LETTERS TO A YOUNG TEACHER

From his perspective of over forty years in education, Jonathan Kozol writes a series of warm letters to Francesca, a new first-grade teacher at an inner-city school in Boston. Visiting her class and answering her questions has Kozol reflecting on his experiences with motivating students, eschewing administrative control, and dealing with standardized testing. Several of the personal stories will seem familiar to Kozol fans, but this new presentation makes them live again, and it's always refreshing to hear someone speaking sense about education. David Drummond delivers the material well. At some points his voice and words are gentle, as if trying to calm the new teacher; at others his tone is passionate and tinged with anger at the insanity of current policies. S.W. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine [Published: APR/ MAY 08]