The Great Expectations School is an honest account of what teachers — especially newer teachers — face every day. Dan’s story is a valuable one to share and analyze, because it is a story that is constantly replayed in various forms in classrooms all across America. Though new teachers like Dan bring optimism and the best of intentions to their work, they are also, alas, too often woefully unprepared for the experiences yet to come. – Randi Weingarten : President, American Federation of Teachers
Issues with the public school system have been a hot issue lately in the news. You can Google “public school system” and find articles that date from years to just a few hours ago regarding issues between parents, teachers, the system and even the children. There are so many shifts happening in the discourse and all too often I wonder if the sides of the issue, in their passionate debate, realize the other’s peculiar positions. As I read Dan Browns, The Great Expectations School, I could grasp this intensity of a teachers perspective and through his disappointments, his elation, his humility and great humor — empathize, not only with him, but with all the bright exuberant teachers that go out into the system filled with promise only to be quickly deflated. This book is a triumphant story of one, out of millions of teachers that love our children so incredibly and the promise in them holding them steadfast against the odds. It is remarkable.
The Great Expectations School is the account of the first year of Dan Brown’s teaching career at P.S. 85, a public school in the Bronx. Out of 436 districts in fifty states, P.S. 85 ranked 436th in 2000, and Dan Brown was teaching the ‘problem’ children in the lowest ranked school in the U.S. Often times throughout the book I would forget that these children were 4th graders and have to recall in my mind that they’re only between 9 and 10 years old. Once this is put in perspective, with the occurrences in the story, you are either dumbfounded, aghast or filled with some great pity for the children. Dan Brown walks you through the halls of P.S. 85, into his room where you sit on anxious tip-toes waiting to see what will ultimately happen next and wondering all the while how his love for teaching survived it all.
“Even if I had known what I was doing when I punched the chalkboard, I still wouldn’t have expected my fist to crash through it. Lakiya Ray’s face froze in a crazed openmouthed grin, but the rest of the class looked appropriately terrified. My eyes bulged, and I brushed sweat from my temple… I righted Tashaun’s upended desk and sat on it, my cheeks tingling. ‘None of you deserve to experience fourth grade like this. Class is dismissed.'”
As a parent of a middle-school child and a toddler who will (all too soon) find his way into school, this story gave me a sincere amount of hope for whatever change awaits our public schools in the years to come. It offered me a chance to see that even though there are enormous challenges (for both parents and teachers) in the public school system, that beneath it lies the good natured hearts of those that genuinely believe in our children and their futures.
When I think about the people doing the hard work in classrooms, my spirits lift. In my journey across the education landscape since the crazy NYC Teaching Fellows placement fair in 2003, I’ve taught alongside educators in elementary, middle, and high schools, in public, private, and charter schools, in New York City and Washington D.C. Overwhelmingly, they are talented and caring individuals. Since my P.S. 85 initiation I’ve worked with excellent school leaders who toil relentlessly, often thanklessly, to develop their staff and to educate their students. Kind, smart administrators can pump vitality through a school community like a beating heart. Parents I’ve met want fiercely for their children to succeed. And most of all, students — young, curious, vulnerable, hilarious, heartbreaking, sensitive, posturing, growing people — provide the fire that fuels all of the hard work.
The Great Expectations School puts a light on the issues surrounding public school systems, it encompasses you in a teachers compassion for our growing generations and it leaves you with hope. It is a must read and a story you will never forget.
Connect:
You can connect with Dan Brown at @DanBrownTeacher on Twitter and also find a Q&A, other Essays and Articles about the school system and Events at DanBrownOnline.
Purchase:
You can purchase The Great Expectations School – A Rookie Year in the Blackboard Jungle by Dan Brown for $10.06 on Amazon.
