Michael Gose

Just over 100 years ago Columbia’s John Erskine started a General Honors program that was the precursor of the Great Books programs popularized by his student, Mortimer Adler. As a set term “Great Books” has elicited more than some controversy, especially because most relatively short lists of such works mostly features “dead white men”. However, most any group in America has made the Great Ideas their own. This book explores the benefits of reading “Great Books,” and is virtually unique in detailing what a series of Great Books classes has looked like over the past decades.

Just over 100 years ago Columbia’s John Erskine started a General Honors program that was the precursor of the Great Books programs popularized by his student, Mortimer Adler. As a set term “Great Books” has elicited more than some controversy, especially because most relatively short lists of such works mostly features “dead white men”. However, their ideas have been much more accessible than publishing opportunities had been. The evidence is that most any group in America has made the Great Ideas their own. This book explores the benefits of reading “Great Books,” and is virtually unique in detailing what a series of Great Books classes has looked like over the past decades.

Celebrating Intellectual Curiosity: Kindergarten Through College Scholarship and Research broadens the perspective on academic pursuits. Curiosity needs to be cultivated at all school levels. All formats of scholarship and research contribute to increased human understanding. The criteria for evaluating different scholarly activity needs to be well matched with the respective format. Both Scientific and Artistic standards need to be considered for a deeper appreciation of intents and results. Grade school children would be well served by being schooled in the four traditional areas of university faculty evaluation: teaching-learning; scholarship; service; and colleagueship. The book uses vignettes and stories to establish the complexities and utility of varying forms of research. Criteria are identified that fit the respective approaches. The study looks at The Scholarship of Teaching; The Scholarship of Teaching as Action Research: Creative Artistry; Arts Based Research; The Scholarship of Service; Curriculum Development; The Scholarship of the Student. The complementary nature of the variety of scholarships reveals an underlying Ecology of Education that relies upon a great diversity in roles to maintain a healthy system.

Celebrating Intellectual Curiosity: Kindergarten Through College Scholarship and Research broadens the perspective on academic pursuits. Curiosity needs to be cultivated at all school levels. All formats of scholarship and research contribute to increased human understanding. The criteria for evaluating different scholarly activity needs to be well matched with the respective format. Both Scientific and Artistic standards need to be considered for a deeper appreciation of intents and results. Grade school children would be well served by being schooled in the four traditional areas of university faculty evaluation: teaching-learning; scholarship; service; and colleagueship. The book uses vignettes and stories to establish the complexities and utility of varying forms of research. Criteria are identified that fit the respective approaches. The study looks at The Scholarship of Teaching; The Scholarship of Teaching as Action Research: Creative Artistry; Arts Based Research; The Scholarship of Service; Curriculum Development; The Scholarship of the Student. The complementary nature of the variety of scholarships reveals an underlying Ecology of Education that relies upon a great diversity in roles to maintain a healthy system.

“Finally a book about teaching that tells it like it is,” NEA Today said about Michael Gose’s first edition, What It Means to Be a Teacher. The second edition continues the stories that capture the meaning of teaching and now looks back with commentary on how those tales also work as parables. In the spirit of Thomas Paine, this second edition uses “Common Sense” to tell what is really going on with students, teachers, and schools. (Hint: the reality is actually a lot more optimistic than commonly portrayed in the media.)

“Finally a book about teaching that tells it like it is,” NEA Today said about Michael Gose’s first edition, What It Means to Be a Teacher. The second edition continues the stories that capture the meaning of teaching and now looks back with commentary on how those tales also work as parables. In the spirit of Thomas Paine, this second edition uses “Common Sense” to tell what is really going on with students, teachers, and schools. (Hint: the reality is actually a lot more optimistic than commonly portrayed in the media.)

The Challenge of Greatness: The Legacy of Great Teachers reveals the characteristics and teaching strategies of Great Teachers. Simultaneously the book describes a Pantheon of thirty-two great teachers, and challenges the reader to continue their legacy by becoming one. Recognizing the uniqueness of a great teacher, the book raises the kind of issues they face, and a range of possibilities from which they find solutions.

The stories, anecdotes, humor, and insights found in this book capture what it means to be a teacher. The book begins with common encounters that are the hallmark of the new-teacher experience, but continues into equally entertaining tales that come with years of working with students, parents, staff, faculty, and administrators. What it Means to Be a Teacher mirrors a teacher's playful sense of irony and a deep appreciation of the old wisdom about feeling 'the impact of the great, occasional and accidental joy' which comes with teaching. Whether a teacher, principal, or administrator, readers will relate to the profound sense of what it means to be a teacher.

The stories, anecdotes, humor, and insights found in this book capture what it means to be a teacher. The book begins with common encounters that are the hallmark of the new-teacher experience, but continues into equally entertaining tales that come with years of working with students, parents, staff, faculty, and administrators. What it Means to Be a Teacher mirrors a teacher's playful sense of irony and a deep appreciation of the old wisdom about feeling "the impact of the great, occasional and accidental joy" which comes with teaching. Whether a teacher, principal, or administrator, readers will relate to the profound sense of what it means to be a teacher.