Years ago, when I was a struggling (and not particularly effective) classroom teacher, I regularly tossed out, tongue-in-cheek, "Kids actually le...moreYears ago, when I was a struggling (and not particularly effective) classroom teacher, I regularly tossed out, tongue-in-cheek, "Kids actually learn in SPITE of us, rather than BECAUSE of us". Diane Ravitch's book has me pondering the prescience of that throwaway line. If Ravitch has it right, pretty much every educational innovation and reform movement of the last forty years has ended in failure. If we follow that thinking to its logical conclusion, then the prognosis for the current infatuation with communications technology, "data driven" assessment and technology-underpinned standardized testing is poor indeed.
To be fair, Ravitch does explore some relative successes, but only when measured through the selective lenses of external assessments. With the jury still out on whether these are accurate and relevant measures of actual learning, combined with the growing concerns about web-influenced attention deficit and changing patterns of reading and thinking, the hope for a "magic bullet" to solve all education's woes is dim indeed.
There is hope. There's always hope, but I'm not sure reading Ravitch's book will convince anyone that it lies with the current generation of educational reform and technology-rich innovation. It's probably more in the return to a simpler, more direct and more personalized form of individualized education - like the kind that produced some of western cultures most influential thinkers (Emerson, Thoreau, Whitman, Dewey, ...)(less)
Hitch was my first Jeanette Ingold read. I was initially drawn to it because of its depiction of the Great Depression, because I grew up in a time whe...moreHitch was my first Jeanette Ingold read. I was initially drawn to it because of its depiction of the Great Depression, because I grew up in a time when my parents' generation still vividly remembered those times. My dad's stories of managing a community library after school and setting pins in the local bowling alley at night always kept me in thrall, and the flyleaf description of Moss Trawnley's similar stories got my attention. Here's a book for kids that have never heard my Dad's stories", I thought. (less)
This is the most "accessible" Richard Powers novel I've read (this is my 3rd) - which may explain why it won the National Book award in 2006...moreThis is the most "accessible" Richard Powers novel I've read (this is my 3rd) - which may explain why it won the National Book award in 2006. It's a powerful story of loss (of memory/loves/"life-as-it-was") and the struggle to come back from these various life challenges. With three novels currently underway, it's this one that I keep coming back to, which speaks to Powers' ability to draw the reader in and carry him or her along. And when this one's done, there are still those 5 Richard Powers novels I haven't yet dipped into(less)
For anyone who has ever had a friend, relative or even a casual aquaintance living through Alzheimers, this book is a "must-read". It's even...moreFor anyone who has ever had a friend, relative or even a casual aquaintance living through Alzheimers, this book is a "must-read". It's even more for those who may have worried about the possibility of personally facing memory or cognitive challenges in their lives. It's a sad, poignant, funny and ultimately uplifting look at what life is like for people facing this (less)
This book both fleshes out some of the characters I first encountered in "The Windup Girl" and introduces new ones to extend the world Bacig...moreThis book both fleshes out some of the characters I first encountered in "The Windup Girl" and introduces new ones to extend the world Bacigalupi created there. It was no surprise to me that Bacigalupi won the 2010 Nebula for "the Windup Girl", a powerful, fully realized dystopic vision of the future.
I had the good fortune to Skype Paulo Bacigalupi with a group of Grade 10 students last year, and following that discussion, I went straight to the short story collection that makes up "Pump Six". It was no disappointment, with stand-alone little gems like "the Fluted Girl" interspersed with fragmentary back-story bits that seem surly to have informed "The Windup Girl".
During our conversations, Bacibalupi also mentioned his new Ya title coming out. As it turns out, "ShipBreaker" is now in the running for its own series of awards.
If you've ever contemplated where the current "Business as Usual" scenario in the global business community could take us, try out this powerful and versatile new voice in contemporary speculative fiction.(less)
I love McCarthy's use of language. His vocabulary sometimes leaves me stumped, but his imagery is so rich that even without looking up an unusual word...moreI love McCarthy's use of language. His vocabulary sometimes leaves me stumped, but his imagery is so rich that even without looking up an unusual word, the contextual clues offer a solid grip on his meaning and the result is a rich, evocative tone-poem that carries the reader through.(less)
I was initially fascinated by the premise of this book. Although I had come across a reference to the Voynich Mystery somewhere, I had to check my fav...moreI was initially fascinated by the premise of this book. Although I had come across a reference to the Voynich Mystery somewhere, I had to check my favorite online reference (Google, of course) to get up to speed. A complete novel written in code, that's never been cracked? Possibly actually an alaborate hoax, and so effectively gibberish, even if it was cracked? A mystery involving political intrigue, social injustice and 21st century technology set in a modern monastery; a sort of 21st-century "Name of the Rose"? It had to be a great read.
Unfortunately, the book didn't live up to its billing in Booklist and Publishers Weekly. I should have paid more attention to the Kirkus Review, which says, in part, "Attempting to combine enlightenment with entertainment, the author offers too much of the former and not enough of the latter. In addition, many of the solutions to the puzzles the trio encounters aren't satisfying; the required clues are not necessarily provided, or they hinge on knowledge of esoteric topics in science, history and architecture. Finally, the trio never seems to be in any real danger, which robs the story of drama. Too many history lectures and not enough tension. (Kirkus Reviews, May 15, 2009)"
Without getting into the area of a "spoiler", I would suggest that I did find myself relating to the protagonists and found the last few chapters a disappointment. In the end, the book left me unsatisfied, wishing it had been closer to Walter M. Miller's "A Canticle for Leibowitz" than his eventual followup "Saint Leibowitz and the wild horse woman".(less)
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