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These Schools Belong to You and Me: Why We Can't Afford to Abandon Our Public Schools
A challenge to narrow, profit-driven conceptions of school success and an argument for protecting public education to ensure that all students become competent citizens in a vibrant democracy
In These Schools Belong to You and Me , MacArthur award–winning educator, reformer, and author Deborah Meier draws on her fifty-plus years of experience to argue that the purpose of universal education is to provide young people with an “apprenticeship for citizenship in a democracy.” Through an intergenerational exchange with her former colleague and fellow educator Emily Gasoi, the coauthors analyze the last several decades of education reform, challenging narrow profit-driven conceptions of school success. Reflecting on the trajectory of education and social policies that are leading our country further from rule “of, for, and by the people,” the authors apply their extensive knowledge and years of research to address the question of how public education must change in order to counter the erosion of democratic spirit and practice in schools and in the nation as a whole.
Meier and Gasoi candidly reflect on the successes, missteps, and challenges they experienced working in democratically governed schools, demonstrating that it is possible to provide an enriched education to all students, not just the privileged few. Arguing that public education and democracy are inextricably bound, and pushing against the tide of privatization, These Schools Belong to You and Me is a rousing call to both save and improve public schools to ensure that all students are empowered to help shape our future democracy.
In These Schools Belong to You and Me , MacArthur award–winning educator, reformer, and author Deborah Meier draws on her fifty-plus years of experience to argue that the purpose of universal education is to provide young people with an “apprenticeship for citizenship in a democracy.” Through an intergenerational exchange with her former colleague and fellow educator Emily Gasoi, the coauthors analyze the last several decades of education reform, challenging narrow profit-driven conceptions of school success. Reflecting on the trajectory of education and social policies that are leading our country further from rule “of, for, and by the people,” the authors apply their extensive knowledge and years of research to address the question of how public education must change in order to counter the erosion of democratic spirit and practice in schools and in the nation as a whole.
Meier and Gasoi candidly reflect on the successes, missteps, and challenges they experienced working in democratically governed schools, demonstrating that it is possible to provide an enriched education to all students, not just the privileged few. Arguing that public education and democracy are inextricably bound, and pushing against the tide of privatization, These Schools Belong to You and Me is a rousing call to both save and improve public schools to ensure that all students are empowered to help shape our future democracy.
208 pages, Paperback
Published September 18, 2018
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October 28, 2017
These Schools Belong to You and Me by Deborah Meier (and Emily Gasoi) did something that even few fictional works do to me: it brought me to tears. Deborah Meier, founder of the outstanding Central Park East school in 1974 (that I was privileged to visit when attending the Bank Street College of Education in New York City), presents a profoundly stirring case for the preservation of public education as a place both to practice and to sustain democracy.
Meier maintains an optimism that I struggle to emulate that education will not be co-opted by corporate greed. She holds to the hope that despite the current administration (including a Department of Education led by an outspoken opponent of public schools), people can still make a difference. She belives that the opportunity to turn things around, from a relentless pursuit of wealth acquired by a privileged few to a country addressing its demons of classism and racism and moving towards creating a true democratic education for all, is still possible.
The schools Meier describes in depth include her New York City experiment within the racially segregated and financially impoverished East Harlem and her Boston school, the Mission Hill School, are run with deep engagement by teachers, administrators, students, and families. Assessments were meaningful portfolios in which students created projects and explained them to a group of educators who provided feedback, including areas that needed to be redone. My own daughter went to a school that practiced this form of assessment. She worked harder than I ever did to pass a Regent's exam, and learned a variety of skills in addition to mastering content. She learned to present herself and her work to professionals, to deeply work through and convey the thinking that guided her work, to learn everything from how to use visual aids and technology to how to put into her own words the knowledge she had gained from projects that had been done independently but with the guidance and feedback along the way of professional educators who were respected by administrators.
Instead of dismantling public schools, Meier argues for an expansion of their function, making them centers of wrap around services supporting neighborhoods. Indeed, she argues for the value of neighborhoods as embodying templates of democracy.
Meier laments how many of the ideas she and the others who led progressive school movements have been taken over and distorted by the current reformers. Small schools are not necessarily good if they don't serve the community, if the educational process does not engage both students and teachers as learners and listeners.
Voices like Meier's keep me from plummeting into total despair. These are dark times, especially for education but that may be because there is no where that the battle for democracy is more clearly fought. Schools that often are created for private greed, no-excuses schools that put test results (which Meier analyzes brilliantly) above the growth of students as thinkers and members of a larger community and subject the poor, primarily children of color, to a prison-like environment stripped to the bare essentials of school offerings while negating the worth of their own traditions, the takeover of a public good by individual interests, all this is discouraging, to say the least.
The very survival of democracy as an ideal, even if imperfectly realized, seems to be on trial at this time and its future survival is far from assured. Meier's passion and intelligence keeps hope alive that there are people who care passionately about our country and the dream it embodies of governance by all. This book describes education at its best, articulately explains how it can best be achieved, and offers the hope that all children can participate in excellent schools.
Let's hope there are enough people who hold on to these dreams and are willing to speak out for them to preserve our schools and our democracy.
I want to thank LibraryThing, Beacon Hill Press, and above all Deborah Meier and her collaborator Emily Gasoi for the opportunity to read this important work.
Meier maintains an optimism that I struggle to emulate that education will not be co-opted by corporate greed. She holds to the hope that despite the current administration (including a Department of Education led by an outspoken opponent of public schools), people can still make a difference. She belives that the opportunity to turn things around, from a relentless pursuit of wealth acquired by a privileged few to a country addressing its demons of classism and racism and moving towards creating a true democratic education for all, is still possible.
The schools Meier describes in depth include her New York City experiment within the racially segregated and financially impoverished East Harlem and her Boston school, the Mission Hill School, are run with deep engagement by teachers, administrators, students, and families. Assessments were meaningful portfolios in which students created projects and explained them to a group of educators who provided feedback, including areas that needed to be redone. My own daughter went to a school that practiced this form of assessment. She worked harder than I ever did to pass a Regent's exam, and learned a variety of skills in addition to mastering content. She learned to present herself and her work to professionals, to deeply work through and convey the thinking that guided her work, to learn everything from how to use visual aids and technology to how to put into her own words the knowledge she had gained from projects that had been done independently but with the guidance and feedback along the way of professional educators who were respected by administrators.
Instead of dismantling public schools, Meier argues for an expansion of their function, making them centers of wrap around services supporting neighborhoods. Indeed, she argues for the value of neighborhoods as embodying templates of democracy.
Meier laments how many of the ideas she and the others who led progressive school movements have been taken over and distorted by the current reformers. Small schools are not necessarily good if they don't serve the community, if the educational process does not engage both students and teachers as learners and listeners.
Voices like Meier's keep me from plummeting into total despair. These are dark times, especially for education but that may be because there is no where that the battle for democracy is more clearly fought. Schools that often are created for private greed, no-excuses schools that put test results (which Meier analyzes brilliantly) above the growth of students as thinkers and members of a larger community and subject the poor, primarily children of color, to a prison-like environment stripped to the bare essentials of school offerings while negating the worth of their own traditions, the takeover of a public good by individual interests, all this is discouraging, to say the least.
The very survival of democracy as an ideal, even if imperfectly realized, seems to be on trial at this time and its future survival is far from assured. Meier's passion and intelligence keeps hope alive that there are people who care passionately about our country and the dream it embodies of governance by all. This book describes education at its best, articulately explains how it can best be achieved, and offers the hope that all children can participate in excellent schools.
Let's hope there are enough people who hold on to these dreams and are willing to speak out for them to preserve our schools and our democracy.
I want to thank LibraryThing, Beacon Hill Press, and above all Deborah Meier and her collaborator Emily Gasoi for the opportunity to read this important work.
November 18, 2017
I am a person who is terribly worried about our schools. Maybe you are, too. I feel so strongly about the importance of public education in a democracy that I could have written the title of this book.
This author has many, many years of experience working in the schools of America. Early on, she worked in a small experimental school and the experience was life-changing. She draws on that time as well as many subsequent times in experimental schools to share what she has learned about schools that work. Some of the key ideas are deeply involving the families and communities in education; student-driven learning; authentic learning; democracy and equity.
This author has many, many years of experience working in the schools of America. Early on, she worked in a small experimental school and the experience was life-changing. She draws on that time as well as many subsequent times in experimental schools to share what she has learned about schools that work. Some of the key ideas are deeply involving the families and communities in education; student-driven learning; authentic learning; democracy and equity.
November 10, 2017
Summary: An argument for public schools where democracy is not simply taught but practiced by including teachers, students, and parents, as well as administrators as active participants in the educational process.
It might be argued that both public schools and democracy are under serious attack in this country. Political figures including the president and current Secretary of Education have argued for at least reducing and displacing public schools by private enterprise charter schools as more efficient education delivery systems.
The co-authors of this new book, defending the idea of democratically run public schools, argue that one of the reasons we seem to be inclined to democratically elect leaders with autocratic tendencies is that, while we may formally teach democracy in our schools, the practices that shape public education are top down and autocratic in practice, and this is what students really learn. Their rejoinder to the criticism of public schools and the rise of privatization is to offer an extended argument based on actual successes of democratically operated public schools where teachers, students, and parents all have an active role in shaping the educational experience.
Deborah Meier has been a leader in educational reform for nearly fifty years, starting a number of democratically organized schools around the country, especially in New York City. She was the founding principal of Mission Hill School in Boston, where Emily Gasoi was hired as one of the founding teachers of the school. The co-authors take turns contributing chapters of the book, with Emily Gasoi introducing the book and Deborah Meier concluding it. In these openings and closings Gasoi and Meier argue passionately for public schools as a treasure all of us should care for, especially if we care about equity among different classes and ethnic groups in society. And they argue that the best way to educate citizens to sustain a democracy is to practice it in the schools.
In the body of the Meier tends to speak to the bigger picture issues and the history of her involvement in education reform, from her initial experiences as a substitute teacher in South Chicago, her efforts in Harlem and other parts of New York to found democratically run schools, and her role at Mission Hill School, including the tension between being an education leader with so much experience, and giving teachers, students and parents a real voice in shaping the schools.
Gasoi describes her own conversion to democratic practice and how this changed her own educational practice as she learned how to teach an integrated, project-based curriculum instead of discrete subjects. She goes in depth in how students determine the particular focus of projects, integrate different subject areas into their research, and cultivate communication and presentation skills as they share their work with parents and the local community.
Together, the two of them take on the “accountability” movement which has teachers teaching to the assessment tests. They point to the Mission Hill example that focuses on depth rather than breadth of coverage, that teaches students how to learn where students do the work and teachers coach. Assessment involves the presentation and defense of an individualized portfolio, similar to a dissertation defense, rather than standardized tests. They express concern that privatized education may give parents “choice” but no real voice as they might have with a public school in their neighborhood.
It seems in our public discourse, we only hear about the private option versus poorly performing public schools. These two educators represent a group whose voices are not being heard. They think there is a better form of accountability than the top down accountability of national and state politicians making ideologically shaped decisions about education. It is to give educators, parents, and the students themselves a real stake in shaping their schools. The truth that Gasoi and Meier don’t acknowledge is that this is what religious schools and the home school movement have been saying for years (perhaps because this also is perceived as a threat to public education).
Behind this is an “educators know best” attitude that cuts parents out of the picture. They acknowledge that in the Mission Hill model, they needed to learn how to better include parents’ voices. What they really are talking about is learning how to return democracy to the neighborhood, to local communities, rather than ceding control to state and federal governments. What they don’t answer is what happens when you don’t have the good school leadership and community buy-in that was apparent at Mission Hill. Nor do they deal with the inequities of the funding models of schools and the dependency on state and federal funding to mitigate these inequities, and the corollary that with control of the purse strings come expectations of accountability.
What they do show is that there are a number of committed public educators out there who care for students, who care for quality education, and who should not be an “excluded middle” in the discussion of the future of public primary and secondary education in this country. These are people who have a proven track record of educational excellence. Both I and my son benefited greatly from such educators. If we care about the future of education and the future of our democracy, it seems we must also listen to people like Deborah Meier and Emily Gasoi.
____________________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher via LibraryThing. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
It might be argued that both public schools and democracy are under serious attack in this country. Political figures including the president and current Secretary of Education have argued for at least reducing and displacing public schools by private enterprise charter schools as more efficient education delivery systems.
The co-authors of this new book, defending the idea of democratically run public schools, argue that one of the reasons we seem to be inclined to democratically elect leaders with autocratic tendencies is that, while we may formally teach democracy in our schools, the practices that shape public education are top down and autocratic in practice, and this is what students really learn. Their rejoinder to the criticism of public schools and the rise of privatization is to offer an extended argument based on actual successes of democratically operated public schools where teachers, students, and parents all have an active role in shaping the educational experience.
Deborah Meier has been a leader in educational reform for nearly fifty years, starting a number of democratically organized schools around the country, especially in New York City. She was the founding principal of Mission Hill School in Boston, where Emily Gasoi was hired as one of the founding teachers of the school. The co-authors take turns contributing chapters of the book, with Emily Gasoi introducing the book and Deborah Meier concluding it. In these openings and closings Gasoi and Meier argue passionately for public schools as a treasure all of us should care for, especially if we care about equity among different classes and ethnic groups in society. And they argue that the best way to educate citizens to sustain a democracy is to practice it in the schools.
In the body of the Meier tends to speak to the bigger picture issues and the history of her involvement in education reform, from her initial experiences as a substitute teacher in South Chicago, her efforts in Harlem and other parts of New York to found democratically run schools, and her role at Mission Hill School, including the tension between being an education leader with so much experience, and giving teachers, students and parents a real voice in shaping the schools.
Gasoi describes her own conversion to democratic practice and how this changed her own educational practice as she learned how to teach an integrated, project-based curriculum instead of discrete subjects. She goes in depth in how students determine the particular focus of projects, integrate different subject areas into their research, and cultivate communication and presentation skills as they share their work with parents and the local community.
Together, the two of them take on the “accountability” movement which has teachers teaching to the assessment tests. They point to the Mission Hill example that focuses on depth rather than breadth of coverage, that teaches students how to learn where students do the work and teachers coach. Assessment involves the presentation and defense of an individualized portfolio, similar to a dissertation defense, rather than standardized tests. They express concern that privatized education may give parents “choice” but no real voice as they might have with a public school in their neighborhood.
It seems in our public discourse, we only hear about the private option versus poorly performing public schools. These two educators represent a group whose voices are not being heard. They think there is a better form of accountability than the top down accountability of national and state politicians making ideologically shaped decisions about education. It is to give educators, parents, and the students themselves a real stake in shaping their schools. The truth that Gasoi and Meier don’t acknowledge is that this is what religious schools and the home school movement have been saying for years (perhaps because this also is perceived as a threat to public education).
Behind this is an “educators know best” attitude that cuts parents out of the picture. They acknowledge that in the Mission Hill model, they needed to learn how to better include parents’ voices. What they really are talking about is learning how to return democracy to the neighborhood, to local communities, rather than ceding control to state and federal governments. What they don’t answer is what happens when you don’t have the good school leadership and community buy-in that was apparent at Mission Hill. Nor do they deal with the inequities of the funding models of schools and the dependency on state and federal funding to mitigate these inequities, and the corollary that with control of the purse strings come expectations of accountability.
What they do show is that there are a number of committed public educators out there who care for students, who care for quality education, and who should not be an “excluded middle” in the discussion of the future of public primary and secondary education in this country. These are people who have a proven track record of educational excellence. Both I and my son benefited greatly from such educators. If we care about the future of education and the future of our democracy, it seems we must also listen to people like Deborah Meier and Emily Gasoi.
____________________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher via LibraryThing. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
March 2, 2018
The Institute for Democratic Education in America website says that:
“Democratic education sees young people not as passive recipients of knowledge, but rather as active co-creators of their own learning. They are not the products of an education system, but rather valued participants in a vibrant learning community.
Democratic education begins with the premise that everyone is unique, so each of us learns in a different way. By supporting the individual development of each young person within a caring community, democratic education helps young people learn about themselves, engage with the world around them, and become positive and contributing members of society.”
In These Schools Belong To You And Me, Deborah Meier - a veteran educator active in school reform since the 1970s and winner of a MacArthur Fellowship in 1987 - and a younger former colleague and sister educator, Emily Gasoi - have teamed up to chart and discuss their efforts to practice democracy in public school communities (mostly in Massachusetts and New York), and how market-driven reforms threaten those ideals and continue to leave poor citizens of all backgrounds - but especially poor black and brown communities - at risk.
One of a number of ironies brought to note by Meier and Gasoi is the fact that a number of progressive schools founded in the early 20th century with a mission to serve children of the working poor, now serve the upper middle-class and elite (think Montessori and University of Chicago Laboratory School).
“The bottom line is, if we are ever going to fulfill the promise for schools to become incubators for democracy, then that task requires creating democratic adult culture within the schools themselves that mirrors the one we want for our children. For if we expect the young to grow into judicious citizens and thoughtful, competent stewards in matters of national and global welfare, then it only makes sense that we start by trusting local constituents—-students, parents, teachers, and neighbors—-to weigh in on and make decisions concerning the serious matters that affect their lives in school.” - Deborah Meier (from Chapter One).
In addition to illustrating how schools they worked in grappled with making “incubators of democracy” real, the authors unpack how and when high-profile foundation and corporate money in public school reform was first introduced and seemed to support progressive, democratic ideals. Now it seems that marketplace business culture has changed the landscape of public education, turning many public school environments into stressful, fearful, militarized, competitive, non-democratic spaces.
I enjoyed reading about small public schools where experiential, emergent, and project-based curriculums - nourished by democratic practices - created rich learning environments for students, teachers, and parents. Examples of other ways to evaluate student learning success (besides standardized testing) were particularly valuable; and the Appendices include “Habits of Mind,” “Habits of Work,” and other guiding principles and rubrics practiced in such communities.
I read this book hoping to better understand the role of public education in a democratic society; as well as deepen my understanding of how public schools and teacher unions appear to be losing the battle towards privatization. It did fill in some gaps for me, even though it veered away from the argument that its subtitle promises.
“Democratic education sees young people not as passive recipients of knowledge, but rather as active co-creators of their own learning. They are not the products of an education system, but rather valued participants in a vibrant learning community.
Democratic education begins with the premise that everyone is unique, so each of us learns in a different way. By supporting the individual development of each young person within a caring community, democratic education helps young people learn about themselves, engage with the world around them, and become positive and contributing members of society.”
In These Schools Belong To You And Me, Deborah Meier - a veteran educator active in school reform since the 1970s and winner of a MacArthur Fellowship in 1987 - and a younger former colleague and sister educator, Emily Gasoi - have teamed up to chart and discuss their efforts to practice democracy in public school communities (mostly in Massachusetts and New York), and how market-driven reforms threaten those ideals and continue to leave poor citizens of all backgrounds - but especially poor black and brown communities - at risk.
One of a number of ironies brought to note by Meier and Gasoi is the fact that a number of progressive schools founded in the early 20th century with a mission to serve children of the working poor, now serve the upper middle-class and elite (think Montessori and University of Chicago Laboratory School).
“The bottom line is, if we are ever going to fulfill the promise for schools to become incubators for democracy, then that task requires creating democratic adult culture within the schools themselves that mirrors the one we want for our children. For if we expect the young to grow into judicious citizens and thoughtful, competent stewards in matters of national and global welfare, then it only makes sense that we start by trusting local constituents—-students, parents, teachers, and neighbors—-to weigh in on and make decisions concerning the serious matters that affect their lives in school.” - Deborah Meier (from Chapter One).
In addition to illustrating how schools they worked in grappled with making “incubators of democracy” real, the authors unpack how and when high-profile foundation and corporate money in public school reform was first introduced and seemed to support progressive, democratic ideals. Now it seems that marketplace business culture has changed the landscape of public education, turning many public school environments into stressful, fearful, militarized, competitive, non-democratic spaces.
I enjoyed reading about small public schools where experiential, emergent, and project-based curriculums - nourished by democratic practices - created rich learning environments for students, teachers, and parents. Examples of other ways to evaluate student learning success (besides standardized testing) were particularly valuable; and the Appendices include “Habits of Mind,” “Habits of Work,” and other guiding principles and rubrics practiced in such communities.
I read this book hoping to better understand the role of public education in a democratic society; as well as deepen my understanding of how public schools and teacher unions appear to be losing the battle towards privatization. It did fill in some gaps for me, even though it veered away from the argument that its subtitle promises.
September 19, 2017
I received and Advance Reader Copy of this book from Edelweiss+ in exchange for an honest review.
4.5 Stars
This is such an important book and my greatest concern is that the very people who most need to read this book will perceive it as too overtly political to grasp its most salient points- that a free public education is essential to democracy and that public schools (and universities) model the real world, with people from all backgrounds, beliefs and political positions. Raising and educating our children in an echo chamber of questionable educational quality will achieve nothing for a democratic society.
Deborah Meier is a famous and highly respected educator with a long track record of innovation in the public school setting. Her words in this book, which I wish I could give to every member of every state legislature, are wise words borne of decades of successful work. She tells us of both the systems failings and potential and most of all, why a public education must remain relevant in a democracy.
My only caveat here is that the occasionally polarizing tone may, as mentioned above, limit the readership. Preaching to the choir is its own narrow echo chamber. Getting people past the introduction and first few chapters may be hard for those keen on vouchers and Christian education. Those might be sllim odds. That audience needs to have this thoughtful discussion of the drawbacks of the voucher system, particularly in quality of education, but also in terms of preparing citizens who can deal with the whole world around them that may not look like them, or believe like them. The rest of the world isn't going away, after all. I'm frankly not sure, however, how this topic can be discussed without getting political.
4.5 Stars
This is such an important book and my greatest concern is that the very people who most need to read this book will perceive it as too overtly political to grasp its most salient points- that a free public education is essential to democracy and that public schools (and universities) model the real world, with people from all backgrounds, beliefs and political positions. Raising and educating our children in an echo chamber of questionable educational quality will achieve nothing for a democratic society.
Deborah Meier is a famous and highly respected educator with a long track record of innovation in the public school setting. Her words in this book, which I wish I could give to every member of every state legislature, are wise words borne of decades of successful work. She tells us of both the systems failings and potential and most of all, why a public education must remain relevant in a democracy.
My only caveat here is that the occasionally polarizing tone may, as mentioned above, limit the readership. Preaching to the choir is its own narrow echo chamber. Getting people past the introduction and first few chapters may be hard for those keen on vouchers and Christian education. Those might be sllim odds. That audience needs to have this thoughtful discussion of the drawbacks of the voucher system, particularly in quality of education, but also in terms of preparing citizens who can deal with the whole world around them that may not look like them, or believe like them. The rest of the world isn't going away, after all. I'm frankly not sure, however, how this topic can be discussed without getting political.
March 22, 2018
I am not a teacher, policy maker or activist, but I am a parent of kids fast approaching school age. This is probably the first full length book I've read on education in the US, but I've read enough articles and watched enough documentaries to know what we are talking about here.
The book is a pitch for democratically-governed autonomous public schools, coming from one of the pioneers of the movement (Meier) and her younger associate (Gasoi). It's a worthy idea, and it's easy to see from the book how such schools foster critical thinking, healthy group dynamics, communication and organization skills.
However, that's not what one expects when looking at the title. There's not much new in there about "Why we can't abandon our public schools" other than the implicit arguments about race and poverty. The book doesn't answer a "why" question, but a "how" question. It addresses a friendly audience who already knows why. A more conservative audience would reject the book anyway due to repeated bitter references to Trump and secretary DeVos.
Also, I wish there were more statistics in the book and less anecdotes. Most of the book is the personal story of the authors, and while it makes for an interesting enough read, it doesn't deliver enough weight to the argument, because it's missing numbers and it shies away from discussing difficult compromises. How do those democratic-school students test in math? How many end up in engineering and science college tracks? How much does it cost to run the school per student? What's so different about parent involvement, since it seems to me parents offer suggestions but do not participate in the decision making process - which is the same as any school. I think the answer to such questions would make for a stronger book, and would transform an "I did my best, but you didn't want it" lament into a true call to arms for progressive school activists.
The book is a pitch for democratically-governed autonomous public schools, coming from one of the pioneers of the movement (Meier) and her younger associate (Gasoi). It's a worthy idea, and it's easy to see from the book how such schools foster critical thinking, healthy group dynamics, communication and organization skills.
However, that's not what one expects when looking at the title. There's not much new in there about "Why we can't abandon our public schools" other than the implicit arguments about race and poverty. The book doesn't answer a "why" question, but a "how" question. It addresses a friendly audience who already knows why. A more conservative audience would reject the book anyway due to repeated bitter references to Trump and secretary DeVos.
Also, I wish there were more statistics in the book and less anecdotes. Most of the book is the personal story of the authors, and while it makes for an interesting enough read, it doesn't deliver enough weight to the argument, because it's missing numbers and it shies away from discussing difficult compromises. How do those democratic-school students test in math? How many end up in engineering and science college tracks? How much does it cost to run the school per student? What's so different about parent involvement, since it seems to me parents offer suggestions but do not participate in the decision making process - which is the same as any school. I think the answer to such questions would make for a stronger book, and would transform an "I did my best, but you didn't want it" lament into a true call to arms for progressive school activists.
April 1, 2018
An inspiring and galvanizing read. The essays are a conversation, new perspectives from Meier in dialogue with on-the-ground examples and reflections from Gasoi. A good reminder that while some things haven't changed (or have gotten worse) since Meier wrote The Power of Their Ideas, there's still hope.
December 30, 2017
This is a must-read for teachers! I found myself fired up--underlining, boxing, and annotating as I read this book to and from school each day. Meier and Gasoi chronicle their work building and teaching in unapologetically progressive public schools in New York and Boston. Their stories of small, democratically run schools with a culture "fierce collegiality" dedicated to racial equity and authentic learning were inspiring and motivating. Reading this book reaffirmed my commitment to fostering my own democratic classroom. Even if you're not a teacher, this book is needed right now as DeVos guns for our public schools--the institutions we need to preserve and strengthen in order to maintain democracy itself. Read it.
February 9, 2018
The book is beautiful. I'm really glad I read it.
March 25, 2024
Bored 2.5/5 lol I hate reading books about pedagogy
January 14, 2018
“Imagine if instead wasting vast amounts of time, as well as human and monetary resources, on testing and test prep materials, instead of firing principals and teachers and closing schools, we invested in wrap-around services in schools: mental and physical health care for kids and their families and other essentials that wealthy families take for granted.”
Messages like this fill the book, urging us to do better for all kids. Many times when reading this I, a public school teacher, had to take pause and think about the reality in my classroom. This book calls for all people to consider what exactly we want children to take away from their K-12 education. A MUST READ in our current education climate.
Messages like this fill the book, urging us to do better for all kids. Many times when reading this I, a public school teacher, had to take pause and think about the reality in my classroom. This book calls for all people to consider what exactly we want children to take away from their K-12 education. A MUST READ in our current education climate.
March 3, 2018
Great to be continually reminded of the possibility of public schools!
November 23, 2018
Goodreads Giveaway - This book provides some historical context to the current state of education reform. The two authors alternate chapters, reviewing how public education reform were initially getting started during the early sixties and how this reform has been perverted by neoliberal and conservative organizations to reflect their free-market ideals. Betsy DeVos and the Gates Foundations are identified as the primary forces for the negative actors on taking a positive, democratizing movement and making it a tool for hegemonic forces from the country's top 1%. The writing is redundant if you have read the previous books but the authors (many of the chapters and even paragraphs start off with some form of: "as I've said in previous books"). The nature of the work is to keep the previous conversations and points of contention relevant to the Trump era of education politics. The anecdotes are interesting, but if you're looking for how-to's, updates on theory, recommendations for political action, or even a call to arms, look elsewhere as this book appears to lack a coherent vision or mission.
April 14, 2018
An unpleasant propaganda book interwoven with trivia and some sort of biography to make the end product palatable for the victims. Fallacious arguments. Emotion sold as reason. Precisely all the arguments against the state indoctrination turned around to seem good in order to save the unions and their paying members against everybody else.
Are these schools mine? Only one, not "schools" as the author lies. Nope. I can't even change a teacher beating up the pupils. And the teacher union will break the school year in as many parts as it sees fit and hold the children hostages only to get more money from the tax payer, even the ones who don't have children.
This isn't even about abandon, as paid contracts will make sure the teachers are paid their excessive wages and extorted pension plans. This is about not letting the public see the emperor is naked, by blocking any attempt of an alternative to the teaching mafia.
Are these schools mine? Only one, not "schools" as the author lies. Nope. I can't even change a teacher beating up the pupils. And the teacher union will break the school year in as many parts as it sees fit and hold the children hostages only to get more money from the tax payer, even the ones who don't have children.
This isn't even about abandon, as paid contracts will make sure the teachers are paid their excessive wages and extorted pension plans. This is about not letting the public see the emperor is naked, by blocking any attempt of an alternative to the teaching mafia.
May 13, 2018
Essential reading for today's education advocate.
"Once I learned to listen, to control my urge to jump in and correct, I heard young children building arguments, putting together their observations and knowledge in logical and reasonable ways, arriving at conclusions that at first seemed absurd but upon close listening often followed a scientist's line of reasoning."
"In fact, the most meaningful forms of assessment begin with listening, something that is entirely absent from standardized testing."
"Since tests are now scored against a benchmark and not a bell curve, test makers can place the cutoff at any level they choose."
Well-researched and cited. This could be a handbook for any public school advocate for social justice.
"Once I learned to listen, to control my urge to jump in and correct, I heard young children building arguments, putting together their observations and knowledge in logical and reasonable ways, arriving at conclusions that at first seemed absurd but upon close listening often followed a scientist's line of reasoning."
"In fact, the most meaningful forms of assessment begin with listening, something that is entirely absent from standardized testing."
"Since tests are now scored against a benchmark and not a bell curve, test makers can place the cutoff at any level they choose."
Well-researched and cited. This could be a handbook for any public school advocate for social justice.
June 5, 2018
There were parts that I read slowly and carefully, savoring the beautiful logic of how schools should be . There were other parts that I skimmed. But yes, teachers and administrators and parents should read this just to see what is possible when people believe schools are for the children who come to them.
January 27, 2020
This book is both an indictment of our current system as well as a describing what public schools can and should be. In alternating voices Emily and Deborah bring the theory and practice to democratic public school to life and explain why it is so important to building democratic culture. they can speak with the voices of hose who have succeeded in making it real, not just a theroy.
December 14, 2017
The Title Says It All. Quite Informative. Thankyou Goodreads for this free book!!!!
October 31, 2017
A bit too much backstory for my liking but some excellent leads into school reform
February 11, 2019
I liked the overall theme of the book, but I became easily lost and/or bored by the authors’ past educational experiences and practices.
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August 19, 2019This is beautiful and encouraging to a parent with Kids in Public schools
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