I tend to be more or
less oriented to different media on a seasonal basis. During much of the year,
I prefer radio and podcasts, as well as online articles. (I won’t even pretend to
address my unhealthy on-again off-again relationship with tv.)However, during
vacation at the cottage (both summer and winter,) I enjoy print media. I get
back to reading the Globe on a daily basis (a missing treat during most the year,)
and manage to get through a variety of books. Some of them are fluffy and fun,
while others are more stimulating and challenging.
Last summer, I was able to read a few books:
·
True Stories of the Mafia – so I got my dose of real crime “cotton
candy”
·
Into The Silence: The Great War, Mallory and
the Conquest of Everest – a
terrific, if a bit lengthy, read about the quest in the early 1920s by the
remnants of the British Empire generation that was devastated in the First
World War for what was at the time the almost mythical, unmapped Everest and isolated
Tibet
·
Stop Stealing Dreams – a manifesto about education and what needs
to be fixed by Seth Godin
·
Newton and the Counterfeiter – which could be fiction, but it’s not, as it
tells the story of Sir Isaac Newton – one of the greatest scientific minds ever
– and his post academic detective career as the head of the Royal Mint – there
is hope for all of us yet.
I also dabbled in a number of other books over
the summer – reading a chapter here and there or scanning various parts:
· Don’t forget your Cape: What Pre-Schoolers Teach us about Leadership & Life
· The One World Schoolhouse – by Khan Academy founder and one of
education’s current sweethearts, Sal Khan
· With Love And Prayers – A Headmaster Speaks to the Next Generation –
by Tony Jarvis, one of the legendary “old school” Headmasters – he was at the
helm of Roxbury Latin for a quarter of a century
· Rework – Given to me by a friend, this is a contrarian take on what makes good
places to work and people organization
·
Seven Secrets of the Savvy School Leader by well-known “soft-side” educational culture
expert Robert Evans
One of the wonderful traditions of the Appleby
College Parents Association (ACPA) has been its sponsorship (purchase) of books
for the faculty to read over the summer. Last year, they bought everyone a copy
of Creating Innovators by Tony
Wagner. (Please see my Oct
’12 post on the subject.) This year, faculty were given the option to
select one of four books that were being offered:
·
World Peace and Other 4th Grade Achievements
·
Make Just One Change: Teach Students to Ask Their
Own Questions
·
The Student Leadership Challenge
·
How Children Succeed: Grit Curiosity and the
Hidden Power of Character
I dabbled with three of these and read one (or
at least listened to it) “cover to cover.” Each deals with a different area of
interest with respect to education, and each poses some engaging and provocative
questions. While all speak in their own ways to educators, the first and fourth
are likely to be of interest to parents and others interested in young people
today.
How Children Succeed: Grit Curiosity and the Hidden Power of Character by UTS alumnus and New York-based writer Paul Tough is the book that read fully. I was enthralled by the points that Tough was reporting on, and believe they must be conceptual cornerstones to what great schools are focused on in the years ahead. I will be posting additional thoughts on this subject and on the book in the months ahead, but in the meantime, I would encourage all parents and educators, as well as students themselves ,to pick up a copy. It will change the way you look at the future of education and parenting.
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