Roberta Israeloff - Böcker

In What Went Right: Lessons from Both Sides of the Teacher’s Desk co-authors Roberta Israeloff and George McDermott resume a conversation they began in 1967—when she was in eleventh grade at Syosset (N.Y.) High School and he was her English teacher. In 2014, after finding each other on Facebook, they began an email correspondence—as contemporaries, rather than student and teacher—and quickly discovered that neither had ever stopped thinking about that school and the many ways it influenced them. As they shared their impressions of how and why public education has changed since then, they realized that a single academic year can have a deeper and longer-lasting impact than they had ever imagined. Personal and probing, evocative and wide-ranging, the letters that compose this book ask and attempt to answer some timeless—and timely—questions: What makes a teacher or a class memorable? How can the teacher-student relationship be supported and strengthened? What does being “educated” truly mean? And, perhaps most important, what role can free public education play in sustaining our democracy?

In What Went Right: Lessons from Both Sides of the Teacher’s Desk co-authors Roberta Israeloff and George McDermott resume a conversation they began in 1967—when she was in eleventh grade at Syosset (N.Y.) High School and he was her English teacher. In 2014, after finding each other on Facebook, they began an email correspondence—as contemporaries, rather than student and teacher—and quickly discovered that neither had ever stopped thinking about that school and the many ways it influenced them. As they shared their impressions of how and why public education has changed since then, they realized that a single academic year can have a deeper and longer-lasting impact than they had ever imagined. Personal and probing, evocative and wide-ranging, the letters that compose this book ask and attempt to answer some timeless—and timely—questions: What makes a teacher or a class memorable? How can the teacher-student relationship be supported and strengthened? What does being “educated” truly mean? And, perhaps most important, what role can free public education play in sustaining our democracy?

The Ethics Bowl Way introduces the Ethics Bowl to the larger educational community, including those involved in elementary, secondary, and higher education. Ethics Bowl espouses a new way to engage in discussions about complex ethical issues. Although it resembles debate, in that two teams prepare for and present arguments on an ethical dilemma, participants are rewarded not for taking adversarial positions but rather for the degree to which they work together to bolster each other’s arguments by asking more incisive questions, asking for greater clarity, and providing more thoughtful, reflective, logical answers. Changing positions is rewarded rather than penalized; civil discourse is a key value; critical thinking, public speaking, and listening skills are also nurtured. Ethics Bowl’s foremost practitioners explain why this model is often more productive than debate; and how it fosters the very qualities that produce more responsible, informed citizens in a democracy, as well as model co-workers, family and community members, and friends. The book also offers practical, hands-on advice for those who participate in Ethics Bowl (coaches, judges, case writers, organizers) and looks ahead to the ways in which it can be expanded and improved. Ethics Bowl, which began as a classroom activity, is always evolving to become more inclusive, fair, and challenging.

The Ethics Bowl Way introduces the Ethics Bowl to the larger educational community, including those involved in elementary, secondary, and higher education. Ethics Bowl espouses a new way to engage in discussions about complex ethical issues. Although it resembles debate, in that two teams prepare for and present arguments on an ethical dilemma, participants are rewarded not for taking adversarial positions but rather for the degree to which they work together to bolster each other’s arguments by asking more incisive questions, asking for greater clarity, and providing more thoughtful, reflective, logical answers. Changing positions is rewarded rather than penalized; civil discourse is a key value; critical thinking, public speaking, and listening skills are also nurtured. Ethics Bowl’s foremost practitioners explain why this model is often more productive than debate; and how it fosters the very qualities that produce more responsible, informed citizens in a democracy, as well as model co-workers, family and community members, and friends. The book also offers practical, hands-on advice for those who participate in Ethics Bowl (coaches, judges, case writers, organizers) and looks ahead to the ways in which it can be expanded and improved. Ethics Bowl, which began as a classroom activity, is always evolving to become more inclusive, fair, and challenging.