Exploring the Moral Heart of Teaching

In this new work, David Hansen extends and deepens a line of inquiry he set forth in his popular book, The Call to Teach. Hansen examines why the most important factor in the practice of teaching is the person who occupies the role of teacher. Drawing on classroom research, teachers’ testimony, and a rich, historical tradition of philosophical reflection, Hansen crafts an original, highly accessible account that takes us to the moral heart of teaching. His is a straightforward, compelling vision of why teaching is essential in human life and why its rewards are special and distinctive. In an era of considerable political attack on teachers and teaching, this book vindicates the importance and vitality of what teachers do.

David T. Hansen is Professor of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

“David Hansen is a dedicated teacher of teachers who writes clearly and passionately about the promise of teaching. What more could all who teach require? Read what he has to say and be refreshed.”
—Philip W. Jackson, David Lee Shillinglaw Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus, University of Chicago

“This is an admirable and lucid effort to present the character of the teaching life as one of moral and intellectual sensibility, a kind of grace marking a meaningful existence.”
—Ignacio L. Götz, Lawrence A. Stessin Distinguished Professor, New College of Hofstra University

"Exploring the Moral Heart of Teaching speaks to those who ask, What am I doing as a teacher?, yet cannot accept prevailing ideological answers. David Hansen shows the reader how to call upon the long tradition of teaching, from Confucius and Socrates to John Dewey, as a source of day-to-day sustenance and vital staying power."
—Ann Diller, Professor of Education, University of New Hampshire