The Courage to Teach

I was corresponding with a young teacher the other day and decided to recommend a book that has inspired me many times in the years since I first had it handed to me by a fellow teacher.
It's called, The Courage to Teach by Parker J. Palmer. It is definitely a pro-teacher book and if you have had a bad week of being blamed by parents and administrators for the failures of education. Give this book a look-see.

Here are a two quotes.

"In our rush to reform education, we have forgotten a simple truth: reform will never be achieved by renewing appropriations, restructuring schools, rewriting curricula, and revising texts if we continue to demean and dishearten the human resource called the teacher on whom so much depends. Teachers must be better compensated, freed from bureaucratic harassment, given a role in academic governance, and provided with the best possible methods and materials. But none of that will transform education if we fail to cherish, and challenge, the human heart that is the source of good teaching."


"This book builds on a simple premise: good teaching cannot be reduced to technique; good teaching comes from the identity and integrity of the teacher.

Since I've pulled this book down off my shelf, I think I shall read it again. It's November. The kids are restless. I'm a little cranky. I could use some inspiration right about now.

[Quotes from The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher's Life; Parker J. Palmer; Jossey-Bass Publishers: San Francisco; 1998]
[Image: Captured from Amazon.com]