Customer Reviews

Holding On to Good Ideas in a Time of Bad Ones: Six Literacy Principles Worth Fighting For

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If you are an English teacher looking for practical ideas for the classroom, Thomas Newkirk's HOLDING ON TO GOOD IDEAS IN A TIME OF BAD ONES is not the book for you. If, however, you are a teacher who is uncomfortable with the direction your school/district/state is going, Newkirk's treatise is just the ticket. It will give you grist for the mill and make you more informed the next time you have a heart-to-heart with your department head/principal/supervisor.

In the opening section (around 40 pp), Newkirk bemoans some of the recent trends and discusses the down sides of some familiar annoyances in this NCLB era, including standardized testing and the educational research which drives it. From here, Newkirk launches into his Six Principles:

1. "Balance the Basics: An Argument for Parity Between Reading and Writing" (Ten guesses as to which one gets more attention in our schools. Hint: you don't have to READ between the lines.)
2. "Expressive Writing: Maybe the Best Idea of All" (Why is expressive writing the ugly step-child in analysis-beholden writing programs?)
3. "Popular Culture as Literary Tool" (Pop culture is where kids find inspiration, and last we checked, many schools are short on inspired students. Do the math.)
4. "Literacy and Pleasure: Why We Read and Write in the First Place" (An interesting look at the lonely pleasures of being alone -- to read and write, that is. This also includes a passionate call for independent reading instead of textbook "reading.")
5. "Uncluttering the Curriculum" (Easily my favorite principle, as it tackles the breadth over depth problem in our schools and also counsels English teachers on the need to encourage more student writing while reading less of it. Where do I sign up?)
6. "Finding a Language for Difficulty: Silences in Our Teaching Stories" (Teacher heroes and martyrs need not apply -- thank God -- as Newkirk reminds us that teachers in movies, and certain books, can be walking lessons in hyperbole, so relax.)

If Thomas Paine were a teacher, he would would have written something short and to the point like this. For you argumentative types looking to knead some logos into your educational talking points, my recommendation is to buy the book. Then roll up your sleeves and start taking your school back. You can start with your own classroom, if you haven't already.

This is the first review I've ever written on Amazon. I'm moved to do it because I teach high school English, and this book spoke to me on a level that few other literacy guides have. I don't know Mr. Newkirk, although a colleague of mine had him for a teacher at UNH. I borrowed the book from our local college library, and marked it up in pencil so extensively it was almost unreturnable. I then ordered three copies on Amazon-- for me and my two closest teaching colleagues. Clearly, this book was forged from a lifetime of being in the trenches with student writers-- on the good days and the not-so-good ones. It is painstakingly honest, and it doesn't kowtow to the "experts"-- no matter what their agendas. If you want straight talk about how to teach writing and reading, at the high school or college level, with a wonderful mixture of common sense, practical guidance, laugh out loud humor, and overarching wisdom-- do not miss this one.

The subtitle of this book--Six Literacy Principles Worth Fighting For--gives away tbat this book is aimed at educators and not necessarily at the general public. Any reader interested in the state of American education might find it enlightening, however, to delve into the strange and often counterproductive measures that are being done to and by schools in order to respond to various government mandates. Newkirk wisely describes the ideas that educators need to keep in mind in order to maintain focus on reading and writing and limit standardized testing.

Although many of Newkirk's ideas may seem pie-in-the sky these days, it's important to hold on to what we know is important in pedagogy. This book will not give you a lot of strategies for teaching; I think its intended to better help educators advocate for what they know SHOULD be happening in classrooms. I wish more decision-makers would read it.

Wonderful ideas, supported by numerous quotes and examples, makes this a must-read for everyone involved in the field of education. This book would be excellent discussion tool for in-services and educator book clubs.

All administrators should read this book... It presents common sense arguments against blindly picking and using best practices. It speaks to the usefulness of teacher expertise and the wisdom that comes from teaching over time.

This is the FIRST review I've written that didn't earn a high rating. This is NOT a practical book for teachers looking for a sound framework or STRATEGIES to develop life-long literacy in their students. One-third of each page is wedged with quotations ranging from five to 10 lines. I value valid support, but he writes "over your head" and doesn't speak to the heart. Can't he just summarize and cite the theory, then use the majority of the pages to describe strategies that develop strong readers and writers? For example, in his chapter about balancing reading instruction with writing, he doesn't give ONE strategy to use to create balance, but mows right on to the next chapter about narrative writing instruction.

I don't know his teaching experience, but I can see why he teaches theory at the college level because he would be a horrible instructor at secondary and primary levels due to his lack of applicable strategies rooted in theory.

Save your money and purchase more directive and concrete texts. I wish I did because I would have spent my $29 on purchasing another text.