The Learning Game: A Teacher's Inspirational Story

by Jonathan Smith

We are all caught up in our children's lives. We all remember our own schooldays and, as parents, we watch anxiously as our children go through it. As we look at the world of teaching from the outside we wonder not only what is going on but what we can do to help. Jonathan Smith, a born teacher and writer, takes us on his personal journey from his first days as a pupil through to the challenges of his professional and private life on the other side of the desk. He makes us feels what it is like to be a teacher facing the joys and the battles of a class. How do you influence a child? He describes how you catch and stretch their minds. What difference can a teacher make, or how much damage can he do? Should clever pupils teach themselves? What works in the classroom world and what does not? And while influencing the young, how do you develop yourself, how do you teach yourself to keep another life and find that elusive balance? This is a compelling and combative story, warmly anecdotal in approach, yet as sharp in its views of the current debates as it is sensitive in its psychological understanding. From the first page to the last, and without a hint of jargon, this inspiring book rings true.

Genres: Nonfiction, Education

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Jonathan Smith was born in Wales in 1942 and went to Christ College, Brecon. He read English at Cambridge, taught at Loretto School, Edinburgh and in Melbourne, and from the late 1960s onwards at Tonbridge School, where he was head of English for 17 years. He is married and lives in Kent.

Reviews

[Roberta Berardi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honest and inspiring.

[Rose]

I enjoyed this book, which is a collection of poems, quotes, and short essays reflecting on the author's life in education and offering advice to teachers. I found his advice on work/life balance especially useful, with its emphasis on it being teachers' duty to look after themselves and have a life outside school. His reflections on how education and schools have changed over time was also interesting, and I enjoyed reading the poems and quotes he included - they greatly enhanced the book and exposed me to things I would not otherwise have encountered.

[Paddy McKeating · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible book to read for all teachers. It came as a recommendation and I have read it several times. Would definitely recommend!

[Roseline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book was a real pleasure. I wish more teachers had access to this book. I feel it has given me the extra push I needed to get to retirement in a couple of years and still enjoy what I do. I made me think and smile. It has brought back good memories, and not so pleasant. It has made me think about my teaching methods, how to do more and better. The chapter on 'taking care of yourself as a teacher/have a life outside work', really rang a bell. We have to feed ourselves to be able give to others. Best way to avoid a burn-out. This book is full of good advice, examples and insight into our profession and its many challenges.

[Kit Masters · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great bit of reading about teaching.
Echoes a lot of my own feelings about teaching, although Jonathan Smith teaches in a very different school to mine, the stresses and joys are pretty much the same!
Just what I needed at the start of the academic year.

I would recommend this to parents as well as teachers.