Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.24 AVERAGE
4.24 AVERAGE
This book made me sad and angry and confused -- and it was written in the early 1990s. We are no better off and perhaps worse. My cohort mates warned me about this book and I understand their anger. The word savage is perfect -- it is truly savage.
After reading this book I was appalled to learn about the inequalities of our education system. When I first started reading I couldn't put the book down but once I reached chapter three I found myself having a harder time trying to pick it up and read. Although I felt sympathetic to the children who had a poor education system I felt the way Kozol presented the information was repetitive and made it difficult for me to read. I do; however, hope Kozol writes another book similar to this about the quality of our education system in the past seventeen years and if it has changed at all or if it is worse than before.
An excellent overview of the de facto segregation in many of America's schools and how it is no accident it's turned out that way. A highlight for me was the realization that "increased funding doesn't help make better schools" is only ever an excuse to not fund bad schools (i.e. in non-white majority neighborhoods), but never applied to rich schools with piles of money.
Also, the author's extensive time in East St Louis schools in the early '90s has helped me understand why the Ferguson Uprising happened in 2014. Eye-opening and well worth a read.
Also, the author's extensive time in East St Louis schools in the early '90s has helped me understand why the Ferguson Uprising happened in 2014. Eye-opening and well worth a read.
As a person who lives in the St Louis County County Suburbs, I was really upset about the conditions of the children who live in East St. Louis. It hit really close to home, how privileged I am to have grown up in an area with excellent public education and a lack of pollution. I realized how privileged I am that Monsanto chose to put it's headquarters here, and help pay for my local Fairs so that I could ride Ferris Wheels. On the other hand, Monsanto choose to put their factories near a poor city that is not accountable to the citizens that are affected by it's polution. It really was an eye opener. I would advise anyone living in the St Louis County Area read the chapter on East St. Louis.
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
I put the book down after reading the first chapter. It has nothing to do with the book being poorly written. It was just from 1992, and I am not interested in reading something that's so outdated.
This book is well worth reading. I read it in high school and, okay, it's not gripping, but it is fascinating. It was a reality check for me as he compared different classrooms and schools and my education fell in line much more closely with one extreme while I (and most people in my school) had never closely encountered the other extreme. It's a valuable perspective that needed to be written and that I'm glad I read.
This book should not only be required reading for ALL educators but also for middle school and high school students in suburban, subrural and rural America.
informative
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced