The Quotable Teacher (Quotable)

Reviewed by Marcelline (Marcy) Burns for Reader Views (9/06) This small book with a simple title, "The Quotable Teacher," may be too easily overlooked on bookstore shelves. What a mistake that will be! It merits a wide readership. Not only will it inspire teachers and buoy their resolve, it will significantly enlighten those who do not teach ... at least not in a classroom. Of course, all of us do teach children and adults with both negative and positive outcomes, whether or not we are aware that we are doing so, and much of the quoted wisdom is applicable far beyond the formal classroom. The author has assembled observations that vividly demonstrate for the reader just how difficult it is to spend one's workday in the company of young students and to be productive in one's endeavors with and for them. Consider, for example, a teacher's comment that a first day in an elementary classroom was like trying to hold thirty-five corks under water at the same time. That vivid picture makes one wonder why anyone would willingly attempt to teach! A philosopher, who may or may not ever have been a teacher, observes that when children are forced to learn, they acquire a loathing for knowledge. Sadly, too, though many of us recognize that the critically important contributions of teachers to society are neither fully recognized nor credited, very few of us do anything at all to remedy that deficit. So given such a depressing view of teaching, is it possible that the old saw, "Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach," might be true? Are those individuals who enter the classroom simply incapable of loftier pursuits? Surely we all know that the answers to those questions for the vast majority of teachers are "No." Teachers teach, most often because they are creative, kind, giving individuals, and because there are great rewards for them as practitioners of this worthy profession. Happily, these latter opinions are amply reflected in "The Quotable Teacher." The editor has gleaned wonderfully apt remarks not only about teachers but also about the philosophy and creativity of teaching. His comments prefacing each section are insightful and appropriate, and one senses that he knows firsthand both the challenges and the wonders that teachers routinely encounter. Not only do I recommend this book and plan to keep a copy of it on my bookshelf, I also intend to place it into the hands of a young friend who is a new teacher this school year. She feels inadequately prepared and truly scared as she begins a career in a high school classroom. She knows that every day she will find disinterested and rebellious young people among the serious students. She wonders whether her teaching will be sufficiently skilled to reach those who are not willing to invest anything in learning. When she is discouraged, as she surely will be, dipping into the wisdom of this book may help ... at least, a little. A good man, who also is a fine teacher, anticipates with dread