Every once in a rare while I'll come across a book that not only speaks to my heart, it pulls at my fingertips and aligns with my heart so acutely, I swear, at some point in life, I would have written that exact story.
Teacher Man was that book.
For that past few weeks, I've been working on writing a teaching sort of book. The title so far is, "Teaching, Learning, and all that Human Being Stuff." I read this book as a sort of, get to know the lay of the land, sort of research. And now, I can't decide if I'm inspired or caged, because so much of what I've been writing and outlining is expressed in this book.
And man is it good.
Here are a few favorite quotes and possible ideas/resourced I'd like to pursue a bit further:
The professor of education at New York University said, “first impressions are crucial. He said, The way you meet and greet your first class might determine the course of your whole career” (pg 39). This is actually a chapter I've been working on the past two weeks - how this concept seems to be taught and affirmed in many universities and lectures around the world, and how it simply isn't true. Just another educational scare tactic that serves an unclear purpose.
Look into: War poems: Siegfried Sassoon, “Does it matter” and Wilfred Owen’s, “Anthem for Doomed Youth.
Possibly use myself: An excuse note from Adam to God or An excuse not from Eve to God
“There’s no respect for teachers who send you to the office or call parents. If you can’t handle it yourself you shouldn’t even be a teacher. You should get a job sweeping the streets or picking up the garbage” (pg 92). This one too is on my outline of topics to discuss . . . damn you McCourt!
“How are you supposed to discuss the conclusion of The Scarlet Letter, the happy end for Hester and Pearl, with Louise sitting a few rows back, her heart broke, Sal staring straight ahead ready to murder the first Irishman to cross his path? (pg 94).