The Courage to Teach Guide for Reflection and Renewal

By Parker J. Palmer and Megan Scribner

20th ANNIVERSARY EDITION

The Courage to Teach Guide for Reflection & Renewal is a helpful companion to Parker J. Palmer's classic work on restoring identity and integrity to professional life. A superb resource for those who wish to extend their exploration of the ideas in The Courage to Teach, as individuals or part of a study group, the Guide provides practical ways to create "safe space" for honest reflection and probing conversations and offers chapter-by-chapter questions and exercises to further explore the many insights in The Courage to Teach.

The bonus online content includes a 70-minute interview with Parker Palmer, in which Palmer reflects on a wide range of subjects including the heart of the teacher, the crisis in education, diverse ways of knowing, relationships in teaching and learning, approaches to institutional transformation, and teachers as "culture heroes." Discussion questions related to the topics explored in the interview have been integrated into the Guide, giving individuals and study groups a chance to have "a conversation with the author" as well as an engagement with the text.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wiley
• Release date: Aug 4, 2017
• ISBN: 9781119439530

Parker J. Palmer

Parker J. Palmer, a popular speaker and educator, is also the author of The Active Life. He received the 1993 award for "Outstanding Service to Higher Education" from the Council of Independent Colleges.

Reviews for The Courage to Teach Guide for Reflection and Renewal

[mpardee_3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I have read and re-read this wonderful volume--both on my own and in conjunction with educator colleagues from several schools. I have highlighted and re-highlighted many passages. This book really bears re-reading well. To me, that attests to its lasting value.One of my favorite excerpts, for instance, is this one (which falls on pp. 107 - 108 of Courage to Teach):"When we are at our best, it is because the grace of great things has evoked from us the virtues that give educational community its finest form:* We invite diversity into our community not because it is politically correct but because diverse viewpoints are demanded by the manifold mysteries of great things.* We embrace ambiguity not because we are confused or indecisive but because we understand the inadequacy of our own concepts to embrace the vastness of great things.* We welcome creative conflict not because we are angry or hostile but because conflict is required to correct our biases and prejudices about the nature of great things.* We practice honesty not only because we owe it to one another but because to lie about what we have seen would be to betray the truth of great things.* We experience humility not because we have fought and lost but because humility is the only lens through which great things can be seen--and once we have seen them, humility is the only posture possible...."

[vincentdarlage · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book was both relevant and timely to my own approach and problems in teaching. This is a wonderful book, and many teachers & educational leaders would do well to read it and take it to heart.

[readhanded · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I've heard everyone and their brother say that The Courage to Teach is a must-read for anyone in education, but I just couldn't get into it. I definitely found some gems, but Palmer's thoughts were not terribly well organized and he often repeated points. I didn't hate it, it just felt a lot longer than its 200-something pages. Maybe because classroom teaching is only one part of my job rather than the majority of it, I didn't relate well enough. I don't know. Educators should still read it, even if it's only so you can be a part of the conversation about it.

[jerrycolonna · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Beautiful for leaders to read as we are all, always teaching.

[bigmoose_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An excellent treatise on the art and science of teaching. Chapter two about teaching in the Culture of Fear was especially insightful. While this one is a little dated, the concepts and principles are timeless.

[kathleenthereader · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great book for teachers, or ayone who cares about what they do and integrity.

[flyingbarney · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

For anybody who is thinking of being a teacher, an educator, or a facilitator of learning.

[terrib_54 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I read this book sometime during my second year of university teaching. I couldn't understand the conflicting feelings I had about teaching -- some days I felt like such a "phony" standing in front of these students presuming to teach them anything and other days I felt like a master teacher. Reading Parker J. Palmer's "The Courage to Teach" set my mind at ease. Here was someone who had been teaching much longer than me yet he still had days when he felt he had failed his students. This book is a good reminder of why we choose to teach and a great encouragement to keep teaching.

[brettmoller · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Just a great inspirational read when life as a teacher gets tough.

[mfassold_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Parker Palmer has a big vocabulary and makes you pull out the dicionary every now and then, but reading this book is a must for any current or future teacher. Teaching is a calling based around the love of students and subject. Reading Palmer is like mining for gold; a lot of work with rich rewards.