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Rating: 
Summary: Review of Pedagogies of Resistance
Review: Book Review of Pedagogies of Resistance: Women Educator Activists, 1880-1960
By Margaret Smith Crocco
Petra Munro
Kathleen Weiler This book portrays the lives of six women. Each fought for social justice and in some way influenced our educational system. Munro gave a different perspective of what an educator activist was by including Addams and Wells. They were known for women's clubs and settlement houses. The work of these ladies influenced education although the brunt of their activities did not occur in a school or as formal teachers.
Crocco shared the difficult lives of Elizabeth Allen and Marion Wright as they fought gendered norms of the time. Allen was involved in many associations and fought for issues such as tenure, pensions, and a disability system. The stress in Allen's life may have caused her death. Wright, an African American woman, is recognized for her dissertation. She gave up her children in order to continue to climb the educational ladder. She committed suicide possibly due to consequences of her struggles and guilt of leaving her children. Her life is an example of the price that women had to pay to break out of gendered (and racial) norms. However, the fact that she chose to pretend her children did not exist makes you feel less empathy for her and makes her harder to relate to.
Weiler told of the lives of Helen Heffernan and Corinne Seeds. Both women influenced education in California. They worked to educate teachers and progressively reform education. Weiler also shares how they worked to create a more egalitarian society through their work in education.
Rating: 
Summary: Woman can and have made a difference!
Review: I have chosen to write a review of this book because I found it very interesting to follow Crocco, Munro and Weiler as they chronicled the contributions by six separate women in history to education. The authors refer to: Jane Adams & Ida B. Wells, both from Chicago; Marion Wright & Elizabeth Allen, both from New Jersey; and Corinne Seeds & Helen Heffernan, both from California; as "agents of change." I found it most interesting that, like the individuals discussed in the book, the three authors were also women from all across the country, Crocco from Columbia University, Munro from Louisiana State University, and Weiler from Tufts University.
The authors wanted to show how these individuals fought the status quo. Crocco, Munro and Weiler's g goal, I believe, was to share the experiences of these women and how they were treated unfairly by many of their male counterparts. These six women want to be leaders and have a positive impact on the pedagogical practices affecting children. While attempting to become leaders they opened the door for future generations of women that also wanted to lead.
The underlying theme, that I did not like, from the authors, was that men were knowingly, as a majority, attempting to hold women back in the late 1800's and early 1900's. As I read I felt that most men actually conspired to keep women out of positions of power. I resent implications like this, because I believe that there are simpler reasons as to why men hold more administrative positions. I believe that in nature, as can easily be witnessed on the Discovery Channel watching shows about animals, the Alpha almost always tends to dominate and the others willingly follow. We, both men and women, are more primal than we want to admit and education is the only way we can inhibit some of more bestial tendencies.
Good book to read and it was fun experiencing three different author styles under one title.
Rating: 
Summary: Women Activists
Review: In Pedagogies of Resistance, the authors Crocco, Munro, and Weiler take a look at six different women educator activists. The extensive look into the women's lives in and out of education demonstrate how important women were in improving public education then and for educators today. An example of one of these accomplishments, which is discussed on page 58 of the book, would be the statewide pension system. The authors attempt to incorporate important men activists into their book to reveal the willingness of a nation to help women in the profession of education. The authors approach to identifying the men activists takes away from the women's accomplishments. This seems to take the significance from the women and places it on all figures in society. I am not saying that both men and women did not have an influence on education, but, by doing this I feel that the authors have defeated the purpose of their book, women educator activists.
If the reader is able to look past some obscuring items, then I believe that they will find the book to be informative and at times uplifting.
Rating:
Summary: "Progressive" Women Educators?
Review: In Pedagogies of Resistance, Women Educator Activists - Crocco, Munro, and Weiler attempt to build a case for six women(from the time period of 1880-1960)who they feel "revolutionized" education due to their "progressive" stances and beliefs. Their "progressive" ideas, however, were not able to fully flourish and thrive though due to the powerful white man (men) who totally dominated the educational "think tanks", endeavors, universities, and policy of the time. In their attempt to build this premise for these six women - Who I somewhat admire for their courage, fortitude, and sacrifice - I believe they showed more than anything how politics and society/sociology are so closely tied in with education. Whether it be the six women that Crocco, Munro, and Weiler discussed, or any person who views education differently; you will always have resistance from the majority (politicians and society) who are used to doing things the way they are "normally" done. "Normal" being the key word. The authors might say that those who go against the "norm", are those who are "progressive." Which brings up the point, is "progressive" always right and worthy of praise? Crocco, Munro, and Weiler seem to think so for their six women educator activists. One case in particular was the story of "progressive educator activist", Marion Manola Thompson Wright. The authors sing the praises of this lady who is said to have done wonders in education and society for kids; but, she abandoned her own two kids in early childhood so she could pursue her "activism." Does anyone feel that something is wrong with that "progressive" picture? Croco, Munro, and Weiler also seem to support the idea that in order to be a "progressive activist"/a person who makes a difference in education, society, and politics; you must be involved with universities, write papers, and rub shoulders with the educational guru's of the day (and also be around some big city.) I'm not so sure many small town and rural teachers would buy into this premise. However, I must admit that one of the activists, Elizabeth Almira Allen, that the authors discuss, was a breath of fresh air. Here was one example of out of six that actually truly stood up for teachers and the teaching profession as a whole. Ms. Allen spoke out not just for women's suffrage (which she did do strongly,) but against issues that teachers still face today such as promotion, finances, experience, and who should really have say in curriculum. I'd like to have been her colleague. Where is her voice today in education? Despite the authors attempts to make these women out to be "educational hero's", I believe they loose their focus through to much talk of univerities, name dropping, and everything else that was going on during the time of these six "educational progressive activists." Although somewhat interesting to see the social upheaval of the times, the authors could have picked six other women who actually had more experience teaching in elementary and high schools than they did in universities, or in politics. In my eyes, (and I'm certain in many other educator's eyes) those that truly make a difference in elementary and high schools are those (be it women or men and any race):
1. Who have more experience in primary and secondary education rather than in universties and writing research papers.
2. Who challenge their own, and their students thinking, effort, and goals.
3. Who are willing to go the extra mile for their students and not except anything less than their best.
We could go on... But these are the true educational activists and heros.
Rating:
Summary: Pedagogies of Resistance: Women Educator Activists, 1880-960
Review: Pedagogies of Resistance: Women Educator Activists, 1880-1960. M.S. Crocco, P. Munro and K. Weiler. New York and London: Teacher College, 1999. 132 pp. The period in which six extraordinary women educators were very active was a crucial one in the history of the United States. It happened in the preliminary development of feminism: women's club, suffrage and civil rights organization, teachers' associations, settlement houses and the suffrage, which eventually won the vote for white women. The book begins with the time during which women like Jane Addams and Ida B Wells developed their views of education as a wide-ranging endeavor that could be the basis for social change. Within public education, leaders like Elizabeth Almira Allen of New Jersey fought for public school women teachers' right to job security and pensions. Although they were well-educated, reflective, and articulate leaders, Wells and Marion Thompson Wright were constantly placed as both different and inferior because of their gender and race. Pedagogies of Resistance strand them on its key note as women of strength by portraying how they were both empowered by the possibilities of educational careers, but at the same time they were alienated and consistently demeaned, as their authority was continually undercut by their caste status. As for Wright, she also had to face the entrenched sexism of Howard University, where she taught. Crocco, Munro & Weiler, furthermore encompasses how "(Corrine) Seed's and (Helen) Heffernan's challenge to the established social order manifested itself not only in their advocacy of progressive and democratic schools of California, but also in their willingness to defend outsiders groups such as the children of migrant farm workers during the Depression or Japanese American children during the World War II relocation." The authors accomplishes their purpose of illuminating and highlighting courageous lives and work of six activist women educators during 1880 to 1960, as educational leaders and professionals. They convey how these women's collective focus and vision of education developed a base for establishing lessons of democracy. Providing all members of society with the same sense of empowerment these six women themselves had found was in sharp contrast to dominant ideas of the elite intellects at the time. "Their advance ideas about democracy foreshadowed the arguments of the current multicultural education movement that democracy must be multiple, inclusive, and collective. This was a time of intense conflict over the shape and purpose of education, as radical unions and socialist organizations, intellectuals and teachers and academics influenced Deweyan ideas contested the growing dominance of conceptions of standardization and social efficiency (Crocco, Munro & Weiler, 1999, p.118). These women educators did not just implement other's ideas of progressive education, their contribution and work extended the provincial concept of what progressive education meant in domains not previously considered. In conclusion, the reader will perceive that the book's central theme is set and accomplished with Munro's persuasive stance on page 21. She writes, "I contend that these collective efforts at building community were a form of democracy in action. Interactions among academics, women's clubs, and immigrants served an important educational function by providing a mechanism for people of various classes to 'speak together' as a means for widening understanding of different communities and enlarging active involvement in the work of social change (Crocco, Munro & Weiler, 1999)." These network and organizations shaped women's culture and identity that was pivotal to America's social and political development. The authors build the book well on this social-political development in the early 20th century as it influenced educational reform and theories of curriculum to rethinking educational history from an alternate perspective.
Rating:
Summary: A Tale about Women Activists
Review: The authors of the book, Pedagogies of Resistance, tell a tale about six women educator activists from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Crocco, Munro, and Weiler tale a tell which depicts their struggles and triumphs, the pitfalls they encounter, to which one ultimately succumbs, the mountains they not only climb, but stand strong at the summit, reaching it with pride, dignity, and courage, and finally attempts to capture the souls of these women as they try to make a better world for us... one that puts education first. It's a tale recounting how reform was enacted, how it developed and how it evolved to transform schools, districts, government, education, and people. Women stood strong in their beliefs and fought to change the way society treated not only women, but also immigrants and migrant workers. For example, the Hull House, which was established by Jane Addams, "... was grounded in the understanding that meaningful learning and social action occurred only when education allowed learners to define their own needs and acknowledged women, immigrants, and migrants as creators of knowledge" (p. 9). The main belief and notion throughout this book stressed the importance of men not being the only successful activists within the American educational system. The authors noted that though these women were strong, the "... power remained in the hands of a small circle of males" (p. 51). One person, however, detailed in the book is not notable or noteworthy in my opinion... Marion Thompson Wright. Though Ms. Wright was a scholar and an academician, she gave up her children, two husbands, and literally her life for a quest of equality within the university system. She fought to be a professor in a man's world... in a world where Black women were supposed to be subservient and ill educated. Wright believed that all people should be extended the right to an education and the right for social justice and equality. She "... trusted that the democratic process, through the energetic advocacy of individuals like herself, could fulfill its promise of social and racial justice for all citizens" (p. 70). Yes, she was a model of success within academia, but she had to lie to be able to achieve that success. The price for that lie... her family, her sanity, and her morality. Eventually, she paid the highest price possible and took her own life. Though her success professionally is noted, I do not consider her achievements noteworthy or admirable. Though the stories the author's tell continue to perpetuate the idea that we did and continue to live in a patriarchal society, the also help show how women stand up and fight for their beliefs, values, and ideas. Most books recount the tales of men and how they triumph to create or establish new schools, ideologies, and laws... most books forget to mention the female activists who fought at the same time for those same rights for all people, regardless of race, gender or class. Crocoo, Munro, and Weiler enable others to gain insight into the lives, struggles, and achievements of six women, who for their time period, were ahead of the game.
Rating:
Summary: A Tale about Women Activists
Review: The authors of the book, Pedagogies of Resistance, tell a tale about six women educator activists from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Crocco, Munro, and Weiler tale a tell which depicts their struggles and triumphs, the pitfalls they encounter, to which one ultimately succumbs, the mountains they not only climb, but stand strong at the summit, reaching it with pride, dignity, and courage, and finally attempts to capture the souls of these women as they try to make a better world for us... one that puts education first. It's a tale recounting how reform was enacted, how it developed and how it evolved to transform schools, districts, government, education, and people. Women stood strong in their beliefs and fought to change the way society treated not only women, but also immigrants and migrant workers. For example, the Hull House, which was established by Jane Addams, "... was grounded in the understanding that meaningful learning and social action occurred only when education allowed learners to define their own needs and acknowledged women, immigrants, and migrants as creators of knowledge" (p. 9). The main belief and notion throughout this book stressed the importance of men not being the only successful activists within the American educational system. The authors noted that though these women were strong, the "... power remained in the hands of a small circle of males" (p. 51). One person, however, detailed in the book is not notable or noteworthy in my opinion... Marion Thompson Wright. Though Ms. Wright was a scholar and an academician, she gave up her children, two husbands, and literally her life for a quest of equality within the university system. She fought to be a professor in a man's world... in a world where Black women were supposed to be subservient and ill educated. Wright believed that all people should be extended the right to an education and the right for social justice and equality. She "... trusted that the democratic process, through the energetic advocacy of individuals like herself, could fulfill its promise of social and racial justice for all citizens" (p. 70). Yes, she was a model of success within academia, but she had to lie to be able to achieve that success. The price for that lie... her family, her sanity, and her morality. Eventually, she paid the highest price possible and took her own life. Though her success professionally is noted, I do not consider her achievements noteworthy or admirable. Though the stories the author's tell continue to perpetuate the idea that we did and continue to live in a patriarchal society, the also help show how women stand up and fight for their beliefs, values, and ideas. Most books recount the tales of men and how they triumph to create or establish new schools, ideologies, and laws... most books forget to mention the female activists who fought at the same time for those same rights for all people, regardless of race, gender or class. Crocoo, Munro, and Weiler enable others to gain insight into the lives, struggles, and achievements of six women, who for their time period, were ahead of the game.
Rating:
Summary: Pedagogies of Resistance
Review: The book Pedagogies of Resisitance highlights the efforts of six accomplished female educators. The book portrays each woman effectively both in their personal life and their professional life. The accounts of the journeys that these women embarked on give us a true picture of what it means to be a progressive education activist in the Progressive Era and today. It also provides today's teachers with true accounts of how to be a maker of change. The women in this book were also forced to confront their own ideas of education and what it means to be a professional and to have a career.
In Jane Adams and Ida B. Wells, we meet two women whose work in settlement houses and women's clubs seek to promote a vision of education that was community based and directed toward social equality - an effort that was largely ignored by educational history. Marion Thompson Wright and Elizabeth Almira Allen enlisted others in their work that created a grass roots movement that collectively resisted centralized forms of education and supported a vision of education of social equality. For their work, they received less professional recognition than men in their field did. Their views created controversy and as a result, their personal lives remained scarred.
Helen Heffernan and Corinne Seeds were committed to social equality and saw public education as central to that task. For their accomplishments and struggles they have been rewarded by being forgotten, largely due to their gender.
From the stories of these women, we truly see how women struggled for a voice and for equality while instituting reform. "In complex and constrained cultural milieus, women have managed to create expressions of feminist agency shaped by their own historical specificity and human particularity."
Rating:
Summary: Pedagogies of Resistance
Review: The book Pedagogies of Resisitance highlights the efforts of six accomplished female educators. The book portrays each woman effectively both in their personal life and their professional life. The accounts of the journeys that these women embarked on give us a true picture of what it means to be a progressive education activist in the Progressive Era and today. It also provides today's teachers with true accounts of how to be a maker of change. The women in this book were also forced to confront their own ideas of education and what it means to be a professional and to have a career.
In Jane Adams and Ida B. Wells, we meet two women whose work in settlement houses and women's clubs seek to promote a vision of education that was community based and directed toward social equality - an effort that was largely ignored by educational history. Marion Thompson Wright and Elizabeth Almira Allen enlisted others in their work that created a grass roots movement that collectively resisted centralized forms of education and supported a vision of education of social equality. For their work, they received less professional recognition than men in their field did. Their views created controversy and as a result, their personal lives remained scarred.
Helen Heffernan and Corinne Seeds were committed to social equality and saw public education as central to that task. For their accomplishments and struggles they have been rewarded by being forgotten, largely due to their gender.
From the stories of these women, we truly see how women struggled for a voice and for equality while instituting reform. "In complex and constrained cultural milieus, women have managed to create expressions of feminist agency shaped by their own historical specificity and human particularity."
Rating:
Summary: Some women who paved the way
Review: This book, at times, provides an interesting look at some of the different experiences and work of women educator activists of the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
A broad look at the views and actions of these women reminds one that men weren't the only ones who had an impact on education in the past, and are not the only ones that can affect it in the future. Their struggles with opposition and resistance in their professional lives, as well as the effects that may have been felt in their personal lives, may make one wonder why they stuck to their convictions. With support from others and their involvement with different institutions, some of their actions had lasting effects. However, at times, the names of these people, institutions, and publications that provide concrete examples of, or support for, the women's work are overwhelming and crowd the book.
While this book includes issues of race relations and gender that the women encountered, The white architects of black education: Ideology and power in America, 1865-1954 by W.H. Watkins is a nice complement. It discusses the notions, actions, and educational roles of several prominent white, male figures during a similar time period. It is interesting to compare and contrast the ideas and experiences of the educators in both books.
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