Adam moderates our July roundtable, where he begins by having each member of the team provide their response to the questions: “What is a teacher?” and “What is a classroom?” What follows is a discussion on the role education plays in each of the team members’ lives. From Adam’s memories and analysis of his favorite high school teacher to Mary’s experiences teaching musical theater, to Andrew’s account of the overlap between his work in and out of the classroom, to Erika’s reflections on teaching at juvenile detention facilities and elsewhere, this episode covers such a wide range. You’ll see that we’ve shared our favorite books and movies about education, especially teaching, and we all thought about recommending one of the most infamous professors in film history, Indiana Jones. But, was he actually doing all of the grading, or were his TAs? (So many questions unanswered…)
Here are the team members’ favorites books and movies about education:
Andrew’s picks: Dead Poets Society (1989), Mona Lisa Smile (2003), and bell hooks’ Teaching to Transgress (1994)
Mary’s picks: Matilda (1996), School of Rock (2003), and School of Life (2005)
Erika’s picks: To Sir, with Love (1967), The Trouble with Angels (1966), Up the Down Staircase (1967), and The Chocolate War (Robert Cormier, 1974)
Adam’s picks: Benjamin Zander’s Master Classes (2014 – ), Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Gora by Rabindranath Tagore (1910).
And as a team, we recommend “100 Must-Read Books For and About Teachers” and “Top Teacher Movies of All Time.”
Just a reminder to let us know in the comments section: what’s your proudest teaching moment? What’s a great teaching memory you have? Share with us in the comments–we might share your story in our episode! Also: let us know of any transformative, life-affirming, or picturesque moments you’ve had in independent bookstores.
Our theme song “Loverman” is co-created by Anne Sophie Andersen and Meghan Ames. Check out the full-length video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4uc26Knpqk
We are excited to feature a trailer from our sponsor Words Matter Bookstore on our episode next week!