The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids

The author's writing style does an excellent job of bringing these young people to life, and it seems easier to feel sympathy for these youngsters than it was to empathize with the rather bitchy young adults she described in "Pledged". But Walt Whitman is not only a school for highly achieving, stressed-out, Ivy League strivers. It is also a school for average kids, quiet kids, goths, drug users, dope sellers, artists, devoutly religious kids, and single-pointed nerds who are the farthest thing from the polished, well-rounded, resume kings and queens portrayed in this narrative. At least, it was when I attended the school and graduated nearly twenty years ago, and to a large extent, it probably still is today. The average students are rarely featured in the narrative, except in terms of their relationships with the overachievers, but it would have been interesting had the author focused a little more on how an elite public school like Walt Whitman shapes the expectations of its average kids. Many of these youngsters probably benefitted from exposure to high achievers, particularly since they may have shared at least a few AP classes with them (not every AP student is a classic overachiever). But many of the average youngsters also feel the same stress that overachievers experience, along with a greater sense of inadequacy when comparing their modest achievements and SAT scores against the gold standard established by Whitman's top twenty percent. Some of the these average kids may deliberately model their academic and social behavior to contrast with the norm established by the school's dominant elite as a way of establishing their own identities, but whether this helps or harms them in the long run is a topic the author didn't get around to addressing. On the other hand, one issue that Robbins does not shy away from is the way that schools like Walt Whitman give selected students better grades because their parents are community VIP's or on a school board or committee. In that sense, it becomes a private school for the top-performing students and/or children of elites, and a public school for the rest of us. I found myself sympathizing with the "stealth achiever" who asks to see the paper that an English teacher may have graded unfairly, only to be told that the paper was unavailable in the classroom. This triggered a memory of my own experience with a 12th grade English teacher, an encounter that sadly recalls "Stealth's" anecdote. I received "B's" all year on the papers I submitted, right up until the month before the school year ended, when our AP English exam scores became available. My score of "5" must have been an unexpected upset for this teacher, because she wrote a large "A+" in red ink on my two remaining papers that she graded after our scores were posted. Fortunately, I will never forget the look on her face when I tossed the papers on her desk after class during the final week of my Whitman career, and asked her

I picked up this book thinking it would be a nice "escape" for me. Novel fluff. Boy was I wrong! As the Mother of four boys (2 high school freshmen, 2 special ed kindergarteners) I was flabbergasted to learn of the stress many high schoolers are under because of the unrealistic expectations put upon by their parents, unyielding faculty, and a competitive system that indoctrinates "anything less than first place is last place." I'm happy my older boys make average-to-good grades and have the freedom to pursue hobbies they actually like. My little twins will never be Ivy League. We will be grateful if they can complete school, learn sign language, count to twenty, or say their names when asked. But for now, their smiles and happy hugs are more than enough. I couldn't be more proud to be their Mom. Being Ivy League is not the measure of a productive human being. Parents need to lighten up!!!

As both a parent of two elementary school children, and an elementary school teacher, I found this look at the pressures that some kids have placed on them, or put on themselves, to be absolutely horrifying. Robbins does a terrific job making what could be a boring book into a compelling page-turning read. She intersperses looks into the lives of students with her arguments and examination of the SAT system, recess-deprived elementary school students, and college-admission fueled climate of our schools. Robbins puts a face to a damaging situation that prevails in a lot of our public schools. Students need to be treated as kids, not robots. To be excited about school and want to learn they have to like coming to school. Kudos to Ms. Robbins for delivering such an important and engaging book.

This is a very disturbing book, but the problems with which it deals should come as no surprise to anyone who keeps up on current affairs and what is happening in the education "business." Furthermore, the facts and anecdotes related in this book constitute an indictment of the way in which "schooling" in this country is perceived and administered by education "experts," political "leaders," the students involved, their families, and our society in general. In my opinion, "The Overachievers" presents its case well and its author, Alexandra Robbins, deserves a note of thanks for addressing the issues she does and bringing them to national attention at this time. The reason I say this is simple: It appears again that the federal educational bureaucrats implementing the latest "fads" in teaching and administration, under pressure from political leaders more interested in votes and public-opinion polls than what is best for the students in our schools, and with the "blessing" of large companies who make huge profits providing educational "services" and products, have created an environment where undue, unhealthful, and un-academic practices are promoted in the name of "educational progress." The main thrust of Robbins' book is ably stated on the inside of the dust jacket: "High school isn't what it used to be. With record members of students competing fiercely to get into college, schools are no longer primarily places of learning. They're dog-eat-dog battlegrounds in which kids must set aside interests and passions in order to strategize over how to game the system. In this increasingly stressful environment, kids are defined not by their character or hunger for knowledge, but by often arbitrary scores and statistics." How sad, and how counterproductive to what genuine schooling is supposed to provide. I spent over seventeen years in the public schools as a teacher, administrator, and college professor, and edited an education newsletter for five years after leaving that sector. At that time, I was becoming increasingly concerned about the way in which schooling was being viewed by all parties involved: teachers, administrators, policy makers, students, parents, and so forth. I was always insisting that education was not a "competitive" enterprise and that the concern with letter-grades, test scores, and all those statistics that were dear to the hearts of so many was leading our nation toward a crisis wherein the proper aim of schooling would be abandoned and other, less laudable objectives would become dominant. Robbins' book provides evidence for my concern at that time. Unfortunately, I am not allowed enough space here to write a thorough review of this book, as I would like to do. So let me concentrate on two points that Robbins discusses that I think are especially significant: (1) The issue of educational testing and measurements, and (2) the issue of so-called "prestigious" colleges and universities. I will address the second issue f

Last year I had to come to school on one of the days SATs were administered. I had to pick up a textbook I left in my locker. I showed up probably about 45 minutes before the SAT started. There were kids throwing up in the bathroom. Others were curled up in tiny balls in corners studying flashcards. And there were three small groups of girls crying in eachother's arms. I swore I would never be like that. But after a summer of SAT prep courses, where kids even compared how much they were studying every day--and it's supposed to be summer and they're competing over homework!!--and friends coming back from vacation starting to talk about "reach schools," and everything, I'm already feeling the pressure. I told my mom, and she bought me this book. The book could have been written about my school. I mean I know it's not, the author was in Maryland, but the sense of school today, and all the pressures, it's the same here, too. Now, I don't know of anyone quite like Frank, but I know of people who drive themselves close to that hard. And Taylor and Audrey and even Ryland seemed like some of my friends. I enjoyed the stories, but I also liked the sections telling why things are the way they are. The writer clearly did a ton of work on those sections, too. I didn't spend time reading that part, but she lists the sources at the very back of the book if anyone really needs to fill free time. I don't think anything will be done for me, since I'm going into junior year and I don't think change happens that quickly. But I hope some good comes of the awareness this book causes.