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Dumbing Us Down
- The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling
- Narrated by: Michael Puttonen
- Length: 3 hrs and 19 mins
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Dumbing Us Down
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Publisher's Summary
Thirty years in New York City's public schools led John Gatto to the sad conclusion that compulsory schooling does little but teach young people to follow orders like cogs in an industrial machine. With over 100,000 copies in print since its original publication in 2002, this book is collection of essays and speeches and contains a description of the wide-spread impact of the book and Gatto's "guerrilla teaching".
About the author: John Gatto was a teacher in New York City's public schools for over 30 years and is a recipient of the New York State Teacher of the Year award. A much sought after speaker on education throughout North America, his other books include Weapons of Mass Instruction: A Schoolteacher’s Journey through the Dark World of Compulsory Schooling, A Different Kind of Teacher, and The Underground History of American Education.
What listeners say about Dumbing Us Down
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Anonymous User
- 09-05-2022
Thought provoking
Inspiring, illuminating and terrifying. Great read for home educators or those who can feel deep in their bones there is a better way for our children.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Kevin
- 16-03-2016
Inciting. This is John Taylor Gatto's genius
Inciting. This is John Taylor Gatto's genius. I didn't understand schooling while I was there, even though I now love learning. Thanks to Gatto's book I have learnt about the true motives behind forced schooling and will continue to learn more about the world at large.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Amazon Customer
- 03-02-2022
just brilliant
hard to believe this was written in 1990s. Way ahead of its time.
Goes a long way to explain so many problems in this world.
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- Sally Cornish
- 29-03-2018
Mind blown
This is my second of his books and it simply is one of the easiest books to listen to. It has also made some upcoming decision much clearer.
Thank you thank you thank you!!!
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- Alice Bradshaw
- 09-09-2023
Thought provoking and affirming of the failings of systems
A really great listen. I am very well versed in the failings of the healthcare systems and was shocked when my children entered the education system. I was able to see so many similarities between the two and not in a good way. This book was excellent at reaffirming that I’m not imagining things. An excellent read for those who are on the fence about homeschooling.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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- Snobster
- 10-12-2020
Biased, bitter & boring
I was mostly disappointed by this book.
While the author made some good points about how the schooling system can be detrimental, particularly in regards to children’s creativity and finding sense of self, I found that most of his examples were incredibly biased. “Children watch 55 hours of television per week” - where? What children?
The narrative was also repetitive. He reiterated the same points over and over, without giving new, or indeed any, evidence.
I found this to be the ramblings of an old, bitter man, nostalgic for the days of his youth and sure that he knows better than these young whipper snappers...
I found myself bored.
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