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Soar: How Boys Learn, Succeed, and Develop Character
A Simon & Schuster eBook. Simon & Schuster has a great book for every reader.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published September 9, 2014
12 people are currently reading
128 people want to read
About the author
David Banks
114 books9 followersDavid Banks (born 24 September 1951) is a stage and television actor and occasional writer and producer. He is best known to Doctor Who fans for his portrayal of the Cyber-Leader in Earthshock, The Five Doctors, Attack of the Cybermen, and Silver Nemesis. Banks also played Karl in the stage production Doctor Who: The Ultimate Adventure. As Jon Pertwee's understudy in the production, he played the Doctor for two performances when Pertwee fell ill.
He also wrote Iceberg, a novel in the Virgin New Adventures which featured the Cybermen. He wrote the part non-fiction, part speculative Doctor Who: Cybermen, the in-universe portions of which were adapted for audio (with Banks' narration) as The ArcHive Tapes.
Banks also produced a series of audiocassette interviews with Doctor Who actors including The Ultimate Interview (with Colin Baker), Pertwee in Person (with Jon Pertwee), and Who's the Real McCoy? with Sylvester McCoy.
He also wrote Iceberg, a novel in the Virgin New Adventures which featured the Cybermen. He wrote the part non-fiction, part speculative Doctor Who: Cybermen, the in-universe portions of which were adapted for audio (with Banks' narration) as The ArcHive Tapes.
Banks also produced a series of audiocassette interviews with Doctor Who actors including The Ultimate Interview (with Colin Baker), Pertwee in Person (with Jon Pertwee), and Who's the Real McCoy? with Sylvester McCoy.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
March 27, 2017
As Banks points out, there is a gender problem in schools and boys are in trouble. This book is about the most affected-- black boys, but Banks does acknowledge all boys are disadvantaged in the current system. I would have loved him to get into other reasons why: learning styles, learning preferences, types of intelligence, because there are so many complicated cause and effects. But the author provides real solutions and recommendations for teachers and school leaders.
May 17, 2018
Seemed like it was geared specifically toward at-risk youth and not boys in general.
November 5, 2014
In schools all across the US, boys are twice as likely to be held back and five times as likely to be expelled compared to girls. Boys have 70 to 80 percent of behavioral problems and consistently score lower on tests than girls. This reality is even more pronounced in African-American and Hispanic communities, and schools in bad neighborhoods. Just over 50% percent of black and hispanic students graduate high school, and more than 30% of those high school dropouts serve time behind bars. How can we expect great things in our country’s future when half of our population is misunderstood by their teachers, dropping out of high school, and being coerced into gangs and illegal activity?
David Banks has solved this problem, at least for the boys who attend his all-boys schools known as the Eagle Academies. The first of the Eagle Academies for Young Men opened in New York City, and Banks writes his new book, Soar: How Boys Learn, Succeed, and Develop Character, to explain how these schools are so influential and successful. Eagle Academies specialize for boys with troubled home lives, in neighborhoods where many of the public schools are labeled “drop-out factories” by Dr. Robert Balfanz in the documentary Waiting for Superman. Banks articulates his message concisely: boys in our country are in need of a new method of education, or the future of our young men will continue to worsen. In general, he points to two main solutions in male education. First, schools must use boys’ energy and competitiveness to help them learn passionately, instead of constantly punishing all those who don’t just sit quietly in their seats throughout the day. Second, boys must have a community around them to guide them through their education, and to lead them away from troubles in their lives outside of school. Banks writes, “If it takes a village to raise a child, then our method is not just a guide to raising that child, but a system of mutual reinforcement for the hard-working villagers.” With regular-length school days, a community is built from houses the school assembles, in which students eat and participate in extra-curricular activities together. Especially for those in low-income areas, boys need adults to look out for their safety and make sure education is a priority in their lives, but Banks argues that “the Eagle Method is not specific to race or socioeconomic status, it is a philosophy... to embrace and support young men of any background to achieve their promise and potential”. These principles have been proven through the schools and communities David Banks has created in many impoverished districts, and Soar displays his opinions clearly and precisely, constantly reminding the reader of his experience and expertise on this subject.
As if to complete the realistic approach to Bank’s approach to education, Eagle Academies are all public schools. He advocates that there is no testing in order to attend, but instead a test of consistent parental support during the process of admission. These parents and their support is pivotal to the success or failure of their son’s education, so after the school’s open house where a student and parent must show up to apply, “we will keep asking them to show up as a family for the sake of their son’s education, and in increasing ways”. Banks has found a way to morph the public school system to mold troubled boys into influential adults, dwarfing the success of alternatives such as charter schools and expensive private schools.
David Banks seems to have cracked the code. With Eagle Academies boasting more than 90% graduation rate with almost 100% of those graduates going on to college, these schools are exactly what the young men of the United States need to get back on track. For those trying to strategize ways to improve their son’s education, or for those invested in the direction of our country’s youth, Soar: How Boys Learn, Succeed, and Develop Character brightens one’s eyes to the struggles faced by disadvantaged boys, and proven tactics to improve boy’s education. ~ Student: David B.
David Banks has solved this problem, at least for the boys who attend his all-boys schools known as the Eagle Academies. The first of the Eagle Academies for Young Men opened in New York City, and Banks writes his new book, Soar: How Boys Learn, Succeed, and Develop Character, to explain how these schools are so influential and successful. Eagle Academies specialize for boys with troubled home lives, in neighborhoods where many of the public schools are labeled “drop-out factories” by Dr. Robert Balfanz in the documentary Waiting for Superman. Banks articulates his message concisely: boys in our country are in need of a new method of education, or the future of our young men will continue to worsen. In general, he points to two main solutions in male education. First, schools must use boys’ energy and competitiveness to help them learn passionately, instead of constantly punishing all those who don’t just sit quietly in their seats throughout the day. Second, boys must have a community around them to guide them through their education, and to lead them away from troubles in their lives outside of school. Banks writes, “If it takes a village to raise a child, then our method is not just a guide to raising that child, but a system of mutual reinforcement for the hard-working villagers.” With regular-length school days, a community is built from houses the school assembles, in which students eat and participate in extra-curricular activities together. Especially for those in low-income areas, boys need adults to look out for their safety and make sure education is a priority in their lives, but Banks argues that “the Eagle Method is not specific to race or socioeconomic status, it is a philosophy... to embrace and support young men of any background to achieve their promise and potential”. These principles have been proven through the schools and communities David Banks has created in many impoverished districts, and Soar displays his opinions clearly and precisely, constantly reminding the reader of his experience and expertise on this subject.
As if to complete the realistic approach to Bank’s approach to education, Eagle Academies are all public schools. He advocates that there is no testing in order to attend, but instead a test of consistent parental support during the process of admission. These parents and their support is pivotal to the success or failure of their son’s education, so after the school’s open house where a student and parent must show up to apply, “we will keep asking them to show up as a family for the sake of their son’s education, and in increasing ways”. Banks has found a way to morph the public school system to mold troubled boys into influential adults, dwarfing the success of alternatives such as charter schools and expensive private schools.
David Banks seems to have cracked the code. With Eagle Academies boasting more than 90% graduation rate with almost 100% of those graduates going on to college, these schools are exactly what the young men of the United States need to get back on track. For those trying to strategize ways to improve their son’s education, or for those invested in the direction of our country’s youth, Soar: How Boys Learn, Succeed, and Develop Character brightens one’s eyes to the struggles faced by disadvantaged boys, and proven tactics to improve boy’s education. ~ Student: David B.
February 7, 2015
I thought this was a parenting book and it isn't - it's in the education section and it's all about teaching young men and boys. Very interesting, very direct writing style which I liked. I gleaned some good stuff about boys and their development, and it was a peek into a world that I'm not familiar with. Inspiring, I really liked it.
October 23, 2016
I received this book as a First Read. The book is full of facts and figures about education. It provides an interesting look at the struggles boys and especially minorities face in school. It also evaluates different strategies that help them succeed. The book focuses on the Eagle academies but many of the strategies like mentorship can be incorporated at all schools.
October 11, 2014
The book still sounds a little like most books in regards to suggestions to help vulnerable populations; nothing new. I mostly applaud the efforts of Banks and his leadership as well as his community of caregivers that helped the boys along the way.
August 19, 2015
Easy reading. A very good concept to educate boys in public schools and is working well in several schools in New York and New Jersey unfortunately I don't believe it will work in our area, at least not in the near future.
October 3, 2014
The difference between this book and every other book out there concerning boys is that it's personal. Banks just gets it. This is a great read for anyone concerned about the "plight of our boys".
July 23, 2015
I read this for a class- but a lot of good information on how to effectively get boys to stay engaged in the classroom and not get involved in negative behaviors outside of school.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews