We have a quiet crisis in American public education, and the underlying theme of WE HAVEN'T MADE THE SALE is that we must understand it within the broader framework of American popular culture. There are 20 essays in the book, each using a metaphor as an organizing principle. The author uses his 34 years of high school teaching experience to tie together colorful metaphors - such as eating soup with a fork, the art of building a snowman, and the increasing tension of tectonic plates - with an insider's view of what is wrong with public education and how to improve it. With electronic distractions omnipresent, it has never been tougher to sell our young people on the idea that hard academic study over time is the ticket to a more enriched and rewarding life. It is essential to our democratic future to understand that the core of our problems in public education is that we are failing to make this sale!
We have a quiet crisis in American public education, and the underlying theme of WE HAVEN'T MADE THE SALE is that we must understand it within the broader framework of American popular culture. There are 20 essays in the book, each using a metaphor as an organizing principle. The author uses his 34 years of high school teaching experience to tie together colorful metaphors - such as eating soup with a fork, the art of building a snowman, and the increasing tension of tectonic plates - with an insider's view of what is wrong with public education and how to improve it. With electronic distractions omnipresent, it has never been tougher to sell our young people on the idea that hard academic study over time is the ticket to a more enriched and rewarding life. It is essential to our democratic future to understand that the core of our problems in public education is that we are failing to make this sale!