Letters to a Young Teacher,   ISBN:B002QGSW06

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"Letters To A Young Teacher" by Jonathan Kozol, its title a reference to a work by Rilke, is a collection of letters that Kozol wrote to a first-year teacher in an inner-city Boston school. It is familiar stomping ground for Kozol, having begun his teaching career in the same setting, and having devoted his life afterwards to spending time with children of poverty in inner-city slums, documenting their lives and the ways in which public education has failed them. Kozol's books are always an enlightening (and sometimes righteously infuriating) read, but "Letters To A Young Teacher" has almost too much repetition from previous works for those who have read other Kozol books.

Kozol's letters are written to a teacher named Francesca during her first year of teaching. In his letters he highlights conversations that they have had and shares his thoughts on visits to her classroom. He includes his own experiences in his responses (often drawing on material that has previously been published) and his thoughts about education reform. Kozol, whose experience ranges over 40 years, is an adept and intelligent advocate for public education reform, and I am grateful that he continues to push for policies that may never be enacted since all too often the people who make decisions regarding education do not have the slightest idea of what would best help the situation. Too many times the choices they do make and the policies they do put in place are much more damaging to young children than they are helpful.

"Letters To A Young Teacher", while a fast read filled with an intelligent and lucid cry for educational advocacy, seems to be missing something. Perhaps it is because we only see Kozol's letters and therefore really do not share in his experiences in Francesca's classroom. Maybe the book would have worked a bit better if it were written to a generic teacher as a book of advice (not that it cannot work this way as it is, since it certainly does). I particularly enjoyed the information highlighting Kozol's relationship with Fred Rogers (of Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood) who was always an advocate of imagination and wonder, a "skill" that cannot be measured by a standardized test but is perhaps one of the most important elements of a child's development. Perhaps someday Kozol's legacy will not be solely limited to the books he wrote seeking educational reform; perhaps one day his words will be put into practice across this nation.

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Jonathan Kozol's "Letters to a Young Teacher" explores the most demanding issues that education faces today. Kozol uses a unique structure in his book, composing it entirely of letters he wrote to a first grade teacher. Francesca corresponded with Kozol during her first year of teaching at an Inner-City Elementary School in Boston. His letters to her include advice, warning, and inspiration necessary for a career in teaching. The personal language he uses allows the readers to place themselves in Francesca's shoes. When reading the pages, the audience is given a sense that Kozol is speaking directly to them.
Due to the education emphasized context, I would not recommend this book to just anyone. The issues discussed are most beneficial to someone who has a desire to be involved in the education system. Teachers, administrators, politicians, and prospective college students should read Kozol's words. Also, concerned parents can take away many lessons in the text about what is really going on in their child's education.
Being the daughter of two math teachers, I have been exposed to the world of education, beyond the eye of the student. Kozol's concerns about the system today were regular dinner debates in my household. Money, parents, students, difficult principals, and test scores, really are issues that teachers are challenged with daily. Kozol covers nearly every concern my parents and their colleagues have had over the last thirty years. Parents of students too often are not educated enough in the issues that seriously affect the quality of their child's education. Students everywhere are lucky to have such an eloquent speaker tackling these issues on their behalf. Kozol's passion for children is clearly evident in his words. He writes, "I'm often disappointed, when I visit some of the allegedly sophisticated schools of education, to recognize how very little of the magic and the incandescent chemistry that forms between a truly gifted teacher and her children is conveyed to those who are about to come into our classrooms"(Page 4). Kozol's ability to connect with the audience will further the cause of education in our country today.

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After reading through this book I feel Kozol did a great job shedding light on problems with our education system from the policy makers in Washington to the the teachers in the classroom. However, I feel the way he depicts every encounter with a child is a bit unreal. He goes on with each of his encounters and says how he overcame a problem and in the end learned something new from it. He writes in a very positive way, while this is good, I feel it may be a bit misguiding. He no doubt worked very hard for his successes ,but he fails to write about it enough I would say. The book was great in terms of issues he covers but many may find it a bit repetitive as he can sometimes be found ranting on about the same issues over and over again. Kozol doesn't necessarily bring up any new ideas but puts his spin on the issue. In his letters to this young teacher he writes mainly about his problems he has faced and in turn hopes it will inspire and help her. I kind of get the feeling that Kozol feels that all of his experiences have made him a highly qualified expert on teaching. This might be ,but everyone is different and it seems like he expects that if everyone follows his example things will work out. Letters to a Young Teacher was a rather decent book though. If you can get through Kozol's letters without being turned off there is actually a decent message behind his writing that I think many could gain from it, but it should be taken with a grain of salt.

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I am a college student majoring in Elementary Education and read this book as a requirement for an education course. In Letters to a Young Teacher, Kozol is writing letters of advice and encouragement to a woman who is a beginning teacher. Although the letters are to one woman, these letters are a compilation of questions he has received and answered and cover many of the complexities in today's education system. These issues include the voucher system and diversity and range from teaching styles to relationships with parents and faculty. He gives his own opinions and advice about teaching and highlights injustices in public education. This book may of interest to those looking into being involved in the teaching profession or in education in general. The book really covers everything in truthful detail. It can be depressing and discouraging at times because Kozol presents many injustices in the American school system, yet there are no signs of definite solutions or even belief that it can change, which left me feeling frustrated. However, the book is at times inspiring with stories of getting through to a student who seems to have no interest and standing for what is right. On a more personal note, I didn't find Kozol's stories about his students to be very interesting or heartfelt. I found them somewhat boring and was unable to connect or empathize with him while reading. While the book is eye-opening and informative about the issues in education, it is not as exciting as one might expect from the title.

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Jonathan Kozol examines the challenges that teachers face with great sympathy. According to Kozol, every teacher-student interaction is a lesson waiting to happen. When students like Pineapple respond favorably to teachers, it's a teaching breakthrough. When students respond poorly, it builds character. This is an oversimplification of the entire book. The point is that Kozol is way too cheerful. He's seen a lot of adversity in his day, which still has not ended. As a college student who has worked lots with young children, I know as well as anybody else the beauties of working with kids, the lessons learned, and the joys of actually getting through to them. But Kozol just takes it too far. He speaks with such childish innocence that sometimes it's hard to take him seriously. Perhaps it was Kozol's friendship with Fred Rogers that put me over the edge; I can't help but look at Kozol as an overly friendly Mr. Rogers. With glasses. This bothers me because he seems to be truly an amazing man. I don't doubt his honesty, his responsibility, his good-humored nature; I just find his lack of aggression unreal. I want him to get angry. Jonathan, you were fired from a teaching job for reading Langston Hughes: get pissed! Granted, if he wrote the book in a less objective, unprejudiced kind of way, it would probably not be a bestseller. I have learned to take his entire attitude with a grain of salt. I see teaching as an awesome, rewarding profession. The best teachers can relate to their students in a way that is both childish and adult. Kozol takes this childishness too far. I would not read this book if I were you. Kozol illustrates problem after problem with the education system, but offers few solutions. He just continues to write these books, making money off of his experiences that are truly not that exceptional.