A Great Read for Educators
588533
Meredith Maran has the rare ability to take us right into the heart of an  urban high school community and to give voice to its students and teachers. Class Dismissed shows us the devasting impact of a large school on the lives of kids in crisis. It goes where a lot of books on education won't go--eg. into the complex issues of race as experienced by a school community struggling to survive and change. It compels us to rethink the whole way high schools are structured and cultured. A great read for educators, parents, policy makers and school activists.
3017266
Highly recommend this for all educators. David raises several key questions about education and how educators are helping their students. This book was very thought provoking and made me examine my personal role in education. I encouraged all of my staff to read as well and am sharing with several college students who sub in my building.
3798859
This is a great read for any educator, or employee of our school system. I also recommend it to any parent thinking about dual language programs for their kids.
691910
Teachers writing books for teachers is a good thing.  Just like teachers presenting to other teachers is a good thing. Teachers are in the day to day trenches, and they can tell it like it is.  As a teacher, Meenoo Rami provides other teachers with great advice.  In her book, Thrive: 5 Ways to (Re)Invigorate Your Teaching, Rami gets real and shares the steps that she took to develop into the best teacher she could be.

Rami provides readers with a book that not only inspires but also shares the how-to's of finding and working with a mentor, of joining and building networks, of keeping yourself challenged, of listening to yourself, and of empowering your students.  As she shares her story, she also shares the stories of other educators.  It is this collective voice that brings strength to what she has to say and dispels any myths that she is the only one doing these things.

Rami's resonated with me because there were many similarities to my own experiences.  Through Twitter's 140 characters and #chats, I began to learn about ideas and techniques and strategies for motivating young readers in ways that I had never been exposed to before. There was always someone that I could reach out to who had an expertise in an area that I wanted to learn more, even when I could not find that person in my local community. From there, I tried new conferences and new networking. I realized that I had allowed myself to become too isolated in my own district and community that I had lost the big picture perspective.

Despite my own epiphanies that seemed to be coming quickly, and almost daily as I became more involved in this unique online Professional Learning Community (PLC), I had difficulty convincing others that this was worthwhile, especially worth the time it took to nurture the relationships with other educators.  As I read Meeno's story and how she connected with others through conferences and social media, I was renewed. I now have a book that I can share with other teachers and say "see, it is possible and other teachers are doing it too".

Within the pages of this slim volume, educators who come with an open heart and mind will find practical ways to expand their learning community and reconnect with their passion as teachers. Just as I met Meenoo at NCTE '12 and discovered a teacher who is passionate and caring and thoughtful,  readers of THRIVE will also experience that same teacher.  And in meeting her, they will be challenged to speak up or reach out or try something new.
3256221
Rarely have I found a book that draws such easy lines for educators. Janet Zadina clearly shows how research connects to practice and what teachers can do to make a more brain-friendly curriculum work. It's almost magic for me. It helps me to understand better how little changes could make a world of difference for my students.

We are often told that cyclical curricula are good. We are told not to read PowerPoint slides for students (that's wrong for ELLs, by the way!). We know that deadlines are good, but too much stress is bad. But Multiple Pathways to the Student Brain clearly shows those connections between brain-based research and best practice.

I've already recommended this to my professional learning community. It's a must-read.
1632553
I had expected this book to be quite dry. After all, how exciting can a book be, written for college teachers and professors by one of their own? But I was surprised and engaged.
When I have spoken to friends about their education experience, some could remember the odd teacher who had engaged with and inspired them. The rest were best forgotten. The author clearly seeks to change that.  He believes that students need to see the value of what is being taught to them, to their lives.
This guide aims to meet busy instructors where they are at, and introduces ideas and strategies to encourage student participation. Some of these he brings from a prior marketing background where marketers have learned how to know their target audience and engage with them. Some come from his experience in K-12 education where he was nominated as one of Honor Rolls Outstanding American Teachers.
The book is rich in further information, in the form of extensive References, Resources and End Notes.  I wish my teachers had read this book.
3864472
This is a great book for any educator.  It contains valuable ideas and insight into what teaching is like in the urban setting Under No Child Left Behind.
2434898
I feel lucky to have received a free copy of this book to review.  Many times I found myself right there with the narrator, as if I were in the room.  The children and adults that she writes about seemed very real to me.  I liked the author's honesty about herself and what she experienced and learned.  I think she was able to express her true opinions, which I find refreshing. (I am a teacher also.)  I recommend this book to other teachers and administrators, as well as to parents of school aged children; and I believe it would be a very good read for anyone interested in and/or critical of today's educators.

Recently retired
2423478
AMAZING BOOK!!!  A must-read for educators who care deeply about children.
3932198
I am an elementary school principal and chose this book for our book study. My staff really enjoyed this book and found the information user-friendly and relevant. Each grade level was assigned a chapter and the short chapters made it very easy to divide up the parts. The information encompasses the tenets of standards-based instruction and provides lots of examples in case teachers need to see the information. Each example is by using multiple content areas as the focused. This is a quick read that all teachers and staff should read to break differentiation down into small parts.
72017
For teachers, this book has many terrific ideas on keeping students engaged and interested in learning. The author also describes many techniques for diffusing difficult situations and handling unruly students. But as someone interested in supplementing regular education with some home study, I found many sections are not as applicable.

Overall I would say this has good, useful information for parents and many if not all could benefit from reading this book. For educators, I would say this is a must read.
2200976
Eric Sheningers book does a great job of providing case studies of educational administrators who successfully use technology to transform their schools.  The case studies cover all levels of schools including elementary, middle, and high school. They come from diverse parts of the country including urban, suburban, and rural communities. Several important principles stand out and can be applied to any school administrators job. First, digital leaders must lead by example and must be willing to do so in a very public and transparent manner. Next, digital leaders must continue to be lifelong learners who continually hone their skills as technology changes. Finally, digital leaders must make use of the vast amount of resources available to them through PLNs and on the Internet.
1201675
This is a clear and thoughtful blend of data and stories that persuasively makes the case for a new paradigm in education -- a paradigm with more time for learning and much more mentoring by what the author calls "citizen teachers."  I liked the examples drawn from the author's own (privileged) life and examples of how the Citizen Schools program is providing to lower income students many of the same experiences that benefit upper income students.

So many education books get lost in wonkery.  But this one is highly readable and personal while packing a major punch in its insights and advocacy.  Worth reading for sure!
2492323
This is an excellent exposition of the history and underlying philosophies of two mainstays of education: the textbook and the lecture. While these traditional modes of instruction are often maligned in contemporary education culture, Friesen's treatment helps the reader understand the fundamental nature of both the textbook and the lecture, and how we might re-envision or even redeem them for today and the future. An accessible read, this book would be an excellent choice for discussion by a professional learning community. Highly recommended reading for middle and high school teachers, faculty in higher education, educational technology professionals, professional development leaders, curriculum directors, instructional coaches, and administrators at all levels.
1509764
Sturtevant and the Hack Learning team have delivered a highly engaging and useful book for educators at all levels. I highly recommend gifting this book to the teachers in your life; they are sure to discover tips they can immediately implement to make learning more student-centered and downright fun!
4022405
A good friend of mine, who is an elementary school. teacher, recommended this book to me to give me a good perspective on what it's like to run a school and get a deeper understanding of the issues that all school administrators experience.  Marc is very eloquent and articulate in describing his experiences as a headmaster along with being very thought-provoking in figuring out how to improve in educating our children.  At first read you would think that being a headmaster at a private Jewish school in South Africa wouldn't relate to educating our children in America but very quickly you realize that children's learning process and adolescent experiences are similar no matter where they grow up and as adults, parents, teachers and administrators we need to continue to strive to improve the methods we educate them.  This book also highlights that we need to appreciate our teachers more as this is one of the most difficult jobs there is yet very unappreciated which we show in their pay and social status.  To me the book highlights that if we want to improve as a society and move to the next level of civilization we need to rethink our perception of education in this country.
2823316
Dweck's book does an excellent job in highlighting the importance of maintaining a growth mindset when designing educational systems. If educators believe that intelligence is fixed then schooling becomes more of a process of sorting, labeling, and testing, rather than focusing on improving instruction so that more students can reach their full potential. The bottom line is that one test score tells us little to nothing about a student's potential.

Just as importantly, Dweck does a good job of showing the value for educators to adopt a growth mindset in relation to their own potential for becoming more effective teachers (and administrators) and for inspiring colleagues to do the same. Just as Dweck shares insights that can be valuable to educators, she also gives examples of cultivating a growth mindset to parents who are, of course, the first teachers as well as the adults youth spend the most time with throughout the first 18 years.