- Every teacher must make a decision: Will you rock the boat—“fight the power”—or be-
come “another brick in the wall” of an educational system that rewards some students,
tracks many into limited options, and leaves others behind?
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Drs. Alan Singer (social studies), Maureen Murphy (English), and S. Maxwell Hines (science)
teach introductory secondary school methods classes, subject methods classes, supervise
secondary school student teachers, and lead classroom analysis seminars in which student
teachers reflect on their pedagogical practice, reconsider their teaching philosophies and
goals, and examine ways that teachers can develop personal connections and build class-
room communities with students from diverse racial, ethnic, and class backgrounds. They
are also the faculty advisors and facilitators for the Hofstra New Teachers Network, which
provides support for new teachers working in urban and suburban minority school districts.
The text was primarily written by Alan Singer (author ofSocial Studies for Secondary
Schools: Teaching to Learn/Learning to Teach, LEA, 1997). Maureen Murphy and S. Maxwell
Hines participated in its conceptualization and development, contributed specific sections,
edited the entire manuscript, and helped members of the New Teachers Network frame and
write their contributions.
RATIONALE AND DESCRIPTION
In secondary school general methods classes and classroom analysis seminars that accom-
pany student teaching, preservice teachers are frequently obsessed with two problems:
classroom control and figuring out exactly what is the role of the teacher. These problems
are exacerbated by methods books that compartmentalize different aspects of teaching
(practical, theoretical, critical). This book is designed to bridge these divisions and integrate
the practical, theoretical, and critical considerations in secondary school teaching. It draws
on the theoretical work of Michael Apple (1979), George Counts (1969), Lisa Delpit (1995),
John Dewey (1916, 1927/1954), Paulo Freire (1970, 1995), Howard Gardner (1993), Maxine
Greene (1993), Martin Haberman (1995), Herbert Kohl (1994), Gloria Ladson-Billings (1994),
and Nel Noddings (1992), and it offers different ways of looking at the dynamics of classroom
interaction for understanding social, cultural, and developmental influences on student be-
havior; for organizing lessons, units, and curricula; and for defining and establishing the di-
verse roles of teachers.
The book is designed as a handbook for preservice and beginning teachers. We anticipate
that some readers will examine the entire package in the order that material is presented,
whereas others will sample topics selectively based on their interests and needs. We hope
the book works both ways. We apologize in advance for any repetition between chapters,
but felt it was necessary so that each chapter could stand on its own.
The book opens and closes with challenges to preservice and beginning teachers to re-
flect on what they liked and did not like about their own school experiences and to consider
their goals as teachers. It argues that many problems students perceive of as individual are
really a result of the way that schools and classrooms are organized.
In the book, we address broad topics in secondary school teaching rather than the needs
of specific subject areas. Although examples are included from different subject disciplines,
the focus of the book is on the relationships between disciplines (concepts, skills, practices)
xiv PREFACE