Margaret Searle

This book is clearly written for administrators and not really for teachers. I found her tone condescending at times, and while her ideas might work perfectly in an elementary school, where teachers have one class of 30 students, I'm unconvinced how it can work effectively for secondary teachers juggling 150-180 students (and in other locations 200 ). I did like some of the ideas--many are common sense, like making sure your classroom is a safe space for students--but she tends to place all the blame and responsibility for learning at the teachers' feet, absolving students of their obligations to learn...which seems to be a current trend in education that I don't wholly agree with.

She also seems to forget that sometimes as adults, we must do things that frustrate or bore us. I worry that if education is becoming all about making sure "no student is bored" that eventually we will have generations of adults who lack any connection to the value of hard work...

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