It's the birthday of journalist and activist Jonathan Kozol, (books by this author) born in Boston (1936). He worked as public school teacher in Boston and has written many books about the sad state of public education in this country, and about how segregated our schools still are, all based on his own experiences in classrooms and working in poor neighborhoods. His books include Savage Inequalities: Children in America's Schools (1991) and Amazing Grace: The Lives of Children and the Conscience of a Nation (1995), about kids in the Mott Haven neighborhood of the South Bronx. He said: "Of all my books, Amazing Grace means the most to me. It took the most out of me and was the hardest to write, because it was the hardest to live through these experiences. I felt it would initially be seen as discouraging but, ultimately, sensitive readers would see the resilient and transcendent qualities ... that it would be seen as a book about the elegant theology of children."
In his recent book Letters to a Young Teacher (2007), he combines his opinions on vouchers, No Child Left Behind, and racial segregation, with constant reminders about why teaching is so important and beautiful. Courtesy of the Writer's Almanac.
Kozol said, "Pick battles big enough to matter, small enough to win."
In his recent book Letters to a Young Teacher (2007), he combines his opinions on vouchers, No Child Left Behind, and racial segregation, with constant reminders about why teaching is so important and beautiful. Courtesy of the Writer's Almanac.
Kozol said, "Pick battles big enough to matter, small enough to win."
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