Through firsthand accounts of classroom practices, this new book ties 130 years of progressive education to social justice work. Based on their commitments to the principle of the equal moral worth of all people, progressive teachers have challenged the obstacles of schooling that prevent some people from participating as full partners in social life in and out of the classroom and have constructed classroom and social arrangements that enable all to participate as peers in the decisions that influence their lives. Progressive reading education has been and remains key to these ties, commitments, challenges, and constructions. The three goals in this book are to show that there are viable and worthy alternatives to the current version of "doing school"; to provide evidence of how progressive teachers have accommodated expanding notions of social justice across time, taking up issues of economic distribution of resources during the first half of the 20th century, adding the cultural recognition of the civil rights of more groups during the second half, and now, grappling with political representation of groups and individuals as national boundaries become porous; and to build coalitions around social justice work among advocates of differing, but complementary, theories and practices of literacy work. In progressive classrooms from Harlem to Los Angeles and Milwaukee to Fairhope, Alabama, students have used reading in order to make sense of and sense in changing times, working across economic, cultural, and political dimensions of social justice. Over 100 teacher stories invite readers to join the struggle to continue the pursuit of a just democracy in America.

In this book Shannon's major premise remains the same as his 1998 Reading Poverty: Poverty has everything to do with American public schooling-how it is theorized, how it is organized, and how it runs. Competing ideological representations of poverty underlie school assumptions about intelligence, character, textbook content, lesson formats, national standards, standardized achievement tests, and business/school partnerships and frame our considerations of each. In this new edition, Shannon provides an update of the ideological struggles to name and respond to poverty through the design, content, and pedagogy of reading education, showing how, through their representations and framing, advocates of liberal, conservative, and neoliberal interpretations attempt the ideological practice of teaching the public who they are, what they should know, and what they should value about equality, civic society, and reading. For those who decline these offers, Shannon presents radical democratic interpretations of the relationship between poverty and reading education that position the poor, the public, students, and teachers as agents in redistribution of economic, cultural, and political capital in the United States.

eBook available with sample pages: HB:0415919134

Through firsthand accounts of classroom practices, this new book ties 130 years of progressive education to social justice work. Based on their commitments to the principle of the equal moral worth of all people, progressive teachers have challenged the obstacles of schooling that prevent some people from participating as full partners in social life in and out of the classroom and have constructed classroom and social arrangements that enable all to participate as peers in the decisions that influence their lives. Progressive reading education has been and remains key to these ties, commitments, challenges, and constructions. The three goals in this book are to show that there are viable and worthy alternatives to the current version of "doing school"; to provide evidence of how progressive teachers have accommodated expanding notions of social justice across time, taking up issues of economic distribution of resources during the first half of the 20th century, adding the cultural recognition of the civil rights of more groups during the second half, and now, grappling with political representation of groups and individuals as national boundaries become porous; and to build coalitions around social justice work among advocates of differing, but complementary, theories and practices of literacy work. In progressive classrooms from Harlem to Los Angeles and Milwaukee to Fairhope, Alabama, students have used reading in order to make sense of and sense in changing times, working across economic, cultural, and political dimensions of social justice. Over 100 teacher stories invite readers to join the struggle to continue the pursuit of a just democracy in America.

In this book Shannon's major premise remains the same as his 1998 Reading Poverty: Poverty has everything to do with American public schooling-how it is theorized, how it is organized, and how it runs. Competing ideological representations of poverty underlie school assumptions about intelligence, character, textbook content, lesson formats, national standards, standardized achievement tests, and business/school partnerships and frame our considerations of each. In this new edition, Shannon provides an update of the ideological struggles to name and respond to poverty through the design, content, and pedagogy of reading education, showing how, through their representations and framing, advocates of liberal, conservative, and neoliberal interpretations attempt the ideological practice of teaching the public who they are, what they should know, and what they should value about equality, civic society, and reading. For those who decline these offers, Shannon presents radical democratic interpretations of the relationship between poverty and reading education that position the poor, the public, students, and teachers as agents in redistribution of economic, cultural, and political capital in the United States.

Nearly true tales of a really cool parrot
"Viva Cisco" is a trilogy of funny stories for kids at the Age 10-13 reading level. All three tales unfold in a land called Topopootl, which lies in a hidden valley deep in the heart of Mexico. Because of its seclusion, the inhabitants have created a society without the benefit of human contact, and they don't seem to have missed out on anything important in the absence of that dubious blessing. In fact, they probably have more pure merriment and boisterous excitement than any human community could ever conceive. Much of the credit for that, though, must be laid at the feet of Topopootl's most..uh.. stimulating citizen, one Cisco las Verde Arara del Gucigalpa. Aka, Cisco the Parrot.
His is an ego burning brightly, and his quest is for nothing less than becoming the most notable dude in all Topopootl. In "Am I Famous Yet?," he wends his fractured way from being the Answer Man in Topopootl's public library, through a very public failure in "Show Biz," a humiliating defeat in Anything Goes Wrestling (at the hands of two little cockroaches), a "Mayday"; attempt at a high-altitude record for Parrots and, finally, to opening a very weird business; The Word Man-whose motto is, "Learn a big word and impress your friends.- The reader is sure to be spellbound as Cisco makes the sale of one of his Deluxe models: the word, "extracurricular" - a big impresser.
In "Cisco-PI," he combines the skills of Inspector Clouseau and Barney Fife in tackling Topopootl's first and only crime wave, a rash of burglaries. In a dazzling display of illogical thinking, he manages to accuse some innocent youngsters of being members of a crime family, and he fingers none other than Topopootl's President as their Godfather. Even by Cisco standards, it is a stunning blunder.
But he musters his will, applies his nimble brain to some very mysterious clues, and actually solves the case. The burglaries, it turns out, were all the work of Harry the Pack Rat, who traveled down from North America to put together a "Mexican Collection." That, in fact, is his plea as he is brought before the citizens of Topopootl "It wasn't stealing. It was collecting."
In this, the second book of the trilogy, Cisco is redeemed and achieves his coveted recognition, which serves to make him a worthy leader in the daring adventure that follows.
"Cisco and the Secret Room," Book Three, has Cisco leading four of his pals on a very dangerous mission to retrieve ancient evidence of Topopootl's origins. In a secret room in the heart of a mysterious pyramid, they discover the story of how Topopootl came into existence and who saved it from extinction.
As they read the inscriptions on the walls of the remarkable chamber, a tale unfolds of the Aztecs and Spaniards making the land unlivable for its non-human inhabitants; of a desperate expedition to find a place of refuge and peace; of the founding of Topopootl; of the threat of its extinction by a human invasion; finally, of the remarkable army of little skunks who save the day-and Topopootl-only by employing their secret weapon: El Gordo.

The book has more fire--more call to arms' gusto--than anything I've read on reading education.

"Richard Abrahamson, University of Houston"

"Broken PromiseS" is an important and powerful book precisely because it provides the opportunity for us all to experience the kinds of insights and construct the kinds of understandings that we need to grow professionally and to be a profession.

"Reading Research & Instruction Journal"

The volume provides a cogent critique of majority practice. This is one of the few volumes that relate critical pedagogy, ' as exemplified by the work of Giroux, Apple, and others, to specific examples of school practice. Because reading instruction is a central school activity, this connection is significant and the content is of value to anyone interested in public education. "Choice"

Shannon argues that a combination of psychology, science, and capitalism has transformed reading from a means of personal and social empowerment into an ability to perform well on tests and has transformed learning from a human transaction between teacher and student into an exchange between things--commercially packaged reading materials--and students. To rationalize reading instruction according to these principles, he says, is to silence the voices of readers and teachers. These compelling new ideas, carefully grounded in research, show how popular solutions to problems in reading instruction--mastery learning, merit pay, and school effectiveness research--actually work against improving teachers' instructional behavior and children's learning ability. A rallying call for teachers of reading, a tool for change, and a most provocative text for students of reading at all levels.