The journey of a teacher, and what he learned along the way. The true story of an American teacher, Becoming Mr. Henry traces the development of the author from a young boy bewildered by the world to a knowing mentor of street-wise youth. Along the way, Mr. Henry dispenses ample insight on current educational debates involving high-stakes testing, abstinence education and zero tolerance drug policies. Often off-beat and funny, and sometimes touching and poignant, Becoming Mr. Henry is mainly about teaching – why it matters, how it can be successful, and why it may be an essential tool for liberating the human spirit.
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About the Author
Peter Henry was raised in a nine-child family by a pair of professors. He has attended or taught in over a dozen different schools across America, has studied abroad in Mexico and France, has a bachelor’s degree from Carleton College and earned a Master’s of Arts in Teaching degree from St. Thomas University. He currently teaches at a community college in the Midwest.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A teacher responds...,
By Mr. A (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Becoming Mr. Henry (Paperback)
Becoming Mr. Henry succinctly lays out the conundrum presented to anyone teaching in public education today: How does a teacher best serve his or her students in the current educational climate? Becoming Mr. Henry is one person's answer. I found the book thought provoking and inspiring.
To paraphrase Frank McCourt, the classroom teacher is the last person anyone consults when determining educational policy. Should that situation ever change, Mr. Henry would be an excellent person to start with.
14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Check This Out,
By Word Man (Wagon Landing, Wisconsin) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Becoming Mr. Henry (Paperback)
The concept, inspired by Parker Palmer's The Courage To Teach, is to sketch the inner landscape of a teacher, revealing how early experiences in family, school and beyond contribute to an educational philosophy which values the journey of young people above the mania of public school norms and test scores, which mean little, in the end, about one's essential character
Here is the backdrop: The author's parents, both teachers themselves, raise nine children during the baby-boom years. While it is not a study of that era per se, the post-war saga-get married, get degrees, rain children, and, as careers peak, discover things are haywire with the kids-lurks in the background. The essays follow the doings of a ponderous but adventurous child who learns to adapt to his family's oddities through sports, friends, academics, and the usual conceits of adolescence. Each chapter employs narrative episodes to inform and ground important issues about learning and education-how a boy went completely astray but nonetheless crashed on the shores of becoming a teacher. On the whole, the book speaks optimistically and realistically about the process of learning: how it happens, what roles are played by family, friends and school. And it is a process. One requiring love, energy, humor and persistence. But the book also departs from its personal point-of-view to find fault with today's schools, as well as criticize America's naïve faith in its own righteousness. It asserts we are doing a disservice to youth, ill-preparing them for the future: emphasizing a "standardized" agenda and exams over the time-tested importance of relationships, intrinsic motivation and critical thinking. It also critiques America's continued embrace of profound inequities between black and white, rich and poor-the whole precept that America's public schools are mere preparation for today's corporate economy rather than about developing an informed and independent citizenry. The book touches upon family, learning, teaching, and ultimately, America's self-confident but overtly paradoxical character. Its spokes emanate from a common hub-school-but ineluctably, follow the lens of one teacher's seeing: a mix of story, memoir and pointed ideas about the nature, pitfalls and inescapable humanity which adheres to education. It is not a book about pedagogy, methods, theory or school reform, but walks the delicate line of revealing through story the essential-and sometimes thorny-truths about being schooled in America and growing into a central role as teacher. In simplest terms, Becoming Mr. Henry celebrates the importance of stories themselves, even one as simple as a man falling for teaching unexpectedly, then being consumed with getting-it-right for those in his tracks and the country he loves.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Worthwhile Read,
By TeacherJim (Illinois) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Becoming Mr. Henry (Paperback)
This is a unique book, a mix of story, philosophy and some almost political elements. Henry does a good job of reflecting on the job of teaching and the role of public education in this country. He is well-informed and tells engaging stories along the way.
Highly recommended.
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