The first was Whatever It Takes: Geoffrey Canada's Quest to Change Harlem and America. I had started this awhile back and didn't really get into it, but this time when I picked it back up, I was consumed by it. This book did a good job of providing a lot of the background research that has shaped America's views on poverty and education for the past several decades and then telling the story of Geoff Canada and the Harlem Children's Zone within that context. The Harlem Children's Zone is a project to completely transform the community of Harlem by first transforming the lives of children through a closely connected network of services and opportunities that begin at birth and continue all the way to college. The HCZ seeks to fill any gap that is the result of poverty to ensure that children in Harlem have the same opportunities to compete with their middle class peers, despite background or income level. Canada started out over 20 years ago by operating several after school programs, dropout prevention programs, etc. but the results were hit and miss. A particular program might address one need in a child's life, but there were so many other obstacles that could potentially still derail that child. Therefore although there were many good programs doing great things, the impact wasn't noticeable in the overall scheme of changing poverty in Harlem. As a result, Canada has tried to put together an organization that is much more concentrated and continuous in its focus and that attempts to weave such a tight safety net that no children can slip through. This was such an interesting book. First of all, Canada is an inspiring figure. His determination, his logic, his focus, and his "realness" really make him a one-of-a-kind leader. The whole concept is intriguing, although skeptics wonder how you could make this kind of effort scalable because of the enormous cost. However, I learned so much about the history of how America has viewed and treated poverty and what research has said about poverty that gave me many "aha!" moments for better understanding our situation in America today. And I have to admit, I think Canada's "conveyor belt" method is going to prove most effective in the long run as opposed to the hit and miss efforts we usually see.
In the meantime, I was also reading the Waiting for Superman companion book that is comprised of several articles by people in the education reform world. There were a number of different viewpoints but some valid solutions were discussed. Some of it was more of the same, but there was several articles where I was introduced to some things I hadn't thought about before. I think this would be a good book for people just trying to learn more about this education crisis and about the different issues involved without getting too complex.
Then in just a matter of a few days, I read Work Hard. Be Nice. which is about the two guys who started the KIPP charter schools. It chronicles their entire journey, from the early days as Teach for America teachers in Houston to their first attempts at facilitating KIPP within existing public schools to the development of the KIPP Foundation that trains school leaders to open KIPP schools all across the country. While I didn't always agree 100% with some of Feinberg and Levin's methods, I had to admire their tenacity and dedication to the kids as well as their willingness to learn, grow, and adapt. They just wanted to be better teachers and achieve better results with kids and they were willing to learn and be mentored and to innovate in order for that to happen. These guys were tireless and they were fighters. They absolutely would not give up even when the traditional public school institutional red tape got in the way. Even when they were not getting the results they wanted. Even when they were making enemies left and right. But they ended up being instrumental in showing America that poor kids not only CAN learn, they WILL learn if the expectations are put in place and if teachers do whatever it takes to ensure that it happens. These guys never claimed they had the answers but they didn't wait for the answers to come to them....they went out and found them. The author did a good job of not just sanctifying these two guys...he definitely included some portrayals that weren't always flattering, yet you still end up being inspired by their pure determination to make a difference. They never intended to start a nationwide chain of schools. They just wanted to figure out how to best teach the kids in front of them. I think that's what has to happen for real education reform. We can't always legislate from the top what needs to happen. We need to put the kind of people in classrooms who look at the faces in front of them and do whatever it takes for them to learn.
Finally, I read Lighting Their Fires by Rafe Esquith. Rafe is an exceptional teacher in Los Angeles. He's written a couple of other books as well. This particular book was more about the character he tries to instill in his students. It could actually be read by parents as well as teachers. The whole book is written against the backdrop of him taking some of his students to an LA Dodgers game and how that experience exemplifies many of the values he tries to engrain in his kids. Things like being on time, managing time, the ability to focus and concentrate, developing a personal code of behavior, valuing reading over television, doing whatever you do with excellence, learning unselfishness, exhibiting humility, and learning to appreciate delayed gratification...all values that are pretty scarce in younger generations. I kept thinking of all you parents out there who might enjoy this book....I recommend it! It was a quick read. I read almost the whole thing during the 4 1/2 hours that I was proctoring a practice SAT test for the Upward Bound class on Saturday.
It feels good for the stack beside my bed to be whittled down a bit...but it won't be long I'm sure before it's piled up even with the mattress again!
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