The DISCIPLINE OF HOPE: LEARNING FROM A LIFETIME OF TEACHING

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This is a sort of Man's Search for Meaning for educators. Why teach when America's educational system is in shambles and the students would rather scribble graffiti than learn how to write persuasive essays? Kohl, author of more than 40 books (including the classic chronicle of inner-city schools, 36 Children), offers provocative reasons in this retrospective of his decades as an innovative teacher of all grades, from kindergarten to college-level.

Kohl doesn't sugarcoat his career; he acknowledges his missteps. But he focuses on the core of his teaching style: he triumphantly looks to his students for inspiration. Kohl also forms his curriculums with his students, not for them: he included street theater and poetry writing in an alternative storefront classroom in Berkeley, California, in the 1960s, and convinced an elementary school to serve in its cafeteria the produce grown in a student-cultivated garden. Although his students were disrupted by the Vietnam War, by poverty, and by the civil rights movement, he formed lasting bonds with them--some children whom he taught in kindergarten reappear in his college lecture halls. This is a book for both freshly certified teachers and veterans, as Kohl reassuringly illustrates that through the faith and creativity of teachers, the spirit and love of learning will emerge in students.

Book Description

It has been thirty years since Herbert Kohl taught the sixth-grade Harlem class he wrote about in his classic 36 Children. He has been teaching ever since, in kindergarten through graduate school, as he has pursued his lifelong work with children, adolescents, college-age students, and education professionals. In The Discipline of Hope, Kohl examines teaching as a vocation and as a skill, and examines his own love affair with it. He provides insight into how learning takes place in the widest range of circumstances, both in and out of a formal school setting. He demonstrates how schools and other centers of learning can be transformed so that they become places that nurture children while instilling discipline and how they can help students meet high academic standards, develop a sense of respect for themselves and others, and grow into successful adults.

The Discipline of Hope is grounded in the relationship between teacher and student; it dwells on the mutuality between the two as they teach each other. Kohl illustrates the knowledge, wisdom, techniques, and ideas that he has gathered from a lifetime of teaching by describing his real experiences in the classrooms and the schools he has worked in. These have ranged from an urban elementary school and an integrated public school kindergarten, to an experimental high school, to one-on-one reading tutorials; from a city storefront learning center to a rural education center and a college classroom. What emerges from Kohl's concrete description is a picture of how the process of education can be done well; how children, even in the most unlikely circumstances with the most difficult lives, can learn, and how they can themselves develop an active concern for justice and equity.

Central to this book and at the core of the act of teaching as Kohl describes it is what he calls "the discipline of hope" -- the stubborn refusal to accept limits on what students can learn or what teachers can do by helping them discover the power of their minds. At a time when so many are complacent or skeptical about the possibilities of education, this book, with the experiences it describes, of teacher and taught, is an affirmation that provides guideposts, insight, and wisdom.

Customer Reviews:

Kohl's hope assumes listening........1998-06-19

Above all, Herbert Kohn, teacher extraordinary, says we must listen to children so we can discover how to teach them. Then, he lays a heavy one on us: ALL children can learn. And he takes us with him so we can watch him do it. In schoolrooms, homes, churches, public areas, from East coast to West coast and back again -- wherever the learners are. He lets us see why top-down public education policy is not the best way. We haven't asked the teachers who know -- and can figure out if they are allowed to do so -- how to do this thing called teaching. And never does he separate teaching and learning. They work together. Readers get to see some of the special projects Kohl has worked on and hear some of the students who have learned with him. He has done some amazing work but tells about it in such a way that it seems possible to the rest of us, whether teachers, learners, parents, or taxpayers.

PROFESSIONAL BOOKS.(Review) (book review): An article from: Childhood Education

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PROFESSIONAL BOOKS.(Review) (book review): An article from: Childhood Education
Janet Brown Mccracken
Manufacturer: Association for Childhood Education International
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Childhood Education, published by Association for Childhood Education International on August 6, 2001. The length of the article is 1932 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: PROFESSIONAL BOOKS.(Review) (book review)
Author: Janet Brown Mccracken
Publication: Childhood Education (Refereed)
Date: August 6, 2001
Publisher: Association for Childhood Education International
Volume: 77 Issue: 5 Page: 326

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Book Description

Children and the Movies analyzes the first and most comprehensive study of the influence of movies on American youth, the Payne Fund Studies. First published in 1933, these studies--reproduced here in their entirety--are intrinsically important for their insights and conclusions regarding the effects of movies on behavior. They are, moreover, an important landmark of modern social science research, demonstrating the rapid evolution of this discipline in American academic institutions over the first three decades of the century.

Book Description

Looking in detail at words that “treat people as things, and things as people, and do so at that strange space where joking, ridiculing, demeaning, oppressing, resisting, and regretting converge,” Household Words is a study of how certain words act as indices of political and social change, perpetuating anxieties and prejudices even as those ways of thinking have been seemingly resolved or overcome by history.

Specifically, Stephanie A. Smith examines six words—bloomer, sucker, bombshell, scab, nigger, and cyber—and explores how these words with their contemporary “universal” meaning appeal to a dangerous idea about what it means to be human, an idea that denies our history of conflict. She traces “bombshell” from Marilyn Monroe through women’s liberation and the sexual revolution to Monica Lewinsky, “scab” from blemish to strikebreaker, “sucker” from lollipop to the routinely cheated. Exposing the ambiguities in each of the words, Smith reveals that our language is communal and cutting, democratic and discriminatory, social and psychological.

Stephanie A. Smith is associate professor of English at the University of Florida and the author of Conceived by Liberty: Maternal Figures and Nineteenth-Century American Literature as well as three novels.

Book Description

A thoroughly annotated selection of the finest games played by the best young grandmasters of the 1980s. Presented by two international masters and former champions, players at every level will find inspiration and practical techniques. Player profiles include Gary Kasparov, Jan Timman, Walter Browne, Robert Hubner, Zoltan Ribli, Ljubomir Ljubojevic, others. 8 halftones. 108 figures.

Customer Reviews:

An Apple Pie slice of time: the 1980' s top competitors.......2006-12-13

"Chess World Title Contenders and their Styles" --Kopec & Pritchett

The first time I bought a Danny Kopec chess book, my game improved immediately. He never analyses a chess game without revealing some little gem. For example, he will show a Sicilian Defense and discuss how the Maroczy Bind emerges and how it helps or hinders. [ He's got one in this book as well ] Kopec in my opinion is one of the better chess writers. He's not too complicated in his presentation.

The games of these "World Title Contenders" serve as excellent examples. For openings, Kopec shows ample games employing the Ruy Lopez opening, the Sicilian Defense, which is not surprising, since he has authored several books on the Sicilian variations..., Caro-Kann, Petroff, French, Dutch, Alekhine's Defense, King's Indian, Grunfeld Defense, Queen's Indian, and Nimzo Indian, and Queen's Gambit, Benoni, Pirc (pronounced "PEER-TZ"...according to Daoud Zupa).

There's an especially nice biography of WALTER BROWNE, of whom Kopec likes to observe:

"Browne is one of the few Western Grandmasters who as a chess professional has been successful in leading a 'normal family life'...etc." p. 67

The Brown biography is especially informative. Kopec tells how Browne spends his time, in day to day activities. (Brown is extremely active, both mentally and physically).

The final chapter, fittingly, covers Gary Kasparov (a favorite of mine, because he has intellectual depth.) With Kasparov's games, it begins with King's Indian Defense, Samisch Variation and Kasparov has Black. In Game 2, Kasparov with White plays Ruy Lopez, Bird's Variation. In game 7, Kasparov has Black playing a Gambit Benoni. There is a lot of material here worth study.

If there were any complaint at all, it might be something mild regarding the preponderance of Sicilian games. They are not a vast majority, but certainly more than any other offering; but this may be considered an advantage, considering that Kopec probably is more knowledgeable concerning the Sicilian than any other opening.

I often am surprised when publishers try a bit of price gouging, kicking an extra 7 or 8 bucks onto a title's list price, but not so here, which is generally the case with DOVER editions. The list price here is $9.95 and for the analysis given, they might as well be handing these books out for free.

A Must Have.......2004-07-19

I absolutely love books like these. This book reminds me of Irving Chernev's "The Golden Dozen": Interesting bios of players, games chosen for their beautiful, original play, and no freakishly long, boring, mindnumbing analysis (a la 'John Nunn's Best Games')but just analysis in the right places where you can keep your mind on the whole game and not just parts of it. Everyone needs a book like this (game collections) because while your trying to learn all the nuances of a sharp new opening or how to win rook endings, this book will help to relieve all the science of chess and let you focus on the art as well. Also, some of the players in this book I had never heard of before or knew very little about personally or of their games, so now I can sort bridge the time period between Fischer and Kasparov's reign that I knew very little about. Plus its under 10 bucks and you get all of this!! Buy it!

Excellent games textbook.......2003-01-18

This book presents the best games of the 1970's from eight of the leading grandmasters of the time, including Jan Timman and Kasparov! Good biographical information included. This is a reprint of a 1980 publication in algebraic notation, and is actually a much better book than most of the new games collections that are currently being published these days.

BUY BUY BUY.......2002-10-31

If this was a stock, in 5 days the price would be pushed up so much peaple couldn't buy it. Why? This book is that good. Get this book before it A. goes out of stock B. increases in price. However, even if it goes up like 6 dollars it would still be a buy. Obviously I liked the book. Why? Because I learned some interesting stuff about the players making chess more personalized and Kopec and Prichet really analyze there styles. They say a lot of interesting things about the players, the question is do the predictions hold the test of time. The answer with Kasparov is yes!! These games are very interesting and for people who want to see what style they may have they can do no wrong by taking a look to see which player fits them. The players include: Walter Browne, Kasparov, Timman, Andersson, Ljubovic, Miles (recently deceaced), Ripli and maybe a few others I forgot. Anyway you will find someone you like and can follow and learn from for a long time. So buy this book and learn and enjoy while watching your game improve!!

BUY THIS.......2002-10-30

BUY BUY BUY!! If this was a stock I would own the company. This is a great book. Games from all kinds of people from Gary Kasparov to the technical master Andersson. I loved reading the blurb about these guys you really get to learn about them as people. This makes chess more human. The games are amazing. They really summarize how the players play. ALso see if their predictions hold up? The one about Kasparov taking on Karpov does!! I learned a lot about the following interesting people and am waiting for their games to help mine: Tony miles (who passed away recently), Jan Timman, Walter browne, Ulf Andersson, Robert Hubner, Zoltan Ribili, Ljubomir Ljubojevic, and Kasparov. I loved the parts about Ljubojevic and Kasparov. They have great styles which are becoming more popular (thank goodness) that is to ATTACK! Enjoy this book its a deal and a half.

Book Description

Teach Yourself VISUALLY® Office XP covers the most commonly used features of the Word, Excel, PowerPoint, FrontPage, Access and Outlook programs. Seven new Office features are covered, including the new, streamlined program interface, and speech recognition. Plus, find out about the new integrated Web features, the new task pane, the new AutoCorrect Options button, the new Paste Options button, the Ask A Question box, the enhanced search feature and much more -- all presented to you in a colorful, visual format that's easy to follow, especially for visual learners.

Customer Reviews:

Ideal for the beginner.......2003-05-29

The Teach Yourself Visually series makes for immensely easy learning of all of the basic and most commonly-used features in Office XP. It just doesn't go much beyond that. If you're just getting started or need an easy refresher course, this is the book. If you're looking to utilize more complex features and expand upon a pre-existing Office XP knowledge base, perhaps you should check elsewhere.

Good for Entry Level Users.......2002-12-19

If you are familiar with MS Office any version, you could do without this book. It does not elaborate on any aspect of these applications.

Book Description

A major history of African Americans.

Book Description

This text presents statistical concepts and methods in a unified, modern, spreadsheet-oriented approach. Featuring a wealth of business applications, this examples-based text illustrates a variety of statistical methods to help students analyze data sets and uncover important information to aid decision-making. DATA ANALYSIS FOR MANAGERS contains professional StatPro add-ins for Microsoft Excel from Palisade, valued at one hundred fifty dollars packaged at no additional cost with every new text.

Customer Reviews:

Challenging Textbook, full of practical Excel techniques.......2004-12-01

Best for an MBA textbook or very dedicated self-study for quantitatively oriented business analysts. You learn a lot of Excel skills and how to produce practical tables, charts and other exhibits in Excel.

Using traditional statistical software such as SAS, SPSS, Statistica, etc. makes the teaching and learning simpler. Using specialized software is the way to go if you are going to learn heavy-duty statistics (PhD research or Stats major). However, if you are an MBA student, you probably will not have access to specialized statistical software, since the jobs for which that is cost-justified generally are staffed by stats majors. Thus, learning to do a great analysis job using Excel is beneficial in the job-market "afterlife".

This book isn't an "easy read," as you will need to work carefully *all* the examples to really understand what is going on, especially with the early chapters. A common problem is skimming over the examples, then running into a wall in later chapters. If you really study the heck out of each example, things seem to go well. The book comes with the data files for all the examples. The instructor's edition comes with excellent solutions for all the problems. The author really knows how to make Excel do anything!

I earned an MBA many years ago from a top ten MBA program and worked in business after that, including owning my own business. Later I returned to school for a phd degree and now teach stats in a b-school.

Waste of Money.......2004-10-24

I am using this book for a MBA class at a Top 20 school. Our class is focused on students who have not had any formal background in statistics. This book lacks in depth explanations for its problems. Its solutions manual is marginally helpful because it also does not explain how it reaches the answers.

Granted this book is mean to be used with excel, but it relies too much on Excel to do the computation. Thus the student is limited in building a strong basis in statistics.

Unfortunately, my whole MBA class is going through is agony with this book.

Data Analysis for Managers With Microsoft Excel Non-Infotrac Version

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Data Analysis for Managers With Microsoft Excel Non-Infotrac Version
S. Christian Albright , Wayne L. Winston , and Christopher Zappe
Manufacturer: Duxbury Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Statistics | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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