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Blackboard: A Personal History of the Classroom
A captivating meditation on education from the author of The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop
In Blackboard , Lewis Buzbee looks back over a lifetime of experiences in schools and classrooms, from kindergarten to college and beyond. He offers fascinating histories of the key ideas informing educational practice over the centuries, which have shaped everything from class size to the layout of desks and chairs. Buzbee deftly weaves his own biography into this overview, approaching his subject as a student, a father, and a teacher. In so doing, he offers a moving personal testament to how he, "an average student" in danger of flunking out of high school, became the first in his family to graduate from college. He credits his success to the well-funded California public school system and bemoans the terrible price that state is paying as a result of funding being cut from today's budgets. For Buzbee, the blackboard is a precious window into the wider world, which we ignore at our peril. "Both anecdotal and eloquent, The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop is a tribute to those who crave the cozy confines of a bookshop, a place to be ‘alone among others' and savor a bountiful literary buffet." ― Booklist (starred review)
In Blackboard , Lewis Buzbee looks back over a lifetime of experiences in schools and classrooms, from kindergarten to college and beyond. He offers fascinating histories of the key ideas informing educational practice over the centuries, which have shaped everything from class size to the layout of desks and chairs. Buzbee deftly weaves his own biography into this overview, approaching his subject as a student, a father, and a teacher. In so doing, he offers a moving personal testament to how he, "an average student" in danger of flunking out of high school, became the first in his family to graduate from college. He credits his success to the well-funded California public school system and bemoans the terrible price that state is paying as a result of funding being cut from today's budgets. For Buzbee, the blackboard is a precious window into the wider world, which we ignore at our peril. "Both anecdotal and eloquent, The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop is a tribute to those who crave the cozy confines of a bookshop, a place to be ‘alone among others' and savor a bountiful literary buffet." ― Booklist (starred review)
224 pages, Hardcover
First published August 5, 2014
3 people are currently reading
406 people want to read
About the author
Lewis Buzbee
10 books217 followersMy new novel, Diver, will be in bookstores in March of 2025.
Lewis Buzbee is a fourth generation California native who began writing at the age of 15, after reading the first chapter of John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath. Since then he’s been a dishwasher, a bookseller, a publisher, a caterer, a bartender, and a teacher of writing. He and his wife, the poet Julie Bruck, live with their daughter Maddy in San Francisco, just half a block from Golden Gate Park. His books for adults include The Yellow Lighted Bookshop, Blackboard, Fliegelman’s Desire, After the Gold Rush, and First to Leave Before the Sun.
His first novel for middle grade readers, Steinbeck’s Ghost, was published in 2008 by Feiwel and Friends and was selected for these honors: a Smithsonian Notable Book, a Northern California Book Award Nominee, the Northern California Independent Booksellers’ Association Children’s Book of the Year, and the California Library Association’s John and Patricia Beatty Award.
A second middle-grade novel, The Haunting of Charles Dickens, was published in 2011 and won the Northern California Book Award, was nominated for an Edgar, and was selected as a Judy Lopez Memorial Honor Book.
A third middle-grade novel, Bridge of Time, was published in May 2012--time travel, San Francisco, Mark Twain.
Lewis Buzbee is a fourth generation California native who began writing at the age of 15, after reading the first chapter of John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath. Since then he’s been a dishwasher, a bookseller, a publisher, a caterer, a bartender, and a teacher of writing. He and his wife, the poet Julie Bruck, live with their daughter Maddy in San Francisco, just half a block from Golden Gate Park. His books for adults include The Yellow Lighted Bookshop, Blackboard, Fliegelman’s Desire, After the Gold Rush, and First to Leave Before the Sun.
His first novel for middle grade readers, Steinbeck’s Ghost, was published in 2008 by Feiwel and Friends and was selected for these honors: a Smithsonian Notable Book, a Northern California Book Award Nominee, the Northern California Independent Booksellers’ Association Children’s Book of the Year, and the California Library Association’s John and Patricia Beatty Award.
A second middle-grade novel, The Haunting of Charles Dickens, was published in 2011 and won the Northern California Book Award, was nominated for an Edgar, and was selected as a Judy Lopez Memorial Honor Book.
A third middle-grade novel, Bridge of Time, was published in May 2012--time travel, San Francisco, Mark Twain.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
January 10, 2025
This book is part memoir (and tour) of the authors own public school experiences and a call to improve public education generally. The book is very readable and many of his memories of school I would share in substance if not the same school. I like also how he emphasizes the need for education in all its forms.
November 19, 2017
Book received from Goodreads Giveaways. Read for #NonfictionNovember2017 Scholarship Category
This was a decent read. The author discusses how school was taught when he started in the early 60's I was actually shocked by how much things had not changed by the time I started school in the late 70's. I also liked how he contrasted it between how schools are taught in this day and age. I like it while I was reading it, but once I put it down I didn't really care if I picked it back up. It was interesting but it didn't always keep me wanting to read.
This was a decent read. The author discusses how school was taught when he started in the early 60's I was actually shocked by how much things had not changed by the time I started school in the late 70's. I also liked how he contrasted it between how schools are taught in this day and age. I like it while I was reading it, but once I put it down I didn't really care if I picked it back up. It was interesting but it didn't always keep me wanting to read.
April 27, 2014
I very much enjoyed Lewis Buzbee's personal history partly because so much of it reminded me of my own personal history. He went to school in middle class suburban San Jose beginning with kindergarten in 1965, and so did I. I didn't go to the same schools he went to, but we were only a few miles away, so I found his descriptions quite familiar.
If this were just a big blast from the past, there would be limited appeal for the book, even from those of us who were there. Instead, Buzbee uses his own school experiences as an average middle-class student in pre-Silicon Valley San Jose to compare the past he remembers with the current situation in American schools. Along the way, he also looks at the origins of some school traditions, such as reciting the pledge of allegiance, which until Franklin Roosevelt changed it during World War II, was recited with outstretched arm, palm down, uncomfortably like the salute being used in Germany at the time.
As a beneficiary of the excellent public school system of the 1960s and 1970s, Buzbee (and I) recognize how lucky we were to have safe schools, competent teachers, ample supplies, and to be able to take it all for granted. Now the situation is different, and he and his wife never seriously considered sending their daughter to public school, which in the same state that was top in the nation back then, is now right at the bottom. He blames the beginning of the downfall with Proposition 13, which in 1978 severely reduced property taxes in for Californians.
Do the people who vote against school bonds imagine that they will be unaffected by poor schools in their neighborhoods? Even if their own children go to private schools, they will still have to live with the consequences of a community that can't afford to educate everyone well.
Even though I have veered off on a bit of a rant here, rest assured, Buzbee's book is rant-free. He suggests some solutions to the problem, but mostly he reminds us of what we had and plants the idea that it might be possible once again.
If this were just a big blast from the past, there would be limited appeal for the book, even from those of us who were there. Instead, Buzbee uses his own school experiences as an average middle-class student in pre-Silicon Valley San Jose to compare the past he remembers with the current situation in American schools. Along the way, he also looks at the origins of some school traditions, such as reciting the pledge of allegiance, which until Franklin Roosevelt changed it during World War II, was recited with outstretched arm, palm down, uncomfortably like the salute being used in Germany at the time.
As a beneficiary of the excellent public school system of the 1960s and 1970s, Buzbee (and I) recognize how lucky we were to have safe schools, competent teachers, ample supplies, and to be able to take it all for granted. Now the situation is different, and he and his wife never seriously considered sending their daughter to public school, which in the same state that was top in the nation back then, is now right at the bottom. He blames the beginning of the downfall with Proposition 13, which in 1978 severely reduced property taxes in for Californians.
Do the people who vote against school bonds imagine that they will be unaffected by poor schools in their neighborhoods? Even if their own children go to private schools, they will still have to live with the consequences of a community that can't afford to educate everyone well.
Even though I have veered off on a bit of a rant here, rest assured, Buzbee's book is rant-free. He suggests some solutions to the problem, but mostly he reminds us of what we had and plants the idea that it might be possible once again.
March 10, 2024
Lewis Busbee's memoir, initiated by his daughter's desire to see his old school, becomes an intimate trip down memory lane in an age before Proposition 13 took its toll on the classrooms of California. He describes in solid detail the delights of a lively and interesting classroom to a curious and growing mind, and he gives ample and well deserved praise to the teachers and mentors who helped him through joy and through crisis. We travel with him through grade school, the dreadful middle years, on to high school, higher education, and into the development of himself as a writer. His public school education had a profound effect on him and he knows it. I went to school around the same time that he did, on the other coast, and so used his memories as I read them to enhance my own. This turned out to be a good experience for me but the book is not going to work for everyone. You sometimes wonder why people write memoirs of this sort. Well as someone who respects the whole learning process and has benefitted from it, I think it is a success.
February 13, 2018
Creative writing that is autobiography posing as general truths is not my cup of tea. Despite being of that genre, this book was passably interesting as an audio book for background listening. However, the author's personal experience with public schools was not nearly enough to convince me of their glorious, magical powers upon the young. And it certainly was not enough to persuade me toward his thesis, which is that we need heavier taxation to pump more money into our public schools. His own experience contradicts this thesis at many points, such as when he remarks on the amount of learning that took place in sparsely-supplied classrooms or the dedication of teachers who loved their vocation rather than finding motivation in money. As a work of fiction, it is sentimentally appealing but ultimately forgettable. As a rhetorical argument, it is markedly anemic.
January 29, 2022
(3.5 stars) As his daughter is on the cusp of going to a new school for high school, the author begins to revisit his own education in California. He begins to revisit his schools, starting with elementary school and relates his experiences. The author also discusses the history of education in general and in California in particular. He speaks to how teachers were key to helping him through a very difficult time in his life and how they helped to keep him in school and moving forward. The author discusses the devastating effect the state property tax bill had on education funding and the issues of being dependent on local fundraising such as the ubiquitous bake sale.
July 16, 2025
I enjoyed the memories and experiences shared by the author and appreciate the detailed historical research provided on the educational system in CA. I grew up in the same area about the same time as Lewis and actually went to the same high school. Well written and personable. Enjoyed the book very much.
March 5, 2025
This memoir takes you through Buzbee’s memories of school. The best parts are the facts that are covered that tie to each chapter’s memory.
October 18, 2016
Quite enjoyable and light.
February 22, 2025
I enjoyed this. The mix of memoir and educational history worked really well. A perfect weekend read.
September 2, 2014
This book is a warm meditation on what it means to go to school, to get an education, and to give one. It's clear that the author actually think these things are synonymous. His description of how California went from a ranking in U.S. of number two when I as in school to number 49 today is a replay of the heartbreak I witnessed as the years went by and the lunatics on the right systematically destroyed most of what made California great in our lifetimes. I remember a high school officer telling us that “these people got theirs, and don’t want to spend their money giving others the same benefits that they themselves enjoyed to get where they are”. I had no idea how right he was. Proposition 13 and the subsequent Reagan “tax revolution” very quickly set up the seeds of the destruction of the opportunity machine that California had created for us all, including immigrants Ronald Reagan from Illinois and Howard Jarvis from Utah (the Proposition 13 proponent).
Buzbee, a native Californian from the Santa Clara (Silicon) Valley, walks us through the pedagogic structure, the sociology, and physical components of pre-school, Kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, high school, junior college, and the university. Having been in at least one of each of these in his lifetime, he uses a physical re-visitation regime to conjure his own memories of what going to school was like. I was startled and pleased to hear that, like my daughter, his daughter went to French American International School, which he spends a lot of time discussing in detail. This was great; he nailed the description of the school, and its benefits. The greatness of that school is unquestionable. However, it costs us about $25,000 a year, which means we had to make $35,000 in salary just to pay for it. Ask me if I’d have preferred to pay higher taxes and have great schools for everyone to be able to go to, including my kid.
To paraphrase Buzbee paraphrasing Bush the father – “Read my lips – raise my taxes”, if the intent is to use them to cut class sizes in half, equip schools with enough materials so that teachers don’t have to buy them on their own, and pay teachers a six-figure salary so that they quit to get jobs selling cell phones to make a better living. Let’s do this soon, so that our children’s educational fate isn’t dependent on bake sales.
Buzbee and I are both California natives, both San Franciscans, and have had similar education trajectories through the same kinds of school, right through to my time after I entered the workforce studying Design and Typography at night at U.C. Berkeley Extension. So my empathy for what he wrote here is probably higher than usual. But I think and hope that his observations and prognosis are universal.
I loved this book because it made me realize in the most personal way possible that I was extremely fortunate to be raised in California and to receive the education I enjoyed at that time in recent history.
Five stars; this is a great book.
Buzbee, a native Californian from the Santa Clara (Silicon) Valley, walks us through the pedagogic structure, the sociology, and physical components of pre-school, Kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, high school, junior college, and the university. Having been in at least one of each of these in his lifetime, he uses a physical re-visitation regime to conjure his own memories of what going to school was like. I was startled and pleased to hear that, like my daughter, his daughter went to French American International School, which he spends a lot of time discussing in detail. This was great; he nailed the description of the school, and its benefits. The greatness of that school is unquestionable. However, it costs us about $25,000 a year, which means we had to make $35,000 in salary just to pay for it. Ask me if I’d have preferred to pay higher taxes and have great schools for everyone to be able to go to, including my kid.
To paraphrase Buzbee paraphrasing Bush the father – “Read my lips – raise my taxes”, if the intent is to use them to cut class sizes in half, equip schools with enough materials so that teachers don’t have to buy them on their own, and pay teachers a six-figure salary so that they quit to get jobs selling cell phones to make a better living. Let’s do this soon, so that our children’s educational fate isn’t dependent on bake sales.
Buzbee and I are both California natives, both San Franciscans, and have had similar education trajectories through the same kinds of school, right through to my time after I entered the workforce studying Design and Typography at night at U.C. Berkeley Extension. So my empathy for what he wrote here is probably higher than usual. But I think and hope that his observations and prognosis are universal.
I loved this book because it made me realize in the most personal way possible that I was extremely fortunate to be raised in California and to receive the education I enjoyed at that time in recent history.
Five stars; this is a great book.
March 11, 2015
This is my third Buzbee novel. Buzbee both educates you on the history, structure and influences of the classroom in Blackboard, while he shares insights and first-hand experiences.
You guys, this is a five star novel. I rarely feel compelled to write reviews (I've never felt I was any good at writing reviews so I usually skip them and put my stars in), but this novel deserves a spotlight on the Goodreads Soapbox. So, pardon me for a few minutes, to take the time to explain why I'm stepping out of my comfort zone to share my experience in reading Blackboard, with you.
Buzbee has the innate ability to draw a line from his thoughts to my own, and he does this fluidly.
Blackboard guides you into the past to re-encounter the hidden memories of your school days. It effortlessly reaches into your mind and pulls out the contents of a world where you once lived; a world that nurtured a sense of self and wonder.
As with the first two Buzbee novels I read, I am left with a warm feeling in my stomach, as if I just drank a sweet mug of hot cocoa that whisked me up, into a cozy, familiar sanctuary. The sincerity and honesty that oozes from Blackboard will have you asking yourself why you haven't read more by this author (and you really should-I just ordered another book he's written). It may be contrived to say, but he has a way with words, and it's a beautiful, subtle, intelligent, enigmatic way (too much? Well, it's the truth). You follow Buzbee as he winds you through his personal history and education. As you hop in, it leads you into your own past to re-live the sweet moments of your childhood education. Blackboard reminds us how important that time in the classroom is for children, in coaxing us to remember how it has impacted and molded our own lives. I hope you have the pleasure of reading this gem and I hope it takes you back to uncover what shaped you and inspired you, as it did for me. Old memories resurfaced as I began to slide back into the past, all the tidbits of a time long forgotten sprung out of the caverns of my mind and into life. Lewis Buzbee is a talented writer and an even more exceptional human being. The depth in his writing serves as a small window into the kind heart and devotion that one Author has towards his Readers. You can feel the purpose in this novel; you can feel the respect. Buzbee puts a lot of trust in readers, and in doing so, the result is a brilliantly written novel that moves the heart and opens the once rusted, closed shutters of hope-filled dreams, and sweet memories.
You guys, this is a five star novel. I rarely feel compelled to write reviews (I've never felt I was any good at writing reviews so I usually skip them and put my stars in), but this novel deserves a spotlight on the Goodreads Soapbox. So, pardon me for a few minutes, to take the time to explain why I'm stepping out of my comfort zone to share my experience in reading Blackboard, with you.
Buzbee has the innate ability to draw a line from his thoughts to my own, and he does this fluidly.
Blackboard guides you into the past to re-encounter the hidden memories of your school days. It effortlessly reaches into your mind and pulls out the contents of a world where you once lived; a world that nurtured a sense of self and wonder.
As with the first two Buzbee novels I read, I am left with a warm feeling in my stomach, as if I just drank a sweet mug of hot cocoa that whisked me up, into a cozy, familiar sanctuary. The sincerity and honesty that oozes from Blackboard will have you asking yourself why you haven't read more by this author (and you really should-I just ordered another book he's written). It may be contrived to say, but he has a way with words, and it's a beautiful, subtle, intelligent, enigmatic way (too much? Well, it's the truth). You follow Buzbee as he winds you through his personal history and education. As you hop in, it leads you into your own past to re-live the sweet moments of your childhood education. Blackboard reminds us how important that time in the classroom is for children, in coaxing us to remember how it has impacted and molded our own lives. I hope you have the pleasure of reading this gem and I hope it takes you back to uncover what shaped you and inspired you, as it did for me. Old memories resurfaced as I began to slide back into the past, all the tidbits of a time long forgotten sprung out of the caverns of my mind and into life. Lewis Buzbee is a talented writer and an even more exceptional human being. The depth in his writing serves as a small window into the kind heart and devotion that one Author has towards his Readers. You can feel the purpose in this novel; you can feel the respect. Buzbee puts a lot of trust in readers, and in doing so, the result is a brilliantly written novel that moves the heart and opens the once rusted, closed shutters of hope-filled dreams, and sweet memories.
June 6, 2015
Vs. The teaching brain and Vs. Louise Ammended, book on education and memoir on flashy issue respectively, neither of which is greatly written. Blackboard isn't, either, written in a compelling style, or showing mastery of structure, but the topic is important, the view, solid, and I gather his ideas are correct. Thus, three stars. That is, good if you care about education. If don't, don't read (at all, maybe).
"Allow me to digress again, schoolboyishly, aping Jonathan Swift. Here is my Immodest Proposal to save our schools:
-Without qualification, and immediately, halve the student population of every classroom, from forty to twenty, or from thirty-two to sixteen, it doesn’t matter.
-Across the board, and immediately, double the salary of every public school teacher K–12. Except in the case of middle school teachers, grades six to eight: triple their salaries.
-Use the current teaching pool to mentor the new crop of teachers that my plan requires. Let us also offer experienced teachers yearlong sabbaticals every five years, for professional development and to forestall burnout.
-Build the required classrooms, and make all classrooms, new and existing, adhere to these specifications: They must be cool in the summer, warm in the winter; they must be overfilled with “educational materials,” including art and music and science supplies; they must be surrounded by vast playing fields. Spend far too much tax money on physical improvements.
-Ensure that each student is fed both breakfast and lunch every single school day.
-Ensure plenty of time for each student to stare out the window.
-Abolish bake sales.
Let me return to point 1, the keystone of my plan. If you think the problems in our schools—unruly and violent behavior, astonishing dropout rates, bullying, academic failure, you name it—are not related to class size, you have not been in a classroom lately. The difference between teaching a class of thirty-six students and a class of eighteen students is profound. A teacher’s job is not to corral students. A teacher needs to be able to see her students, know them, talk to them, teach them how to think: it is why we have school in the first place. If the classrooms of my youth had been twice as crowded, I might never have been able to find the teachers I did, those mentors, those guides, who ultimately saved me."
"Allow me to digress again, schoolboyishly, aping Jonathan Swift. Here is my Immodest Proposal to save our schools:
-Without qualification, and immediately, halve the student population of every classroom, from forty to twenty, or from thirty-two to sixteen, it doesn’t matter.
-Across the board, and immediately, double the salary of every public school teacher K–12. Except in the case of middle school teachers, grades six to eight: triple their salaries.
-Use the current teaching pool to mentor the new crop of teachers that my plan requires. Let us also offer experienced teachers yearlong sabbaticals every five years, for professional development and to forestall burnout.
-Build the required classrooms, and make all classrooms, new and existing, adhere to these specifications: They must be cool in the summer, warm in the winter; they must be overfilled with “educational materials,” including art and music and science supplies; they must be surrounded by vast playing fields. Spend far too much tax money on physical improvements.
-Ensure that each student is fed both breakfast and lunch every single school day.
-Ensure plenty of time for each student to stare out the window.
-Abolish bake sales.
Let me return to point 1, the keystone of my plan. If you think the problems in our schools—unruly and violent behavior, astonishing dropout rates, bullying, academic failure, you name it—are not related to class size, you have not been in a classroom lately. The difference between teaching a class of thirty-six students and a class of eighteen students is profound. A teacher’s job is not to corral students. A teacher needs to be able to see her students, know them, talk to them, teach them how to think: it is why we have school in the first place. If the classrooms of my youth had been twice as crowded, I might never have been able to find the teachers I did, those mentors, those guides, who ultimately saved me."
January 22, 2015
This book is both a walk down the educational memory lane of the author and a reflection on the past and present state of public education in the U.S. The first half is about the author's elementary school experience. It was okay. The second half was far more interesting, as it became more personal. As a teacher, I appreciated his total enthusiasm for the importance of quality, free, public education, and particularly his honoring of the special relationship between teachers and students, especially when they morph into a mentor-mentee relationship. He literally felt school, and all, and especially some, of his teachers, literally saved his life, when he could have gone down a very bad path. It gave me new respect for the power for good educators can have. Being in the trenches, we can often fail to realize that we do make a difference, and any particular positive interaction/relationship might be having way more positive effect than we will ever know. It is humbling. He also makes the point that students are important to teachers. When a student values the teacher, it makes the teacher feel his effort and work are meaningful. It is a two-way relationship, as all good relationships are. Only 3 stars because the first half was not very compelling, and even though the second half was good and made those few excellent points, it did not sweep me away with either language or story.
October 21, 2015
Interesting for teachers and educators, not for me I don't quite remember what drove me to pick up this book, but it sounded interesting. The author takes us through a journey of his experiences in the classroom as both a student and teacher. We read about his teachers, his classmates, the rooms themselves, what he learned, etc. Then we read about his own experiences as a teacher.
I have to say, I don't get the great reviews. I know it's what it says on the cover but wow his writing is tedious. Perhaps it's because I'm not extremely familiar with him I found I could not relate, did not care too much for his experiences and wasn't particularly interested in his suggestions. I read though them, understand where he's coming from and agree with most of them, but not having read the previous parts of the book meant this section had little to no impact on me.
It could be that this isn't a great book for me. I could see this being of interest to educators, school administrators, people who care about the quality of our schools, etc. But his book wasn't really one that I found very readable. It's a short book but it felt long. Library borrow.
I have to say, I don't get the great reviews. I know it's what it says on the cover but wow his writing is tedious. Perhaps it's because I'm not extremely familiar with him I found I could not relate, did not care too much for his experiences and wasn't particularly interested in his suggestions. I read though them, understand where he's coming from and agree with most of them, but not having read the previous parts of the book meant this section had little to no impact on me.
It could be that this isn't a great book for me. I could see this being of interest to educators, school administrators, people who care about the quality of our schools, etc. But his book wasn't really one that I found very readable. It's a short book but it felt long. Library borrow.
July 5, 2015
This is an enjoyable, meandering book where the chapters are framed by the author's own educational experience. I particularly enjoyed the history and commentary on California's system, seeing that I didn't grow up in CA or in Buzbee's era. I also appreciated the author's eloquence - many of the metaphors about education and classrooms aren't mind-blowingly original, but they are carefully crafted and artfully done, and I enjoyed those moments of elevated tone. While I didn't learn a lot of new information and certainly didn't need convincing about the importance of a genuine, well-funded education, this was a book that I read slowly, in small pieces, and I enjoyed the pace and voice and purpose of it.
Read
March 16, 2015I got this book as part of the Goodreads First Reads program, and so had very little pre-conceived notions, other than this was a book about education, a favourite subject area of mine. I really enjoyed the beginning sections about elementary education, and the last few sections on higher education and the authors thoughts on improving education. I really loved how the author weaved his personal story into some history of education. I felt like I both learned something about the author and about the history of education by the time I closed the last page.
In the spirit of the book, I will be signing up for a class to continue my own education soon, and I will most definitely be passing this book along to others who enjoy nonfiction and education.
In the spirit of the book, I will be signing up for a class to continue my own education soon, and I will most definitely be passing this book along to others who enjoy nonfiction and education.
October 19, 2014
Most of us who have been teaching for some time need periodic reminders of the important work we’re doing in the classroom. It’s easy to become insensitive in our relations with our students and let automatic pilot take over. Also, since our salaries usually don’t reflect the value of what we do, the central role we have in students’ lives, it’s easy to stagnate. Being one of those teachers, it was uplifting to read Blackboard: A personal history of the classroom by Lewis Buzbee. A moving and thoughtful meditation on learning, the book underscores our value as teachers and the lasting impact we have on our students.
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lilyionamackenzie.wordpress.com
January 4, 2016
Despite its length, this book is a lot of things! I found it to be nostalgic (despite having attended school myself in a different era than the author), but also a great commentary on the current state of education and the politics that surround it. I thought it was odd how the author brought it together as a sort of "call to arms" at the end, though. Not that I disagree with the sentiment but it felt wrong for this book. It is why I read Teachers Have it Easy and, frankly, didn't feel the call to arms there was strong enough. So it felt a bit out of place but otherwise I really loved reading this book.
November 30, 2014
A lovely, thoughtful memoir of one person's experience moving through the public school system in California from kindergarten to graduate school. Buzbee' s journey to his past was instigated by his young daughter's very different educational experience a generation later. As many memoirists, he occasionally teeters on the edge of nostalgic sentimentality; to his credit he never topples. His final chapter is a clear-eyed set of recommendations summarizing what our schools need to successfully save the next generation.
August 13, 2014
This book caused me to think hard about my public school education. In learning about the golden age of California's education system, I found myself, for the first time, upset about getting the short end of the hickory stick. I wrote a little about that here: http://huckleberrysam.blogspot.com/20...
Buzbee does a nice job of connecting the dots, too. Education is not a parent-of-school age-children issue, it's a societal one.
Buzbee does a nice job of connecting the dots, too. Education is not a parent-of-school age-children issue, it's a societal one.
October 22, 2016
Loved this thoughtful, well-written personal account of one man's journey through the public school system in California in the 1960s. Buzbee's appreciation for the many teachers who took the time to educate, inspire, and mentor him shines through each and every one of his sentences. What a shame that not all Americans have his experience, especially nowadays--"raise my taxes," Buzbee writes, so more students of today can have a rich educational experience like his.
Excellent!
Excellent!
November 4, 2015
Lewis Buzbee, a writer and a teacher, has written sort of a history of education in America, based mostly on his own experiences in his own schooling from elementary through college and beyond. It was interesting to read but I really didn’t learn much from it, and I finished it feeling that I really wanted more.
December 30, 2014
Lewis Buzbee goes on a trip down nostalgia road of all of his school experiences since elementary school. It takes the reader back to a time when the American educational institutions were actually effective. Interesting read.
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September 17, 2014Sweetly nostalgic. What a good time of year to release such a book.
November 16, 2014
Elegant, heartfelt, nostalgic and intelligent.
July 12, 2016
It's an interesting blend of memoir and history of education.
January 4, 2015
LOVED this book. If you are feeling nostalgic about or grateful for education, you'll love it too!
July 3, 2015
Voice filled and fueled memoir of classroom, schools and education, with a dose of educational history and some family musings.
January 2, 2016
Eh. Not exactly what I was expecting. A mash-up of the author's education and his development as a writer. Pick one. Focus.
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