James Nehring is Principal Teacher of the Francis W. Parker Charter Essential School and Regional Teacher Center in Devens, Massachusetts. Founding teacher of The Bethlehem Lab School in Delmar, New York, he has also written The School We Have, The Schools We Want: An American Teacher on the Front Line; and Why Do We Gotta Do This Stuff, Mr. Nehring: Notes from a Teacher's Day in School.

• Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Afterword Appendix AAppendix BAppendix CAppendix D

"I believe the topic is the most important and significant topic today—how to go about rethinking our high schools. Rather than get caught up in theoretical discussions of this or that 'modernism,' Nehring talks about real kids, real parents, real teachers who want to make a difference. This is an important work in and of itself, and will find a place on the bookshelves of those who both study and carry out school reform." — George Wood, author of Schools That Work: America's Most Innovative Public Education Programs"Since the field has shifted from a concern over particular pedagogies, etc. to the question of 'the culture of the school' there's very little reading that describes this elusive shift. But also there are few books that help us build an internalized picture of what could be. Without that picture in our head it's hard to create change. Without stories we can't see how to get from here to there. If we haven't lived it—can't taste it—we're handicapped. An account like this is close to 'living it,' offers that 'taste' and hopefully arouses a hunger. It's wonderfully written; it was hard to put down. It's an unusual mixture of the practical (I kept making notes of things to do), the political, the intellectual, and the deeply personal." — Deborah Meier, author of The Power of Their Ideas

James Nehring is Principal Teacher of the Francis W. Parker Charter Essential School and Regional Teacher Center in Devens, Massachusetts. Founding teacher of The Bethlehem Lab School in Delmar, New York, he has also written The School We Have, The Schools We Want: An American Teacher on the Front Line; and Why Do We Gotta Do This Stuff, Mr. Nehring: Notes from a Teacher's Day in School.

• Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Afterword Appendix AAppendix BAppendix CAppendix D

"I believe the topic is the most important and significant topic today—how to go about rethinking our high schools. Rather than get caught up in theoretical discussions of this or that 'modernism,' Nehring talks about real kids, real parents, real teachers who want to make a difference. This is an important work in and of itself, and will find a place on the bookshelves of those who both study and carry out school reform." — George Wood, author of Schools That Work: America's Most Innovative Public Education Programs"Since the field has shifted from a concern over particular pedagogies, etc. to the question of 'the culture of the school' there's very little reading that describes this elusive shift. But also there are few books that help us build an internalized picture of what could be. Without that picture in our head it's hard to create change. Without stories we can't see how to get from here to there. If we haven't lived it—can't taste it—we're handicapped. An account like this is close to 'living it,' offers that 'taste' and hopefully arouses a hunger. It's wonderfully written; it was hard to put down. It's an unusual mixture of the practical (I kept making notes of things to do), the political, the intellectual, and the deeply personal." — Deborah Meier, author of The Power of Their Ideas

James Nehring is Principal Teacher of the Francis W. Parker Charter Essential School and Regional Teacher Center in Devens, Massachusetts. Founding teacher of The Bethlehem Lab School in Delmar, New York, he has also written The School We Have, The Schools We Want: An American Teacher on the Front Line; and Why Do We Gotta Do This Stuff, Mr. Nehring: Notes from a Teacher's Day in School.

• Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Afterword Appendix AAppendix BAppendix CAppendix D

"I believe the topic is the most important and significant topic today—how to go about rethinking our high schools. Rather than get caught up in theoretical discussions of this or that 'modernism,' Nehring talks about real kids, real parents, real teachers who want to make a difference. This is an important work in and of itself, and will find a place on the bookshelves of those who both study and carry out school reform." — George Wood, author of Schools That Work: America's Most Innovative Public Education Programs"Since the field has shifted from a concern over particular pedagogies, etc. to the question of 'the culture of the school' there's very little reading that describes this elusive shift. But also there are few books that help us build an internalized picture of what could be. Without that picture in our head it's hard to create change. Without stories we can't see how to get from here to there. If we haven't lived it—can't taste it—we're handicapped. An account like this is close to 'living it,' offers that 'taste' and hopefully arouses a hunger. It's wonderfully written; it was hard to put down. It's an unusual mixture of the practical (I kept making notes of things to do), the political, the intellectual, and the deeply personal." — Deborah Meier, author of The Power of Their Ideas