A
compelling book on the intersection between democratic ideals, literacy, and
education. With wit and wisdom, Newkirk draws upon the thinkers and shapers of
literacy and education, along with his own experience and observations, and
retells the history of literacy, discusses how literacy is fundamentally rooted
in democracy, and talks about how these ideals can be transferred to teaching
and learning in the classroom. The book details eight important parts of
literacy and provides tools to implement each in the classroom. These tools
include getting students to self-select what they read, allowing and
encouraging students’ cultural heritage to inform their thinking and writing,
and suggesting that teachers forgo rigid assignments in favor of those that
will evoke students’ unique stories. This is clearly an embodiment of Newkirk’s
decades of work in the field, which probably began under his father’s tutelage:
one of the final chapters of the book includes a poignant story of his father’s
yearlong experiment with teens and “free reading.” In an article about the
experiment, his father remarks, “Carnegie made the library public…teachers need
to make it free.” VERDICT A must for all educators. For new teachers,
it provides aspirational direction to teach literacy; for veteran teachers, it
will reawaken a passion for the art of teaching literacy. – Kristi Ramsey,
School Library Journal
A lively and engaging stroll through some foundations for literacy,
democracy, and education more generally, this is the kind of book we need at
this time. Drawing on observation, research, personal anecdote, and historical
example, the book reads like a conversation among friends over coffee. While
linking democracy and literacy, Tom offers us principles to guide the teaching
of literacy, and along the way casually teaches us how to write engaging books.
–Peter Johnston, author of Opening Minds
As an educator and a researcher in the teaching of writing for over three
decades, when I started reading this book, I just couldn’t stop, as I continued
to feel inspired, reinvigorated, and just couldn’t wait to get back inside my
classroom. I am sure anyone who reads this book would be similarly
inspired and energized to teach and learn." –Danling Fu,
author of “My Trouble Is My English”
Reading Literacy’s Democratic Roots is
like being invited to pull up a chair in Tom’s family room while he narrates a
fascinating slideshow of the most important, most lasting ELA concepts that
promote “access and diversity”. It’s a family epic—a pedagogical ancestry that
reaches into both our roots and our classrooms today. With his trademark
storytelling, Tom chronicles where we’ve been and inspires us to push ever
forward in the best interest of all students. This book is both a record and a
call to action; I will return to it again and again. "–Rebekah O’Dell,
coauthor of A Teacher’s Guide to Mentor Texts, 6-12
This is not a book; it’s a conversation, or a series of
conversations, all of them related to the work we do as teachers…with every
major thinker who has contributed to and shaped how we teach and think about
literacy in the last fifty years. It is a conversation with ourselves as much
as with our profession as it was, is, and will be in the coming years. --Jim
Burke, author of The English Teacher’s Companion
When Tom Newkirk writes, I read. In volume after volume he has pushed my
thinking, from considering how our minds are made for stories to the impact
that embarrassment has on learning. He demonstrates how exclusionary practices,
even when performed with good intentions, slam a door in the face of young
scholars. Newkirk challenges us to examine our curriculum for areas where
exclusive practices are often the norm — recitation, writing, literary
interpretation, book selection — and offers alternative methods for opening
wide the door of literacy.—Carol Jago, author of The Book in Question
Imagine a feast of small, delightful plates. Each bite is
rich. You linger over its elements: the hint of curry or cinnamon, the
surprising zap of red pepper. This is the closest I can come to describing the
power of Literacy’s Democratic Roots. Each chapter schools you in
research and the nuances of teaching well. Newkirk is a wise, gentle guide.
There is room to think here, to place these ideas against the grain of your own
teaching. —Penny Kittle, author and writing teacher at Plymouth State
University
Reading a new book from Tom Newkirk is like a long-awaited
visit from a really smart and great-hearted friend. After reading this book, I
am now much smarter about how to create a democratic classroom, teach for
democracy, and support students in developing the dispositions of
democracy. This book has reminded me why
I teach and has already helped me to meet my deepest commitments and hopes for
myself, my students, and for all of society. —Jeffrey Wilhelm,
Distinguished Professor of English Education at Boise State University
"Literacy’s Democratic Roots solidifies Tom Newkirk’s place at the head of the table of today’s most
influential writers and thinkers about literacy. Grounded in history and
democratic tradition, but especially relevant given the current political
discourse, Newkirk’s eight big ideas
will help you to build a more just, equitable, and engaging classroom. This
book should be a starting point for anyone interested in meaningful school
reform. "–Kelly Gallagher, author of Readicide
As we strive to promote equity and social justice
throughout our schools and society, Tom Newkirk’s new book offers educators
guiding frameworks and creative ways to rethink literacy teaching and learning
in schools and classrooms. Creating democratic classroom spaces where students’
stories are viewed as valuable sources of knowledge alongside the writing in
the field challenges traditional hierarchies and what tom so aptly labels
“killer dichotomies,” to create spaces where teachers and students are free to
co-create knowledge, write on topics important to them, and work toward a more
just society. –Diane Waff, Professor of Practice, Director, Philadelphia
Writing Project Penn GSE
In this moment of our
history and education, Newkirk reminds us of the democratic constitution of the
public school experiment: everyone can come in. And everyone can and
should come to this book to remember and renew, or to discover for the first
time, eight transformative ideas for inviting all students to become
strong readers, writers, and thinkers. He honors these foundational concepts
and their creators as well as several brilliant new voices and practices in
literacy education in eight essays that journey through impassioned arguments,
illustrative stories, and powerful sample activities to use with students. —Katherine
Bomer, Professor of Practice, College of Education, University of North
Texas
As I read through Literacy’s
Democratic Roots, I found myself reminded of the how and why of successful
classroom practice: that the classroom must be a place where student voice is
encouraged; that we succeed most when we draw from their funds of knowledge;
that rigid formulas for writing or school-imposed titles for reading will
usually produce the opposite effect we intend; and that, as Tom has suggested
before, the importance of story is not to be underestimated. Tom has written
something here that can help both the new teacher, who would benefit from this
book’s guidance and direction, and the veteran teacher, who needs the
occasional reminder of the ideas that inform meaningful and democratic
classroom practice. The greatest praise I can give the book is this: that
somehow, in the summer after a terrible school year, Tom Newkirk has got me
looking forward with optimism to this next school year. —Martin Brandt,
author of Between the Commas
