Adolescents at School
Perspectives on Youth, Identity, and Education

Edited by Michael Sadowski

As any teacher or parent knows, adolescence is a time when youth grapple with the question, "Who am I?" The answers don't always come easily. Issues of race, ethnicity, class, gender, sexual orientation, and ability often complicate this question for youth, affecting their schoolwork and their relationships with teachers, administrators, and peers.

Adolescents at School gives educators, administrators, community leaders, counselors, social workers, health-care professionals, and parents a glimpse into the complex "identities" adolescents negotiate as they manage the challenges of school. The book contains the perspectives of teachers, researchers, and administrators—and adolescents themselves—who explore what it means to be a middle or high school student in the United States today. Practical and jargon-free, the book suggests ways to foster the success of every student in our schools and classrooms.

Praise:

"This practical and readable book is an incredibly valuable addition to any educator's library. It should be required reading at our college and university schools of education. Sadowski has edited an excellent resource that will help teachers, administrators, counselors, and parents serve our young people better."
--Bob Chase, President of the National Education Association, 1996-2002

"Adolescents at School is an extraordinary collection. I had a hard time putting it down. Each of these essays digs deeply and thoughtfully into a subject so vital to us all, with exactly the right balance between the personal, the anecdotal, and the research data. Every chapter is a 'critical' read, with a powerful cumulative impact. This book will be central to staff and family discussions at schools everywhere."
--Deborah Meier, Co-Principal, Mission Hill School, Boston, Massachusetts and author of In Schools We Trust and The Power of Their Ideas.

"I wish every teacher, every parent, every person who works with adolescents would read this book. Insightful and informative, Adolescents at School combines wisdom gained through research and practice with the voices of young people to help us better understand the adolescents with whom we work. Adolescents at School belongs in every school."
--Michele Forman, National Teacher of the Year, 2001

About the Author:

Michael Sadowski is the former Editor of the Harvard Education Letter and winner of the 2002 National Press Club Award for newsletter journalism.  He is an instructor and advanced doctoral candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. He is on the Education Faculty at Bard College.

Contributors:

Darcia Harris Bowman, Ellen Brantlinger, Theresa Squires Collins, Thomas Fowler-Finn, Michelle Galley, Michael S. Kimmel, Stacey J. Lee, Arthur Lipkin, Michael Nakkula, Sonia Nieto, Pedro. A. Noguera, John Raible, Michael Sadowski, Beverly Daniel Tatum, Angela Valenzuela, Michael L. Wehmeyer

Reviews:

"This is an invaluable volume for students of education and counseling at all levels, as well as current educators and parents of adolescents. Summing Up: ESSENTIAL. Undergraduate, graduate and professional collections."
--CHOICE: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries, November 2003

"Adolescents at School: Perspectives on Youth, Identity and Education is a very powerful book that should be read by every secondary school teacher, administrator, and school board member. In addition, every parent or guardian of an adolescent child should read this book."
--Hersh Waxman, Teacher's College Record