Customer Reviews

Death at an Early Age (Plume)

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This is a wonderful book for anyone interested in education, children, learning, or human rights issues. Kozol describes the horrible treatement of mostly black children in the 1960's Boston public schools. This book is by no means outdated, as I believe that schools continue to reinforce gender and racial stereotypes and squelch a child's natural love for learning.

If you do not want to consider the injustice of schooling in America, not just public schooling, do not read this book. I first read it when I was a beginning teacher and "Death at an Early Age" affected my entire 32 year teaching career. In the age of "No Child Left Behind," we refuse to realize that school reflects the entire society in which we live. The PURPOSE of education is no longer (if it ever was) to give every child a fair chance. Education is the first of many sorting systems to make sure that nobody escapes the social class into which they are born. Because school is competitive, every "concerned parent" with the resources to do it makes sure that their own child gets an extra edge, even if all children were getting the same education at school. If you read this book, it might infect you with the desire to make sure that, not only is "No Child Left Behind," but that every child really has a fair chance. You might start trying to make sure that every child can learn and grow to be the adult he/she could be if born to the wealthiest family in America. Teaching under the influence of this book could become an endless struggle to address the inequities of this world.

i've read a lot of kozol over the years - often he strikes me as too popularized, forsaking an unbiast view in order to pull the wool off the eyes of the public. however, kozol hits the nail on the head with this one. his portrayal of inner city schools in boston is heartfelt and nicely supported with information concerning the civil rights movement. if you're planning on reading kozol, read this one or his latest. if you're interested in the roots of the move to fix urban schools, this is the begining of a long list of books about the subject - and it depicts the need for change in a catchy, gut wrenching way.

Kozol does a great job of capturing the horrors of segregated public education in Boston, and the disservice that it did to the children who lived through it. What troubled me the most about this book is that many of the statistics cited by Kozol have not changed in the intervening 45 years. What I hope has changed is the attitudes of white teachers toward students of color. The most horrifying aspect of this book was the way in which even self-identified "liberal" teachers viewed their young black charges with such loathing.

Sometimes I wonder why I read Jonathan Kozol's books: as an educator they make me so angry because I know all too well how true his experiences are. "Death at an Early Age" was Kozol's first book, chronicaling his first year as a teacher in the poorest, most segregated public school system in Boston. Set in the mid-1960s during the crux of the Civil Rights Movement, Kozol's experiences are heartbreaking and horrifying, perhaps only made more so because these deplorable conditions still exist within American public schools.

Kozol titled his book "Death at an Early Age" because he knew that these students were dying, being killed by a lack of education and teachers who cared about them. His school was a slumlord's dream with urine scented cellar classrooms, broken windows that almost fell in on children's heads, five separate classes scheduled at once in an auditorium, and routine punishment by rattan canes for those who misbehaved. The children had out-of-date material to work with, when they had materials at all, most of which was horrifically prejudiced to black students. Kozol spends much of his book exploring his experiences as a teacher trying to teach students who were 2-3 years behind, due to bad teachers or strings of substitute teachers who did nothing. He chronicles his relationships with the bigoted teachers he worked with, who cannot fathom their own racist attitudes as anything other than helpful, and his efforts to raise parent awareness of what truly went on while their children were at school. He chronicles his relationships with various students, those who had fallen through the cracks and needed special help that they would most likely never receive if the school system continued as it was. And at that time, the school board was determined to have it remain so, to keep segregation as it was no matter what changes progress brought.

For those who have read later of Kozol's excellent books, certain stories will sound familiar, especially those of Stephen and some of his overall experiences. Toward the end of his first year, Kozol was fired for teaching poem by Langston Hughes to his students since it wasn't in the recognized "Course of Study" curriculum laid out by the Boston system. His firing caused an uproar that in part marked his quest to examine the inequalities that remain in American public education to this day. "Death at an Early Age" is a sober, eye-opening read written by someone who truly knows and truly cares about disadvantaged students and the hardships they are forced to overcome - if they are ever given the chance to.

Jonathan Kozol cleaverly exposes the horrors of the Boston Public School system with various accounts from co-workers, public school administrators, and students. Kozol's powerful expose on the blatant racism and socio-economic discrimination helped to bring attention to the effects of segregtion in schools. It also helped to convince public schools to intergrate their institutions so a great education can be provided to all children, regardless of race or ability. Unfortunately the problems dealt with in this book are still an issue and are far from being solved. But the words in this book are powerful enough to incite other individuals like ourselves to become involved in this issue and take action. Highly Recommended

I started reading this book with little interest. However, I found interest in the book and it is one that should be read. There is no doubt that we often had two groups of individuals in this society. However, many assumed that it was just in the south. However, this is not the south. However, even today we do not keep up our school buildings. The issue today is not necessarily desegragation but one of making sure that our school buildings will last into the next century and that we can educate future generations. Therefore, reading this book is very relevant today when we have disregarded some of our school buildings and do not care what condition a child is educated in.