Jonathan Kozol: Education in America (1 of 6)

http://www.mediaed.org

Jonathan Kozol is a non-fiction writer, educator, and activist, best known for his books on public education in the United States. Kozol graduated from Noble and Greenough School in 1954, and Harvard University summa cum laude in 1958 with a degree in English Literature. He was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to Magdalen College, Oxford. He did not, however, complete his Rhodes, deciding instead to go to Paris to write a novel. He spent four years there writing his only published work of fiction, The Fume of Poppies, and getting to know the likes of William Styron. It was upon his return that he began to tutor children in Roxbury, MA, and soon became a teacher in the Boston Public Schools. He was fired for teaching a Langston Hughes poem, as described in Death at an Early Age, and then became deeply involved in the civil rights movement. After being fired from BPS he was offered a job to teach for Newton Public Schools, the school district that he had attended as a child, and taught there for several years before becoming more deeply involved in social justice work and dedicating more time to writing.

Kozol has since held two Guggenheim Fellowships, has twice been a fellow of the Rockefeller Foundation, and has also received fellowships from the Field and Ford Foundations.

Kozol also has worked in the field of social psychology. Kozol is currently on the Editorial Board of Greater Good Magazine, published by the Greater Good Science Center of the University of California, Berkeley. Kozol's contributions include the interpretation of scientific research into the roots of compassion, altruism, and peaceful human relationships.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• MEF
• Jonathan
• Kozol
• racism
• race
• education
• kids
• children
• segregation

[ashleydew01]

Where was this speech delivered?

[hotbooty11]

Such a respect for a man to step outside of his comfort zone and use his god given brains......Bravo Mr Kozol!

[jillkcannon]

@amourdutigre my personal email is jillcannon1@yahoo.com

If you are a person who values intelligent discourse rather than meaningless ranting email me and we can express our views back and forth to one another. Perhaps we can learn from each other.

[REASONINFUSION]

@amourdutigre I also find it funny that when something is ethical you fools call it "Marxist"! I'm sure Karl would be proud. I also doubt if you have ever even read Das Kapital or for that matter, "The Wealth of nations". You will have to be more than white in a forum that I am in. Now you will have to prove your intelligence and not be given a free ride due to the myth your group spent centuries creating. Oh And on the "drug" thing, no black dealer gets rich without white junkies!

[REASONINFUSION]

@amourdutigre There you go again!!! All that "pull yourself up by your boot strap" bullshit! White people are the least likely to ever have to pull themselves up by the boot straps since you have from the start dedicated most of your time protecting your unearned advantage over people you stole from, raped, lynched, burned and other wise lied to. Not one white person in america has ever known what it is like to earn anything on merit.

[REASONINFUSION]

@bizakis9 Yes, I am a black man who many would call radical and it is "comrades" like Mr. Kozol that moves black intellectuals from cultural nationalism. I too thank him, Tim Wise, Robert Jenson, Peggy Mcintosh and others like them. They are the best of america and exist in spite of it. Good comment.

[bizakis9]

Jonathan Kozol is a fantastic human being.. All the hate in some of these comments can not change that. Thank you Johnathan Kozol for all your work and love over all these years.

[tylerheck1]

@amourdutigre

Well my friend, let me just say that you've convinced me. I've started watching FOX News, and do those guys know their stuff. What an ass I must have been for thinking it would be nice to help the poor, those bastards deserve their fate for wasting the equal opportunity America gave them. If the poor can't afford their unalienable rights, well they should have saved more money. Rights are for winners, and these people are subhuman at best.

[mylokaf]

@xjtbarnesx Read Mr. @amourdutigre from other areas and you can see what he is about! Lets not engage with folks like him......I belive in personal responsibility....but we need to address the education crisis in America.......lets stick to folks who want to talk without making those kind of statements.....dont waste your time with folks like that! GOD BLESS!!!

[mylokaf]

@amourdutigre Ah i see know the truth comes out.......I saw your Kenyan comment about the president....just as I fugured......LOL Take care Im not wasting anymore enery on you!!