Teaching in America: The Slow Revolution

This unusual book began at the authors' dinner tables, when they noticed that their spouses--one an elementary school teacher, one a university professor--were treated quite differently even though their work was ""essentially the same."" This realization prompted months of research into the history of schoolteachers and university professors. Grant and Murray refer to the crusade of college professors in the late 19th century as the ""first revolution""--in which male professors fought a male administrative regime for higher pay and control over curriculum and tenure. A second revolution, they argue, is occurring now among schoolteachers, but slowly. It ""pits mostly female workers, who have often been demeaned as high-paid baby-sitters, against entrenched male leaders."" The book chronicles the significant progress of this slow revolution, focusing on three landmark case studies. Readers concerned with the condition of public schools and the status of schoolteachers will find that Grant and Murray not only provide them with solid ammunition for debate but also give them reason to keep up their spirits. (Mar.) FYI: Teaching in America won the publisher's annual prize awarded to an outstanding book about education and society.