://www.vidadigital.net/blog/2009/09/...
Estas sugerencias que hizo Neil Postman en su libro “Teaching as a Subversive Activity” van a cumplir unos 40 años pero de manera sorp More...
Aug 11, 2010
Elea
rated it:
So far it's been an incredible read by, Niel Postman. Written the year I was born and every words applicable today! Sadly he stated that much of what he wrote could have been applied to the 1930's. When can we stop this cyclical disease? By not allowing corrupt government dictate and create our world.
Something is truly problematic and dysfunctional if the structure and development of our public schooling system cannot and still does not allow for change. A system that does not allow or eve More...
Something is truly problematic and dysfunctional if the structure and development of our public schooling system cannot and still does not allow for change. A system that does not allow or eve More...
May 31, 2009
Julianne
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This is one of the very best books on education I’ve ever read. Although published in 1969, I find myself wishing that everyone everywhere would pick it up and read it. Though it’s a bit long on references to Vietnam and rather out of date in some of its neuroscience (see Ch. 7: Languaging), it still has extremely important things to say to both teachers and students. (Sorry, administrators, you don’t even make the list, seeing as how you are unnecessary and in many cases counterproductive to th
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Jan 04, 2009
Amy
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I used the beginning of this book to help me write my Masters Thesis. It was extremely helpful and relevant to my topic and my role as a teacher in my own classroom. I felt after a while, Postman turned a bit too extreme for my taste. (Let me interject that I am a big Postman fan and have really enjoyed reading him throughout my grad classes.) Although I appreciated what he had to say, he was so radical he makes it hard not to throw the baby out with the bathwater.
It came to a More...
It came to a More...
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Mar 30, 2009
LNimz
rated it: 
While I read the intro and first chapter, I kept having the theme song from the TV show Two and a Half Men playing in my head. Man, men, men, men, Manly men men men... Yikes. This man, man, men, man, he, him, man, man, man in a chapter called Crap Detecting in a book that says, "Those who are sensitive to the verbally built-in biases of their 'natural' environment seem 'subversive' to those who are not." Maybe, before they trying to pick this particular speck out of the eyes of educato
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Mar 30, 2009
Lisa
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I tried reading this book about 10 years ago, got partway through and didn't finish. I started the book again during winter break. I got 2/3 of the way through and finally finished last night (couldn't sleep). So, I feel like it's a monumental accomplishment.
There are a lot of aspects of this book I don't like. It's very sexist, for one. Women and girls are almost completely excluded from their writing and that bothers me intensely. Also, the authors seem to desperately want to be co More...
There are a lot of aspects of this book I don't like. It's very sexist, for one. Women and girls are almost completely excluded from their writing and that bothers me intensely. Also, the authors seem to desperately want to be co More...
Sep 09, 2009
HHS
rated it:
Feel like things are going wrong in the world of public education? Want to create a revolution, or at least reform? Want some ideas for how to completely change things in your classroom? This book is a must-read. I read it for the first time almost 10 years ago and re-read it this summer. Amazing how much hasn’t changed.
Reviewed by:
Mark Janda
Social Studies Teacher
Reviewed by:
Mark Janda
Social Studies Teacher
Aug 09, 2011
Jen
rated it:
His book was based on a very progressive philosophy of education which called into question the importance of facts. I do not believe that he discounts facts, but he does call into question what facts about our past we should know and seems to indicate that it is impossible for a fact to be objective. I would, in fact, have to disagree.
Sep 14, 2008
Adria
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Ok, this book should actually get like 3.5 stars but I like Neil Postman so I'm going to round up. "Conserving" was better, but there was some interesting stuff from the 60s reform movement about "relevance" etc. Sometimes I think the "inquiry method" would be hard to use to get anything done by the end of the day, but perhaps not after the first few weeks. I suppose the method I plan on using is more inquiry method than anything else, and I plan to use it to get
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Aug 08, 2010
David
rated it:
Quick read. A little over-the-top rhetorically, but with some interesting ideas. Been awhile since I read it, but I remember liking his example final question on the impacts of technology.
Jun 29, 2009
"It is the thesis of this book that change -- constant, accelerating, ubiquitous -- is the most striking characteristic of the world we live in and that our educational system has not yet recognized this fact."
May 05, 2009
Ian
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Just what the title says...how to teach kids skills for intellectual self defense..."crap detection" is one of the chapters.
Jan 10, 2012
Michael Wesch mentioned this book in his talk at the Islander Forum (2012-1-10)
Feb 05, 2011
Bwags75
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makes me want to change the way I teach, have incorporated some subversive activities into my classroom. thanks postman.
Mar 26, 2008
Beth
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I pulled this book off my dad's shelves when I had dropped out of architecture school and was trying to figure out what to do with my life.
Twenty years later, let me tell you that this was a major turning point in my decision to become a teacher. It was also a philosophy that kept me bordering on mutiny most of my teaching career...
Every education student should read this book -- agree with it or not.
Thank you, Neil Postman!
Twenty years later, let me tell you that this was a major turning point in my decision to become a teacher. It was also a philosophy that kept me bordering on mutiny most of my teaching career...
Every education student should read this book -- agree with it or not.
Thank you, Neil Postman!
Apr 26, 2010
James
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I love this book as it describes where my thinking is right now about my educational philosophy. Even though it was written over 40 years ago, the complaints and solutions are still valid. Maybe because education has taken so many steps backwards, thanks to No Child Left Unpunished. I have been reborn with this book and any teacher worth their salt can read this and find some way to adjust their teaching to reach their students.
Jun 07, 2009
This is one of those books that you think is great while reading it, but then have doubts about applying it to your everyday life. I'm still working on the latter (at least as judged by my Freshman Chemistry course evaluations...)
Jun 07, 2010
Catherine
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It was disappointing to read that the ideas my teachers' college has been presenting as "new" teaching "reform" have been around since before I was born. Will new ideas in education always take 40 years to percolate?
Aug 14, 2008
Boreal Elizabeth
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Neil Postman is responsible for me dropping out of high school, pursuing teaching in college and dropping out of teaching after my student teaching.
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Aug 04, 2008
Lesley
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This book blew my mind--had me completely rethinking the way I structure my "English" classes. Can't wait for the '08-'09 school year!
Sep 19, 2007
Josh
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read this in high school and remember being like YES YES YES! also a favorite of a favorite teach of mine. Postman is right on.
Jun 14, 2008
Peter
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I am a retired teacher. I read this as a new teacher, and every reacher should. It will make a teacher of you . . .
Jul 31, 2008
sleeps9hours
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Another great book about education. Really makes me think and challenge.
Feb 12, 2012
