“We can only hope that educators will read the new edition of Spectacular Things Happen Along the Way and be inspired to make similar choices themselves.”
—From the Foreword by Pedro Noguera, distinguished professor of education, UCLA
“In this eagerly awaited second edition, Schultz has reiterated what it means to be a courageous and caring teacher, one who plants seeds, encourages deep thinking, and nurtures students’ creativity and intelligence….When that happens, spectacular things do happen along the way.”
—From the Afterword by Sonia Nieto, professor emerita, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
“Still a compelling, insightful read that continues to remind us how much a better world depends on our ability to foster learning and teaching experiences that recognize, nurture, and honor young people's capacity to think deeply, to be agentive, and to hold us all accountable for improving our world.”
—Denise Taliaferro Baszile, vice president, American Educational Research Association-Division B–Curriculum Studies
"Blending humility with razor-sharp analysis, Brian Schultz invites us into a classroom where students ask, imagine, research, collaborate, and act to problem solve, all in the service of learning and of justice for themselves and their communities. This second edition highlights the ongoing dismantling of urban public schools in the name of ‘reform,’ even while fueling our sense of possibility and hope."
—Kevin Kumashiro, author of Bad Teacher! How Blaming Teachers Distorts the Bigger Picture
Praise for the First Edition!
“This project acknowledged and defied the obstacles that face urban classrooms, and the work of Schultz and his students ultimately stands as a model of pedagogical excellence.”
—Schools: Studies in Education
"A must-read for current and future teachers who wish to engage their students in democratic practice. Spectacular Things Happen Along the Way is also an excellent anchor for learning about and discussing methods of preparing students to become active citizens who engage in political, civic, and economic realms of society.”
—Journal of Educational Controversy
“Schultz has accomplished an extremely important goal in his work as a classroom teacher with these youth, and now as a scholar promoting this story. It is one that should be heard loud and clear by future teachers.”
—Educational Studies
“Spectacular Things Happen Along the Way will challenge and encourage educators to begin their own journey of implementing democratic teaching into their classrooms, one step at a time.”
—International Journal of Multicultural Education
“This is a marvelous and important book.”
—Jonathan Kozol, author of Savage Inequalities
“An amazing tale of incredible fifth-grade citizen activists that reveals what education in America's inner cities could and should be.”
—Jeannie Oakes, Presidential Professor in Educational Equity, UCLA
“Anyone who wants to make a difference in urban education needs to read this book.”
—Michael W. Apple, professor, University of Wisconsin–Madison
“Clearly counters the colonizing policy that says only the privileged can be educated through freedom to pursue personal interests and collective commitments.”
—William H. Schubert, professor emeritus, University of Illinois at Chicago
