Teaching Stories

Rating:
Summary: A Must Read!
Review: I am a teacher educator and a former middle school teacher and I am completely taken and inspired by Teaching Stories. Logan's experiences with middle school students and her remarkable insights into pre-adolescent development provide the reader with a joy-filled reading experience. Her teaching style and curriculum choices have created equitable and exciting classroom learning experiences. Logan's respect for her students is reflected in each chapter. It is a significant contribution for anyone interested in teaching- at any level!

Rating:
Summary: Complete nonsense!!
Review: I was assigned to read this waste of paper for not one, but two graduate school classes. I even met Mrs. Logan and wondered how this women actually survived a real classroom where you are actually accountable for your actions.

I am a sucessful educator. I know that my students enjoy coming to my class everyday. Beyond that, they actually learn in my class. Not fluffy, feeling things, but true American history. My students do not spend each day writing stories and looking at fluffy clouds getting in touch with their inner children, but learning about the New Deal or the causes of the Spanish American War.

Mrs. Logan's students seem to spend all of their time sewing quilts. That is fine, but teachers in the real world have a curriculum to follow. She may dislike the "big bad tests", but that is too bad. They are a fact of life in schools across America- my principal expects me to prepare the student for those tests. I would love to ask Logan's students questions to see if they know who JFK, FDR or Rockefeller are, but at least they know how to make quilts.

She advises new teachers to abondon the material you should be teachers to just "chat" with your students. Hmm, is that why so many kids can barely read, forget about writing a resume or balancing a checkbook.

She also favors getting to know your students on a personal level. I love my students, but am fine with the fact that we part ways at 3 pm each day. She goes for ice cream with them and visits them at home. The parents must love that.

The most appalling of these little vignettes includes an episode where a 13 year old student had her first menstual period. Mrs. Logan, ever the fluffy sensitive teacher, throws the girl a special party. Is that not crossing the line? Is that even acceptable in any school in America? Not on Long Island!

This is not a book for serious educators. This is recommended by school of education professors who have no idea what it means to be a teacher!

Rating:
Summary: Complete nonsense!!
Review: If you're a pre-service or new teacher this book will spur you on. If you're a veteran, it may fan your passion and make you remember why you wanted to teach in the first place. The first story alone, on making a quilt, was worth much more than the price of the book in the many valuable lessons it taught me. If you are a teacher, read this book. If you know someone who wants to be a teacher, buy them this book.

Rating:
Summary: Forget about Esme--Read Judy!
Review: If you're a pre-service or new teacher this book will spur you on. If you're a veteran, it may fan your passion and make you remember why you wanted to teach in the first place. The first story alone, on making a quilt, was worth much more than the price of the book in the many valuable lessons it taught me. If you are a teacher, read this book. If you know someone who wants to be a teacher, buy them this book.

Rating:
Summary: A superb teacher overcomes the challenges of today's schools
Review: What needs to happen in our schools to make today's students humane, engaged, confident about themselves and tolerant of each other? The experts throw up their hands. They should simply ask a superb teacher or, better yet, read Judy Logan's TEACHING STORIES. Logan worked for 35 years in some of the most challenging school settings in San Francisco. She created a multi-cultural, gender-neutral or "gender-enhancing", student-centered classroom where "no" becomes "yes" and students take responsibility for themselves, each other, and their school. Rarely do we read books in which we seek to learn that also move us to tears and laughter. TEACHING STORIES does all that and more; it is for teachers, parents and all citizens concerned about the next generation. I can't wait for Logan's sequel.