Bittersweet Pastry Shop & Cafe is Chicago's Best

There are bakeries and pastries ... and then there's Bittersweet Pastry Shop & Cafe in Lincoln Park, Chicago. Judy Contino's high end, classy shop on Belmont is truly a step above the rest, and anyone looking for sweets in the City by the Lake should put Bittersweet on the agenda.

Twenty years ago, we were introduced to the culinary magic of Judy Contino when my wife secured a job in Bittersweet's kitchen. We had moved to Chicago for my wife to attend culinary school, but when she got the chance to work in Judy's kitchen, the true education began. Bittersweet is a truly classy cafe and bakery where the exquiste style and presentation of the pastries is only bested by the rich array of flavors. On a recent trip, we reveled in the espresso ganache tart, the rasperberry ganache, and a strawberry-rhubarb tart. We also brought home a chocolate torte and a slice of the famous "apple bistro," which is a wonderful balance of pastry, apples, and caramel.

It's hard to imagine going anywhere else for sweets, when a shop like Bittersweet is in your town. Judy Contino has been featured in magazines like Gourmet and Bon Apetit, and her reputation for beautifully delicious wedding cakes is legendary around Chicago. Next time you're in the Windy City, make sure to take advantage of the best in pastries.

Cafeteria Worker Della Curry NOT "Fired for Feeding Hungry Kids"

Della Curry is a school cafeteria worker who was supposedly "fired for giving free food to hungry students." I'm a little suspicious of her story ... and so is the Denver Post.

Della Curry has become something of a celebrity, having been interviewed by major media outlets around the country and even abroad. And her story, that she was fired by Cherry Creek Schools for giving hot lunches to students who didn't have the money to pay for them, is instantly compelling.
Except for one serious problem: The district vehemently disputes her version of events and insists she was fired instead for "numerous documented incidents." A classic she-said, they-said standoff, right? Not so fast. The district could divulge details of Curry's personnel file with her permission, and then we'd know the truth. But Curry hasn't signed a waiver. Until she does, her story ought to be taken with a handful of salt.

Since the story broke of Della Curry's dismissal from Food & Nutrition Services in the Cherry Creek School District of suburban Colorado, there has been reason to scrutinize the story of this seemingly innocuous woman and her surprising story. The problem is Della and her story have "gone viral" in an amazingly quick and seemingly well-orchestrated fashion. The story of Della's dismissal made the local news in Denver, and the public perception wasn't helped when the Denver Post lead with the controversial headline, "Cherry Creek Schools Fires Employee Who Gave Free Lunch to Hungry Kids." Clearly, the scintillating headline did its job, for the story has garnered nearly 250 comments, which is rather unheard of for the DP. Yet, the whole story hadn't come out - and still hasn't - because schools are forbidden by law from discussing the details of personnel issues. Fortunately, the Denver Post allowed the district to respond within its legal rights to clarify the issue a day later in the story "Cherry Creek says lunch lady wasn't fired for giving away free food."

Cherry Creek School District on Wednesday disputed claims of Della Curry, a former kitchen manager who said she was fired for giving hot lunches to students who didn't have the money to pay for them. "It is important to share that the Cherry Creek School District has in place a practice that ensures that every student receives a nutritious meal regardless of their ability to pay," the statement read. "Ms. Curry was not dismissed for giving free food to financially disadvantaged students. Numerous documented incidents resulted in the action taken by the Cherry Creek School District."

Certainly, this is a story worth some local attention. But, call me conspiratorial, it seems like there is a well-orchestrated machine behind Della Curry's story - at least behind the national and international coverage. People following the story should note that this is a school board election year, with three open seats on the Cherry Creek board. And, anyone familiar with Colorado and local education issues knows that the controverial board elections in Douglas County and Jefferson County by "education reformers" have used similar issues to divide communities and influence the election of candidates who seem to have decidedly anti-public education views.

Was Della Curry really "fired for giving free kid to poor, hungry children"? It seems doubtful. And, isn't it strange that in a matter of days, or even hours, this "lunch lady" has two Facebook pages with more than a thousand followers, as well as a website and a Go Fund Me page? How did this simple food service worker end up with such a well-crafted media message and "social media" platform that her story is picked up on CNN, FoxNews, ABC, NBC, CBS, USA Today, Good Morning America, Washington Times, and the Daily Mail (in London)? Della Curry is not so savvy, and this story is not so significant, that she and it should be receiving the coverage they are. Someone is pulling the strings behind the "Della Curry story." And, there is an agenda that seems directed at discrediting the Cherry Creek school board and the Cherry Creek school district. There's no doubt other forces are at work.

The only questions are:  Is it the Far Right, or the Far Left? And what is the endgame?

Why Not End, or Shorten, Summer Vacation?

So, as school lets out and summer heats up, the "vacation haters" in the ed-reform movement are at it again. Like clockwork, June tends to bring out a slew of editorials decrying summer vacation from school. And, this year, at least in my sphere, it's Jeremy Meyer of the Denver Post Editorial Board who asks why we can't "Make the School Year a Full Year." It's the same old arguments based on the  myth that summer vacation comes from our agrarian past and drawing on concerns that long weeks off in the summer lead to "summer learning loss." I've addressed these issues before, and it's worth reminding people of the flaws in Meyer's argument.

Thus, while there are reasons for increasing educational offerings, the outdated agrarian model and international comparisons are not valid ones. Yes, a longer school day and year can positively impact some students. However, many others are actually well-served by the numerous summer activities that enhance and add to their education as well-rounded citizens in ways that more classroom time drilling for standardized tests doesn’t. Many American high schools have large numbers of students taking Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, and Concurrent Enrollment college classes while still in high school. These students earn college credit while in high school, and do so with the current 180-day schedule and a lengthy summer vacation. If anything, many students can get through K-12 effectively in less time, not more. If we are going to have effective discussion about education reform, we need to dispense with the perpetuation of myths by the misinformed, and move beyond the idea of a one-size-fits-all education system. While a summer slide can be an issue in some schools, the existence of a real summer vacation is not the problem. “Making summer count” by improving the summer experience, rather than eliminating it, is the best curriculum for America’s children.  

Today, a former student stopped by to visit, and we ended up discussing the article, as he was curious about my reasoning about the challenges faced by poor kids who don't have access to the sort of summer activities that prevent the summer loss among middle and upper class kids. And, the reality is this: The argument against long summer vacation is based on the flawed premise that the only and the best learning comes in a classroom. That's not true. I am a critic of a single, uniform, conformist and standardized education system that demands a common course of study for all kids as the only possible "education." We must not make decisions based only on narrow academic skills, and we must not declare that all kids learn the same things at the same time at the same pace.

Of course Money Matters in Education

In this interesting bit of commentary from a retired teacher, Frank Breslin makes a case for "Why America Demonizes Its Teachers," and he offers plenty of information for why students struggle and why some schools are still "failing." Additionally, he notes certain areas in which it can be argued schools and public education are still underfunded.

The issue of teacher responsibility for student performance must be placed within this broader social context of what has been happening outside the American classroom for the last 30 years. Only in this way will the discussion about student learning become more realistic, and honest, and why singling out teachers alone distorts the true nature of both the problem and its solution. When there are too few teachers in a school, and those few are overwhelmed by large classes and have no time to provide individualized attention for students -- many of whom come to school deeply troubled and alienated with all sorts of problems having nothing to do with the school -- is it any wonder that students find it hard to focus and learn? The emotional, familial, and social problems of many inner-city students are often so deeply embedded and, in many cases, treatable only by professional help that the paltry resources of the school cannot begin to address them. These underfunded schools often lack even the essential services of counselors, social workers, and nurses because of draconian budget cuts. What makes matters still worse is that these same schools are now set up for additional failure by being annually denied billions in vitally needed tax revenues diverted to charter schools, with no accountability, as part of a right-wing political agenda. 

When I posted the column to Facebook, I did receive one comment which criticized the article for the standard response from "the Left" that it's always about needing more money. While I do concede that the calls for more education funding can be redundant, the issue is certainly more complex. More money will not fix countless problems in schools, and more money poorly spent will do nothing for students in need. Yet, there is plenty of data that supports the idea of more funding leading to better educational outcomes. This is especially true in the areas of graduation rates - but not always so clear with standardized test scores. Increased funding does have long term positive effects on success later in life, especially when tracking adult incomes.

Our findings provide compelling evidence that money does matter, and that additional school resources can meaningfully improve long-run outcomes for students. Specifically, we find that increased spending induced by SFRs positively affects educational attainment and economic outcomes for low-income children. While we find only small effects for children from nonpoor families, for low-income children, a 10 percent increase in per-pupil spending each year for all 12 years of public school is associated with roughly 0.5 additional years of completed education, 9.6 percent higher wages, and a 6.1-percentage-point reduction in the annual incidence of adult poverty.

And, to my point from earlier posts that Bill Gates should focus on fixing "a school," with his billions, rather than "fixing schools" with across the board reforms like Common Core. If we targeted spending on support systems like child care in disadvantaged neighborhoods, we could "fix schools" one neighborhood at a time. That's what millionaire Harris Rosen did in the community of Tangelor Park, Florida. 

Twenty-one years later, with an infusion of $11 million of Mr. Rosen’s money so far, Tangelo Park is a striking success story. Nearly all its seniors graduate from high school, and most go on to college on full scholarships Mr. Rosen has financed.Young children head for kindergarten primed for learning, or already reading, because of the free day care centers and a prekindergarten program Mr. Rosen provides. Property values have climbed. Houses and lawns, with few exceptions, are welcoming. Crime has plummeted.

Money invested in neighborhoods that need it will do far more to "fix schools" than any nationwide standards and curriculum movement or any state and federal education legislation.

So, reformers, buck up the money and "fix a school."

"Oh, ... this house is falling apart"

So, my house is falling apart.

It's probably been decades in the making, but my cute little duplex in Greenwood Village sits at a low point on really crappy clay soil, and with the recent rain, the basement floor has begun the pitch and buckle. What fun. Three years ago the floor dropped from under the furnace, and we had it lifted by A1 Concrete Leveling. Now, the floor has started rising in several places, pushing up on the finished walls that were not properly floated by a previous owner. So, we have bowed door frames, cracked drywall, and general weirdness. The garage floor has dropped five inches and now slopes toward the foundation, which has an eight-foot crack. The french drain system, foundation repair, compression grouting, and general repairs will probably go north of $30,000.

And, that's the joy of home ownership. At this point, all we can do is laugh, and explore all the options. Because, you know, I love my house. And, I hate my house. It's times like these that I wish someone had a foundation or non-profit or something whose sole goal was simply to help people out with crap they can't afford. But, you know, it could be worse. And, I have a nice house in a great community with a loving family and a good job. So, it could be a heck of a lot worse. In the end, we'll figure it out. "We've got heart."

What do you know? this house is falling apart

What can I say? this house is falling apart

We got no money, but we got heart

We're gonna rattle this ghost town

This house is falling apart

Not Your Average Backyard Shed

Outdoor living spaces usually encompass patios, kitchens, and lawns. But sheds?

The backyard shed is becoming more of an extended house and personal living space with the innovation of companies like Backyard Mama and Studio Shed. The phenemonon is featured in a great piece from Melissa Kossler Dutton where "Shed-sational spaces [are] ... outdoor buildings that go beyond storing tools to extending your home's options."

People looking to get more use out of their backyards are building or converting sheds for a variety of purposes. There are backyard pubs. "She sheds," when they're built by women. Home offices. Art or yoga studios. TV rooms. Studio Shed in Louisville sells prefabricated structures to people who want more living space or to enhance their backyard, said Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski, the company's creative director. The buildings, which range in price from $7,500 to $20,000, offer flexibility and are less expensive than adding a room to the house, he said.

Jennifer and Eric Antonow added a shed to their Palo Alto, Calif., property because they can't afford a bigger house.

PARCC Needs to Drop the Second "C"

So, we all know that  "PARCC" - which recently voted to shorten its tests in time and limit it to only one testing window each year - stands for the "Partnership for Assessing Readiness for College & Career." And, that second "C" is really the problem. For, these tests, which along with the SmarterBalanced (buttery spread) program, are supposed to test readiness for college and career ... for students in grades 3 through 11. And, there is no logical way to argue that a standardized test that is basically bubbling in answers for math and reading passages (despite claims it's not a bubble test , or is better than previous bubble tests) can accurately predict and assess "readiness" for "careers." The reality is these tests are completely focused on narrow academic pursuits. They may assess readiness for university study in the same way the ACT and SAT do. But, these tests do not assess "readiness" for countless careers. From retail sales to cosmetology to skilled labor to contracting to culinary arts and other service industry professions, the reading of passages and explaining how to "solve for y" is not an valid measurement of "readiness."

So, drop the second "C," PARCC.

Don't Make Education Reform about Wages for College Degree Holders

It's not news that education reformers from Bill Gates to Arne Duncan are committed to sending more kids to college and producing more bachelor degree holders. A more educated population is never a bad idea, so this plan is tough to criticize. However, the problem is we're asking the wrong question and posing the wrong solution. In a recent report from the Pew Research Center, the findings focus on key reasons to go to college. But the data shows this is a wage issue at heart - an issue that didn't exist when the middle class was built in the fifties, sixties, and seventies. Pursuing college degrees simply for higher wages is not sound policy. And assuming that more college degree holders will improve quality of life and strength of the economy is flawed as well.

Novels that Reflect the 2000s

A history teacher at my school was recently looking for a book that "defines or represents the 2000s" the way that Gatsby does the 1920s.  In thinking about it, I considered a few that have been considered indicative of the times.  Notably the work of Jonathan Franzen has "bookended" the decade with The Corrections in 2000 and Freedom on 2012.  He would probably be the one most often credited with capturing the decade.

We could also mention the work of Tom Wolfe who captured the 1980s with Bonfire of the Vanities, 1990s with A Man in Full, and the 2000s with I am Charlotte Simmons in 2006 andBack to Blood in 2012.  Back to Blood is about immigration and Charlotte is about a college freshman whose eyes are opened by her experience at a college and world far more liberal than she.

From my own view, I think TC Boyle is a great contemporary writer, but I don't know if he captures the 2000s exactly.  One interesting work recently is a satire by Jess Walter called The Financial Lives of Poets, published in 2010.  It is considered to be the first book written about the effects of the crash of 2008.  And, of course, Jonathan Safran Foer's Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is the first to directly take on the 9/11 tragedy.

Life as Metaphor

In an insightful column, New York Times, columnist David Brooks examines the significance of metaphor in our daily lives. As an English teacher, I couldn't agree more with his argument that "metaphors are central to our thought life." Our conscious understanding of the world is profoundly impacted by the way we use metaphor to understand the world. It molds our philosophy and perspective in life, and it impacts the way we live and work and play and vote and relate to each other. No one understands this better than George Lakoff whose book "Don't Think of an Elephant" has been a call to action for Democrats to take control of campaigns through the language they use. In many ways, it's about the metaphors.

Each year, I begin my AP Language and Composition class with a discussion of how they are expected to become "people on whom nothing is lost." Part of that task is understanding how people - including parents, teacher, marketers, and politicians - will always seek to manipulate others through language. Metaphor is one of the most effective ways to do this, and the example I use is the contrasting terms "estate tax" and "death tax." Both terms describe the taxes that are levied against inherited property. Long ago, the GOP under Newt Gingrich realized they could sway public opinion against the tax by shifting terminology from "estate" which the common associated with rich people to "death" which people associated with all people. A telling poll from 2004 revealed that 75% of Americans supported the "estate tax" whereas 75% of Americans opposed the "death tax." Clearly, words matter.

Often the language and metaphors we use to perceive a situation are quite separate from the reality of the issue. And when people are often given more direct information outside of the metaphors they have long used to perceive an issue, they feel enlightened and will even change their minds. As teachers, thus, the ability to understand the way metaphor functions in our perception of the world is perhaps one of the most important tasks we have as English teachers. It's not just about a great story or a grammar rule. The teaching of English must center on the use of language.

Kevin Liu Named 2015 Raytheon MATHCOUNTS National Champion

The best and brightest young American math minds met in Boston today for the Raytheon National MATHCounts competition.  While the mainstream media managed to completely ignore this incredible competition, there was coverage by the PR Newswire.

Kevin Liu, a 14-year-old eighth grader from Carmel Middle School in Carmel, Indiana, has earned the title of 2015 Raytheon MATHCOUNTS® National Champion after an intense, elite competition at the Sheraton Boston Hotel. This is the seventh year Raytheon (NYSE:  RTN) has served as the event's title sponsor, as part of a decade-long commitment to MATHCOUNTS and a larger effort to promote education in science, technology, engineering and math.

Liu won the final round of the 2015 Raytheon MATHCOUNTS National Competition by answering the question: "How many arithmetic progressions of six increasing terms include the terms 15 and 20?" He gave the correct answer, 15, in 17.9 seconds. As National Champion, Liu is the recipient of the $20,000 Donald G. Weinert College Scholarship and a trip to U.S. Space Camp.

It was an amazing display of lightening-quick mathematical problem solving, and it is the pinnacle of years of dedication for young men and women who commit to the study of math for the sheer love of computation and competition. For a country that is supposedly committed to improving academic achievement, especially in the area of STEM, it would be nice for a little more attention to the prowess of these young mathletes.  Sadly, the country - and media - are still strangely enamored of the Scripps National Spelling Bee while ignoring people with highly coveted math skills. The 2015 Championship for Kevin isn't online, but here's a look at the 2012 Finals:

Reading Makes Us Better

Of course, as English teachers we would love for all of our students to become "life-long lovers of reading."  In a perfect world, everyone would become as lost as we do in the pages of great fiction.  Yet, at this point we are kidding ourselves if we think that is a remote possibility.  Some people simply do not connect with reading novels the way others do.  However, in this STEM-oriented world of education reform, an argument must be made for the reading of literature; and there is a clear argument that "Reading Novels Makes Us Better Thinkers."

A group of Canadian scholars and researchers is supporting the cause of fiction by arguing that readers of fiction are more comfortable with ambiguity and less stressed about a need for closure.  Both these qualities pave the way for easier higher level thinking.  In fact, the "need for cognitive closure" creates less than optimum levels of of information process which in turn causes "decreased creativity and rationality."

Just what embattled English teachers need to hear.

Burke's Parlor Metaphor, and being "People on Whom Nothing is Lost"

As my students prepare for the AP Lang & Comp exam, here are some thoughts:

Like many teachers - especially English teachers - I do far more than teach my content. So much of my class, my students like to claim, is "not about English, but about life." Some people call that character education, others may call it shameless digressions into whatever I want to talk about. Either way, there is a method - and purpose to my madness - and it was best encapsulated by two great American writers and thinkers. Henry James once wrote about the need for a writer to be "a person on whom nothing is lost." That is a mantra in my classroom - especially AP Language and Composition where the ability to write open arguments is one of the class's raison d'etre. Basically, I am looking to guide and craft well-informed and astute young men and women who think a lot about a great deal of things ... and know what they "think about what they think." This is the essence of what Kenneth Burke in his Philosophy of the Literary From described in what has become known as "the parlor metaphor."

Imagine that you enter a parlor. You come late. When you arrive, others have long preceded you, and they are engaged in a heated discussion, a discussion too heated for them to pause and tell you exactly what it is about. In fact, the discussion had already begun long before any of them got there, so that no one present is qualified to retrace for you all the steps that had gone before. You listen for a while, until you decide that you have caught the tenor of the argument; then you put in your oar. Someone answers; you answer him; another comes to your defense; another aligns himself against you, to either the embarrassment or gratification of your opponent, depending upon the quality of your ally's assistance. However, the discussion is interminable. The hour grows late, you must depart. And you do depart, with the discussion still vigorously in progress.

I was introduced to this via the College Board and former chief reader David Jolliffe who included the metaphor in publications for the yearly conferences. Jolliffe developed his ideas astutely in the helpful textbook Everyday Use.  The idea has been so helpful in getting my mind around AP Language because it perfectly encapsulates the Lang exam. There is, truly, a "discussion" going on in the pages in front of the students, and they must be able to "put in their oar" and then gracefully bow out. Of course, beyond the Lang exam, don't we always want our students to be well informed? Especially now, in a world saturated with content, isn't it appropriate for the education system to create "people on whom nothing is lost."

The Problem with "Studying" the Humanities

So, my students are getting ready for the AP Lang & Comp exam, and that reminded me of a piece of commentary on the problem with "studying literature." Certainly, Shakespeare and Dickens and Fitzgerald  and Steinbeck and Updike and Delillo and others did not create masterpieces of literature and great narratives so teenagers and college students would be "forced" to read them and answer mind-numbing questions of analysis. Yet, that's what the study of literature can actually do to the great works. It's a complaint of my students that I can certainly understand, and it can give me pause when I think about what I ask students to do. Lee Seigel asks a similar question is his piece "Who Ruined the Humanities" in the Saturday review section of the Wall Street Journal.  

Here's a sample of the kind absurdity in the study of humanities that he challenges:

Question: "Compare Homer's prolepsis to Shakespeare's ghosts and to Dante's premonitions, then contrast these with Ibsen's reversals, Chekhov's irresolution, and Kafka's absurdity in light of omniscient narrators in Jane Austen, narrative delay in Henry James, and free indirect speech in James Joyce." [time limit: one hour]

Thoughts?

13 Reasons to read Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Thirty Reasons Why, the New York Times bestseller and young adult novel by Jay Asher, uniquely addresses the issue of teen suicide through a suspenseful story of a young man who receives a mysterious set of tapes following the death of a classmate. Clay Jensen listens to the tapes to discover the voice of Hannah Baker, a girl he knew from school who had passed away. Hannah begins to narrate the story of her downward spiral into a state of depression and ultimately suicide. However, there is a twist. Hannah is exposing the story and the thirteen people who in some way "played a role" in her demise. This revelation shocks Clay - and of course the reader - and propels the action of the novel. Thirteen Reasons Why is an infinitely readable young adult novel that takes on the issue of suicide in a meaningful way.

Thirteen Reasons Why has resonated with both teen and adult readers because:

1. The issue of teen suicide - and the social pressures that can often instigate it - is as prominent as ever, and one of the best ways to treat the issue is to initiate difficult conversations about the topic.
2. Jay Asher writes with a readable and believable teen voice that engages the issue of teen angst and the confusion that both leads to and follows the suicide of a young person.
3. The book is being made into a movie starring Selena Gomez
4. The novel is written in a unique format with basically two narrators - the actual one and the girl on the tape whose story is being told.
5. The suspenseful nature of the story - notably the reasons for Hannah's action, the gradual revealing of people and their roles, and Clay's unease over "his role - drive the story forward in a way that's difficult to put down.
6. It doesn't descend (too much) into cliches about teen life - or teen voices
7. There are layers of meaning and events that culminate in Hannah's death - a structure that lends understanding to the hardest thing to understand.
8. It's not a flawless novel, and there is plenty to criticize as you discuss the novel.
9. It doesn't trivialize its subject as far too many books and movies can.
10. It's a heck of an achievement for a first novel.
11. It's thoughtful without being preachy or pretentious
12. I kind of wish I'd written it - and you probably will, too.
13. Many of your students have read or are reading it, and you should, too.

And for a couple of other well written young adult novels that deal impressively with tough situations and do so in a voice and style that can even engage adults, you will definitely want to read:

The Fault in Our Stars - John Green

The Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky

It's Kind of a Funny Thing - Ned Vizinni

Affluenza in the English Classroom

"Through tatter'd clothes small vices do appear;
Robes and furr'd gowns hide all. Plate sin with gold,
And the strong lance of justice hurtless breaks;
Arm it in rags, a pigmy's straw does pierce it."

Teachers of AP Lang & Comp certainly recognize this tidbit of wisdom from King Lear which appeared as an argumentative prompt years ago. The disparity between "wealth and justice" is a topic ripe for criticism, and it forms the heart of many literary works. It is significant in one of the great American novels, Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.  The essence of the theme and conflict is the misguided belief that money can buy anything, even the past. In the novel, Daisy basically gets away with murder because of her wealth, and Fitzgerald reminds us that the Buchanans and wealthy elite are "were careless people, Tom and Daisy--they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money of their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made."

These days, that gap between wealth and justice is getting attention again with the story of Ethan Couch, a teenager who killed four people in a drunk driving accident, yet was inexplicably released from jail time after his high priced attorneys successfully argued the "Affluenza Defense." If there is anyone who "smashed things up," it's Ethan Couch, who was driving drunk at nearly three times the legal limit when he slammed into a group of people who were stopped by the side f the road. After his high priced attorney successfully argued that he needed rehabilitation, rather than jail time, and that he couldn't be held responsible because his privilege had shielded him from any responsibility in life. In essence, Couch's parents spoiled him so terribly that he never learned consequences for his actions and shouldn't be held accountable.

Scholarly Study of John Grisham

As an English teacher, I like to tell my students there are great writers and there are great storytellers. The work of a great writer will generally be considered literature and is worthy of study in the classroom. It's writing that matters, and it has more to it than character, setting, plot, and theme. There is generally a sophistication to the language and structure and layers of depth to the meaning. The work of a great storyteller may be immensely popular, and it will sell widely while engaging its audience. But it may never be worthy of study, it won't stick around for long, and it ultimately doesn't really matter. In this way I tell my students that Dickens and Austen and Fitzgerald and Salinger and Updike and even Franzen are great writers producing literature, while King and Clancy and Crichton and Dan Brown and Stephanie Meyer are popular storytellers. In fact, I wrote more extensively years ago about the conundrum of the quality of Stephanie Meyer's writing.

So, what to do with John Grisham?

Clearly, John Grisham is a hugely popular writer of thrillers and crime fiction, and he would be the first to concede he is not a writer of great literature. Writing is a business for him, and he writes engaging stories to make money - and he makes lots of it. Grisham has been known to pull in $25-$30 million a year, and his net worth is approaching a quarter of a billion dollars. However, I once read an essay in a study of popular culture that identified John Grisham is the "Dickens of our time," for the richness of his characters and the portrayal of unique sub-strata of society. That certainly challenges the conventional wisdom of the time. However, there may be something to an elevated status for popular writers like Grisham, and that is the focus of John Grisham: A Critical Companion. The book is one in a series about popular fiction edited by Kathleen Gregory Klein of Southern Connecticut State University. Each book in the series begins with a biographical sketch, and then assembles a series of critical essays about the author and body of work. The Grisham series, written by Mary Beth Pringle of Wright State University just might convince you to re-evaluate the complexity and worthiness of John Grisham's work.

Certainly, if you are an English teacher who assigns research projects, you might want to check out the Critical Companion series from Greenwood Press.

Does Reading Fiction Make Us Better People

I was in the bookstore the other day, and I noticed my tendency to gravitate toward the non-fiction section. That would seem pretty typical for the average man, as most studies indicate men tend to read more  non-fiction, while women are more likely to prefer novels. That's certainly true between my wife and me. And, of course, I try to balance my habits with both genres - currently, I am reading an Elmore Leonard novel Road Dogs (always a pleasure) and Ed Burns' new (sort of) memoir Independent Ed. That said, I just naturally gravitate toward Burns' easygoing story of his film career over the raucous crime drama of Leonard. Go figure.

However, I am a high school English teacher with a Master of Arts degree in English Language and Literature. Teaching literary fiction is a way of life for me. Granted, I now only teach a section of "AP English Language & Comp," which is primarily focused on rhetoric and argumentation. Still, the class maintains a pretty heavy component of lit with works such as favorites like O'Brien's The Things They Carried and Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Of course, I have also added in some non-fiction with Lewis' Next: the Future Just Happened and Krakauer's Into the Wild.  But does it even matter?

Is fiction superior in any way to the non-fiction works? And is it necessary for us as human beings to read novels? Certainly, all those questions are extremes, and it's really not a question of necessity. However, as the reading public continues to shrink - at least in the sense of accessing grand literary works (ie. the classic novel), I wonder, as Marc O'Connel recently asks in a piece for Salon, "Does Reading Fiction Make You a Better Person?"

A Cappella Groups - "Rock Stars" on the College Circuit

For me, the fascination started with two amazing performing groups: the classic Christmas mash up from "Straight, No Chaser" and the extremely talented a cappella groups at the high school where I work. And, with the amazing success of a movie - and book - called Pitch Perfect, as well as the run of the Fox show Glee, "a cappella" singing is coming into its own in a whole new way. And, as a recent AP story recently explained, "College A Cappella: [it's] Not your Grandfather's Barbershop Quartet."

These days the a cappella groups on college campuses are competing in increasingly popular competitions, and the top groups are achieving the status "of rock stars." With incredible singing talent, intricate mash-ups of popular songs from the likes of Beyonce, and complicated choreography, the kids singing a cappella are winning over ever larger audiences. And, this development in the arts is very exciting.


The Super Bowl of a cappella competitions was expected to draw about 3,000 people to New York to see eight groups this weekend, a far cry from the paltry crowd of 200 that watched the national finals more than a decade ago. "Now the larger world is seeing that it's awesome," said Amanda Newman, executive director of Varsity Vocals, the event's organizer. "Everyone's just over the moon. It wasn't a secret that we wanted to keep." This isn't your grandfather's barbershop quartet. Covering pop songs like Beyonce's "Crazy in Love" and Hozier's "Take Me to Church," the groups earn the adulation of cheering fans through their complex harmonies and choreography. "People used to think of vocal music as boring choir stuff," said Isaac Hecker, a member of Amazin' Blue at the University of Michigan. "Once you figured out that you can do crazy beat-boxing, awesome bass lines (and) throw everything together, you just have really cool music." This weekend's contest is the 19th International Championship of Collegiate A cappella, or ICCA. In its early years, Newman said, only 35 groups competed in the rounds leading up to the finals. This year, about 320 groups in the U.S. and Britain vied for a spot.


While high school and college are, obviously, for academics and career training, and athletics are a huge multi-billion dollar business, it's the arts that really connect with us on a deep emotional level. For that reason, I love seeing the attention showered on these talented performers.

Say This, Not That - How to Talk to People

In a cult classic from the early 90s, Pump Up the Volume, Christian Slater's character explains to his friend that, despite his voice on the radio, "I can't talk to you." Communication is tough, and it's one of the standards in English instruction that is often underserved in the classroom. Occasionally, I play the game Catch Phrase with students in an activity I call "Communication Skills." I also focus on language choices for the students in all their writing, asking them to combine sentences and think about the concept of le mot juste- the right word.

Communicating comes more naturally for some than others, but it is a skill that can be taught, learned, and refined. These are the thoughts from numerous authors of books around the idea of "Say This, Not That." One of the more interesting and well written approaches comes from California therapist Carl Alasko. Alasko offers great advice when you "have something to say" but don't want to trigger an argument. Many of us can use advice on how to be more tactful. And, we would certainly be more productive in delicate discussions if we were mindful of these few bits of advice:

• Have a plan
• Bite your tongue
• Avoid the unanswerable
• Don't blame, abuse, or punish
• Fend off fights

Gravity CEO Cuts His Pay to Offer $70K Minimum Wage

And, sometimes you get a cool story like this one.

Dan Price, the CEO of Gravity Payments, announced to his 100-person staff that he will establish a new minimum wage of $70,000 per year. Price is funding the huge across-the-board raises for his employees by cutting his own salary from nearly $1 million to $70K, and he will contribute a greater share of the company's profits. Price established the 70K threshold by acknowledging the research on happiness that indicates money "can buy happiness" up to about $70K/year.

Price's move is a significant extrapolation of the actions by other forward thinking, altruistic CEOs of the past few years such as Costco head Craig Jelinek who establishes a ceiling for his earnings that can't exceed an unreasonable multiple of his lowest paid worker. The actions of men like Jelinek and Price counter the ostentatious and disturbing trend of extravagance where income equality has exploded because of the absurd growth among the wealthiest.

Perhaps this move can alter the discussion of the income gap as simply a problem of achievement gaps in schools. These days, the primary motivator of national standards and new standardized testing is the belief that income equality will decrease if more kids go to college. The reality is our societal gaps are more about wages than about education. And, if businesses paid better for skilled work, we'd probably all be happier.

Not Equity or Achievement Gap - Let's Close the Inspiration Gap

Why don't kids succeed at school? Well, a primary reason is because they are disengaged from what they are learning, and they don't like the system, content, structure, goals, etc. Too often they are simply not motivated by or interested in what the education system tells them they "need to know." And, this is particularly problematic lately in a system that is focused on a singular definition of "readiness for college and career," which seems primarily focused on a basic level of competency in algebra II. This "common" approach for all kids is the outcome of a one-size-fits-all system grounded in the belief that if we simply produce more kids ready for bachelor degrees that we will solve the problems of socioeconomic inequity.

A more equitable system that would probably be more effective at meeting kids needs and producing engaged and skilled students who are prepared for the jobs they want and the lives they desire would instead focus on engaging and motivating kids to develop skills in areas that interest them. And, some innovative educators are addressing that issue of "inspiration," notably Andrew Mangino.

Four years ago, Mangino founded The Future Project with the aim of transforming students and schools by looking beyond the familiar measures of success. Instead of focusing only on school performance, graduation rates, college matriculation and job placement, Mangino wanted to get to what he saw as the root of the problem. Students don't have enough motivation, he says, and they lack belief in their own futures.

It’s not that the typical metrics aren’t important, Mangino says. But he strongly believes there's a lot more to success than grades and test scores. It's a conviction he developed while walking the hallways of Woodrow Wilson High School, speaking face-to-face with a young man whose potential couldn’t be fully rendered by numbers alone. The Future Project places mentors in schools -- usually people in their 20s and 30s -- to get students talking and thinking about how to achieve their dreams, big and small, short-term and long-term. The program's mentors refer to themselves as "Dream Directors," a title meant to signal that The Future Project’s ambitions begin in the school building but don't end there.

Moving away from a system of Carnegie units based on basic skills and preparation for "college degrees," and instead focusing on engaging kids in learning and personal growth, is the kind of education reform that can really make a difference.

Kurt Vonnegut & "The Art of the Term Paper"

It would be the English student's dream and nightmare: writing a term paper for Kurt Vonnegut. That's the challenge faced by Suzanne McConnell and other students who studied with Vonnegut at the Iowa Writer's Workshop in his "Form of Fiction" class. McConnell apparently saved one of her assignment sheets from the class - I mean, who wouldn't? - and it's not surprising the piece is a work of art unto itself. This approach to school - where the assignment is more than an assignment - is captured in a new collection of the writer's letters: Kurt Vonnegut: Letters, edited by Dan Wakefield. The actual assignment is featured in Slate.com this week.

As for your term papers, I should like them to be both cynical and religious. I want you to adore the Universe, to be easily delighted, but to be prompt as well with impatience with those artists who offend your own deep notions of what the Universe is or should be. “This above all ...” Do not do so as an academic critic, nor as a person drunk on art, nor as a barbarian in the literary market place. Do so as a sensitive person who has a few practical hunches about how stories can succeed or fail. Praise or damn as you please, but do so rather flatly, pragmatically, with cunning attention to annoying or gratifying details. Be yourself. Be unique. Be a good editor. The Universe needs more good editors, God knows. Since there are eighty of you, and since I do not wish to go blind or kill somebody, about twenty pages from each of you should do neatly. Do not bubble. Do not spin your wheels. Use words I know.

What a joy it would be to be assigned work in such a manner.  And, as a teacher, I occasionally see the assigning as a craft in itself - though not with this type of poetry.  Then again, I'm still learning and growing as a teacher, and this approach seems like a wonderful gift of a new professional goal. Of course, Rodney Dangerfield theorized that Kurt Vonnegut may not know a thing about writing ... or about himself.

Humorous Headlines

Over the years, late night hosts like David Letterman, Jay Leno, and Jimmy Kimmel have made light of silly or absurd signs and newspaper headlines.  Often, these mistakes in use of language have great lessons on syntax, punctuation, and word choice for students.  Occasionally, I will pull out a list of these humorous headlines as a fun class activity to begin or end the day.  Some of my favorites are:

Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers

Drunk Gets Nine Months in Violin Case

Iraqi Head Seeks Arms

Teachers Strike Idle Kids

Clinton Wins on Budget, But More Lies Ahead

Miners Refuse to Work After Death

Stolen Painting Found By Tree

2 Sisters Reunited After 18 Years in Checkout Line

Killer Sentenced to Die for 2nd Time in 10 Years

Kids Make Nutritious Snacks

Arson Suspect Held in Fire

Hospitals Sued by Seven Foot Doctors

Local High School Dropouts Cut in Half

Poetry Matters - Teach Kids to "Slam" and Find Their Voice

It was wonderful evening dedicated to the power of language last night at the 5th Annual Cherry Creek School District Poetry Slam. As sponsor of the Youth Advisory Board, I teamed with several fabulous people to bring a slam to my school. The event was emceed by the Poet Laureate of Aurora, Colorado, Jovan Mays. He was joined by two other exceptional slam poets, Ayinde Russell and Ken Arkind who played the distinguished slam role as "Voice of God." And, a most excellent mood was set by the cool beats mixed by DJ Simone Says. Twenty-one young people from around the district bared their souls and the magic of their language with a great crowd, and we honored an evening of language empowerment. I am so impressed with these kids, and I am proud and honored to be able to provide a forum for them.

Poetry is an aspect of English class that generates fairly strong responses. People either love it or they hate it, and that goes for teachers as well as the students. Despite the reservations and angst, however, poetry is important and meaningful in the English classroom. Generally, students receive an overdose of poetry during middle school, and not that much in high school. However, they need the challenge of deciphering complex material more than ever as they head toward college. So, a poetry unit or the linking of poems to other units is not only good idea, but a necessity. Engaging the kids with some entertaining free verse, and even Slam Poetry, is an effective approach. To that end, as I discuss free verse, spoken word, and poetry slams with my kids, I love to introduce them to the wonderful linguistic magic of Taylor Mali:





After you've watch this, you will really want to check out his other videos for The Impotence of Proofreading and What Teachers Make. Taylor Mali, a former English teacher, also has a fabulous website with plenty of resources for use in the English classroom.

Mark Twain Hated Jane Austen

"Every time I read Pride and Prejudice, I want to dig [Jane Austen] up and beat her over the head with her own shin bone."

That scathing criticism of one of English literature's most beloved novels came from perhaps the sharpest wit in all of American literature, Mark Twain. And I can't help but think of the quote every time I hand the book to a seventeen-year-old male in my AP Lang & Comp class.

Of course, Mark Twain is not the only person who had nothing but contempt for Jane Austen.  Despite the incredible staying power of Jane Austen and her six novels, she can be a target for criticism of all the sappy romanticism that annoys the realists of the world. And, that's not helped by the cottage industry of Jane Austen derivatives that has risen up in the past decade or so.

This homage to Romanticism's staying power can certainly alienate all the men who are dragged to the latest romantic-comedy "chick flick," or the adolescent males who are subjected to stories of courtship and dancing in their honors English classes. However, there is a lot of value in the satire and social criticism that Austen offered, which is something Twain should have been able to appreciate.

What do you think?

The Ideal English Major

Several years ago, I read an insightful tome on the teaching of English and the humanities called Why Read by University of Virginia English professor Mark Edmundson.  The book posed an interesting question for students in his literature survey classes - "What do you dislike about school, and what flaws in your intellect and character does this reveal in you?" With that provocative challenge to a student's disdain for academic work, Edmundson offers commentary on why we study.

This week Edmundson offers some valuable insight in The Chronicle on the pursuit of an English degree, even in a world where everyone from parents to college advisors to politicians urge students to pursue career and income-producing majors such as accounting and engineering.  In his words:

Soon college students all over America will be trundling to their advisers' offices to choose a major. In this moment of financial insecurity, students are naturally drawn to economics, business, and the hard sciences. But students ought to resist the temptation of those purportedly money-ensuring options and even of history and philosophy, marvelous though they may be. All students—and I mean all—ought to think seriously about majoring in English. Becoming an English major means pursuing the most important subject of all—being a human being.

What to Make of Jonathan Livingston Seagull?

Anyone who has grasped with the metaphysical in the contemporary age is familiar with a little book from Richard Bach known as Jonathon Livingston Seagull. The small, simply fairy tale of less than 10,000 words was first published in 1970, and became an instant hit with its message of aspiring to greatness and believing in the power of believing. The book is a classic in the spiritual, self-help world. Books like JLS or any of its variations from The Celestine Prophecy to the Course in Miracles to The Tao of Pooh all derive from the basic premise of Norman Vincent Peale in his book from an earlier era, The Power of Positive Thinking.   JLS has flown into our consciousness again with the recent publication of a "Part IV."  Of course, not everyone loves Bach or his philosophy or his silly little tales. In fact, some people criticize books like JLS as the origin and inspiration behind the oversimplification of American thought in the last twenty years. Heather Havrilesky cites the story of "no ordinary bird" as the reason behind the decline of American society. Like all pieces of art, the story of Jonathon is not for everyone, but it does have value in the story it tells and the feelings it evokes. While it is certainly not the answer to our prayers, it also isn't the cause of the alleged "decline" of America, or of American thought. It's a story with a message that might give people a bit of an escape, or a shred of hope, a hint of optimism, or ....

Authority to Speak about "Testing"

I recently received an email criticizing me for being "a shill for the teachers" because of my recent criticism of PARCC testing. And, that sort of surprised me. For those who criticize me for my views on testing, I suspect there is much they don't know about me and my feelings on the broad issue of "standardized testing." For twenty-three years I have been an educator both in the United States and abroad, in both public and private schools, and at levels ranging from middle school and developmental English to AP English at the high school level. In addition I have two advanced degrees and have been writing about education for six years. Thus, I feel I am as well informed as any to speak about education. It's worth noting that many, if not most, proponents of testing and test-based reform have little or no experience in the classroom.

As an AP English teacher who preps students for that exam as well as ACT/SAT, I can hardly be considered one who opposes testing, accountability, or teaching to a test. However, I am a well informed and discerning critic of education and assessment, and my views are more complex than being for or against testing. I am suspcious of and critical toward the naive belief that standardized testing is the way to determine good/bad schools, good/bad teachers, and successful/failing students. Being critical of the PARCC assessment, the practice of yearly testing, the narrow focus on math/science, the problematic nature of "reading" tests, and the conclusions that testing will "fix schools" or that all (or even most) schools need to be fixed does not mean that I oppose "our kids getting a proper education." On the contrary, I have committed my life to it. And while I teach high level classes, I also lead school efforts on equity and closing the achievement gap, areas where we've made signficant progress.

Additionally, I disagree with and challenge statements by my critics about testing as a key to helping "our kids compete on the world stage." I can't imagine what they are using to base that assertion. But I know of no data linking test scores and global competiveness - and I know of much that refutes that. As far as my views, here are a few links that expand upon my thoughts here:

http://www.denverpost.com/ci_25088599/colorado-should-replace-parcc-testing-act-aspire

http://www.denverpost.com/voices/ci_27468887/colorado-voices-parcc-wont-solve-our-testing-problems

http://www.denverpost.com/ci_26520309/limits-school-choice

Easter, The American Adam, and the "Re-birth" of Mark Twain

It's Easter, which is the Christian celebration of Christ's resurrection, which is also an adaption of the standard spring fertility celebrations of countless pagan cultures that worshiped the miracle of spring. That concept of re-birth has been sacrosanct for many cultures, but the idea of re-birth and re-invention has always been a foundational part of the American consciousness. America was built on the idea of rebirth and renewal and reinvention coming out of the corruption and decay that had taken over Old World Europe. This renewal idea is grounded in all American literature, and R.W. Lewis called it "The American Adam." It was articulated by Huck Finn's plans to "light out for the territory" and it was symbolized by Gatsby's "green light."

Growing up on the banks of the Mississippi River in Alton, Illinois, the novel Adventures of Huckleberry Finn always held a special fascination for me. Yet, I never really discovered the book on its deeper levels until I read it for a survey course in American Literature during my sophomore year of college. That, of course, makes sense because it is anything but a children's book. It is, truly, the place "where all American literature begins." Thus, when I was finishing up my MA in English and considering thesis topics, I was intrigued by Lewis' ideas of the American Adam, and I strongly considered it and Twain for my research.  During graduate school, I had encountered the book again in a course on Twain and the "Rise of Realism." My focus would have been the "American Adam" concept and the book's ideas about our never ending search for renewal and redemption. Alas, like many scholars, I accepted the conclusion that "pretty much everything has been said" about the novel, and nothing new could be offered. So, I turned my attention to a contemporary Canadian novelist, Douglas Coupland, and produced a reasonably respectable bit of criticism.

Now, with the arrival of spring and the publication of two new works on Twain, my attention has been brought back to Huck and the concept of the American Adam. For one, it appears a scholar has found something to add to the discussion about Twain's most endearing - and complicated - character, Huck. Butler professor Andrew Levy recently published to positive reviews a fresh look at Huck Finn's America, by focusing on the role of minstrel shows and violence in childhood that so informed Mark Twain's view of American society, and subsequently the role of race relations. That is certainly new and fresh and exciting. And, to add to that, a new biography of Twain has surfaced that has the potential to ignite some renewed interest in America's Bard. Scholar Roy Morris, Jr. has published American Vandal: Mark Twain Abroad, an analysis of Twain's early work Innocents Abroad. Thus, Mark Twain lives again, and the American Adam concept continues to thrive as the story of America's unique relationship with spring, rebirth, and renewal.

Big City Chefs Take on "Fast Food"

In Morgan Spurlock's game-changing documentary film Super-size Me, one of his physicians opined, "You know, there's no reason fast food has to be so disgusting."

Exactly.

It's with that insight that "two prominent LA chefs have founded ... a new approach to fast food that provides nutritious and delicious fare in some of LA's poorest neighborhoods." Profiled in this week's WSJ Magazine by Howie Kahn, The Real Fast-Food Revolution, chefs Daniel Patterson and Roy Choi have taken the insight of Spurlock's doctor to heart, and with the launch of Loco'l they are providing a better burger using whole grains and quality products.

Patterson wanted to expand his idea in the form of a fast-food restaurant. It would link the Cooking Project to social enterprise, creating jobs in the Tenderloin. And it would give the fast-food chains that inundate inner-city diets with a steady stream of chemicals and high-fructose corn syrup a run for their money. “We’d bring in a natural, cooked-with-integrity alternative,” says Patterson. “We’d have chefs feed these neighborhoods, not corporations.” In Choi, he recognized the desire to help the same demographic. So a few weeks later, he flew to Los Angeles, where Choi co-owns four popular restaurants, plus the fleet of Kogi Korean taco trucks that put him on the map. They began hatching a plan for Loco’l, their chef-driven fast-food restaurant, over a bowl of Korean noodles. “There was no money behind us yet, no investors,” says Choi, “but we don’t put business in front of ideas. We slurped a hot pot, talked about changing the game, and there was no question from there—we were doing this.” 

The chefs chose the 2014 MAD Symposium last August to announce their plan publicly. Choi took the stage to speak, introducing Patterson—“DP,” he said, invoking their bond by way of nickname—eight minutes later. They both stood behind a long, age-worn butcher’s block flanked by trees, the 45-year-old Choi wearing a baseball cap with a crisp brim, and Patterson, 46, donning the festival’s T-shirt. “We’re going to tackle the fast-food industry,” proclaimed Choi. The Loco’l logo—a graffiti-inspired skateboarding hamburger wearing a beanie—popped up on a screen behind him. “We’re going to build a concept that has the heart and the ideology and the science of a chef, but it’ll have the relevance of McDonald’s or Burger King. We’re going to go toe-to-toe to see how we can challenge the status quo of fast food.”

This sort of innovative and inspired leadership by true chefs deserves all the praise it's getting and more. Rather than cheering the bottom line profits and trivial wage hikes by the business community, we should be promoting more people like Patterson and Choi. Other visionaries include Chipotle founder Steve Ells and, of course, the Naked Chef Jamie Oliver. In a nation that has schizophrenic food views that range from "Zagat Guides to Dollar Menus," we can use more people who stand up for quality.

Stephen Lurie Schools All Us Whole Foods Foodies

I like to think that quality food matters a great deal to me. I'm a foodie in many ways, preferring to eat once at a place like "Fruition" than four or five times at a place like Applebees. If I could shop exclusively at Whole Foods and the Cherry Creek Morning Market, I would. And I am baffled by people that have the money to eat well, and still think dollar menus are a great deal. I will openly admit to being a food snob, and my wife is a certified natural foods chef, as well as a former pastry chef who makes a European buttercream that can pass muster at places like Bittersweet Bakery where she trained. Yet, despite my supposed commitment to "whole foods," I realize that there is much I fail to acknowledge about the food labor movement. If we are truly committed to higher quality in our food supply, then that commitment must extend to the workers who supply the food. As Stephen Lurie points out in an excellent piece of research for Vox, if we care about where our food comes from, we "Should Care About Who Grew and Picked It."

Despite their positive connotations, none of those certifications — not even fair trade — tells a consumer anything about how a company or restaurant treats the humans involved in the US: its workers. In fact, there isn't currently a standalone certification out there that verifies good labor practices. Even as environmental, animal, and economic movements have started to compete for shelf space with conventional food, there is no widely available option for consumers who wish to shop and eat labor-friendly. The realities of the food industry — from producers to servers — make this a perplexing and pressing deficiency. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nine out of the 10 lowest-paying occupations in America are in the food and restaurant industry. The highest earner of those, the occupation category that includes food- and beverage-serving workers, averages $9.63 an hour, or about $20,000 per year if, against all odds, it is full-time work. That means each of those occupations earns below the poverty line for a family of four, and well below a real living wage. These wages aren't paid out to a handful of young Americans — they're paid to more than 10 million fast-food and food-and-beverage industry workers and to many of the million-plus agriculture and food-processing workers.

There is a better way to think about food and support our food supply:

The Benefit of the Humanities Degree

The Common Core and PARCC testing and PISA or TIMSS have begun, little by little, to steal away or divert attention from the magic of the liberal arts education. Despite warnings from as far back as Charles Dickens' Hard Times, America has begun to myopically focus on a utilitarian foundation for secondary and education. Educating for job skills has replaced educating for the cultivation of the human spirit. And that has put the study of arts and the humanities at risk.

In fact, some in our government believe that student loans should only be available to STEM-majors, and those English and philosophy students can pay for the luxury of studying the humanities. Yet, for as long as I've been teaching - in fact, for as long as I've been around - I've known countless successful business leaders and community icons who began with a humanities degree. And that is the heart of Caroline Gregoire's list of "Irrefutable Evidence of the Value of Humanities Degrees." While I might have expected it from the likes of Jon Stewart or Conan O'Brien, who knew that businessman and multi-millionaire investor Mitt Romney began his adult life with a bachelor's degree in English?

We can follow that up with Rebecca Schuman's latest piece for Slate where she talks about people "Hating on the Humanities."

Does Dystopian YA Lit Stereotype Kids?

Cliques. Are they real, or simply a creation of YA writers and Hollywood directors? It's not surprising to find people sorted into groups in most genres of teen entertainment. In fact, Grace, Ed Rooney's secretary from Ferris Bueller laid it out for us in one classic line:

So, why is it that writers and filmmakers always seek to fit characters into the standard groups that are supposed to make up high school? Is society that cliche? Or are the cliches actually valid, which is why they seem so common. Katy Waldman of Slate Magazine suspects there are significant forces at work in a world where "Everybody Knows Where They Belong." From the Sorting Hat of JK Rowling to Suzanne Collins' Reaping, much of the entertainment for young people is grounded in categorizing people. The latest work Divergent from Catherine Roth is only the latest to follow the archetypal story form.

The studies of societal divisions, especially in regards to high school cliques, are endless. But the question is: are they valid, and what can or should we do about it?

Is Joyce's "Ulysses" the Standard for Literature?

There are certain books that people just know - even if they haven't read them. James Joyce's epic and archetypal work Ulysses is certainly one of those. And it certainly qualifies as one that many people know, but haven't read. However, in a compelling piece of literary analysis and commentary, scholar and professor Robert D. Newman of the University of Washington argues that any fan of America's literary fiction actually know Joyce's work well because of its profound and significant influence on the works of some of the country's best known writers. Newman has written the book on Joyce's influence, and now offers a shorter synthesis of his position for Salon.com, "James Joyce's Lyrical Sensual Literary Legacy: Why So Many Novels Steal from Ulysses."

While “Ulysses” is far from the first example of moral fiction in the history of literature and its critical reception often has tended to focus on its explosion of the boundaries of traditional narrative technique as well as its cultural and historical contexts, its persistent presence in traditional plot and character within some recent mainstream American fiction presents another layer of its compelling influence on the ever-widening circle of Joyce’s heirs. “Ulysses” is indelibly embedded in contemporary American cultural expressions. Our current literary everymen shuffle along their confused and revelatory paths while tipping their hats to Bloom.

In high praise for Ireland's most significant artist, Newman believes that the works of American novelists like Pat Conroy, Richard Russo, or even Faulkner and Pynchon, would not even exist if not for Joyce and the publication of Ulyssses. Certainly, the direct allusions to the novel are ever-present in American fiction and culture. And there are many areas of American art where people would not even notice the influence - such as the songs of Kate Bush or the columns of Prairie Home Companion writer Garrison Keillor. Truly the significance of the novel is vast and under-rated. And with that in mind, perhaps Newman and others will continue to remind everyone "Why You Should Read this Book."

Telling Stories in School

"Tell us a story."

That is a great interview question, and it's a great impromptu speech topic for high school students as well. Storytelling is the essence of what we do as English teachers, and the qualities of a good story, as well as the ability to deliver it, should be a primary focus of the classroom. For this reason, the personal narrative is one genre that I always incorporate into my classes, from middle school to AP Language to Senior Composition. And with the Common Core as well as our new Colorado Academic Standards emphasizing narrative as one of the three primary modes of writing instruction, it's important to teach the art form.

When I first began teaching AP Language and Composition, one of the first things I learned from a colleague, office mate, and good friend was the important role that personal narratives play in the rhetoric and composition classroom. Many AP Lang style analysis prompts over the years have been personal narratives. Some memorable ones: Meena Alexander on her Fractured Identity; Gary Soto on The Stolen Pie; Jamaica Kincaid On Seeing England; Nancy Mairs On Being a Cripple; and Richard Rodriguez Family Christmas.

I've always enjoyed teaching personal narratives, and on my colleague's advice, I begin with a class long analysis of Audre Lorde's Fourth of July. Lorde's work is so rich with rhetorical devices that it serves as the perfect example of how the personal narrative works. We also read a great piece by Michael Koenigs called Getting Off the Hammock, about his first summer job. It is a beautiful piece that he wrote at the age of seventeen, and it's a great example of how full of opportunities for writing our students' lives are. Ultimately, my students will write their own personal narrative, which is basically recounting a life event which progresses towards epiphany.

They can be insightful  and inspired or sarcastic and silly, but they should be meaningful. And year after year, they are.

Literature as Self Help - The Life Lessons of Dante's Divine Comedy

Why do we teach literature? What's the point of studying history's "stories"? Most English teachers would acknowledge the focus of self discovery and character education in the novels we teach. In fact, the standard has long been to recognize literature as a "record of the human experience." We read to commiserate and learn and understand who we are on both an individual and global historical scale.

That's what makes Rod Dreher's recent piece for the Wall Street Journal so cool. Dreher, who is a columnist also known for his unique take on conservatism, offers a unique and surprising explanation of Dante's Divine Comedy as a classic of self help - "The Ultimate Self Help Book: Dante's Divine Comedy. It's not just a classic of world literature; it's the most astonishing self help book of all time." Dreher explains his own personal struggles and the coping mechanisms he picked up from Dante after browsing the classic in a bookstore.

Another great bit of self-help advice from antiquity comes in the form of non-fiction analysis of classic philosophy in pop culture form. Rebecca Goldstein imagines the wisdom of ancient Greece applied to the contemporary pop culture world in her recent book, Plato at the Googleplex. The value of classic philosophy in our modern lives is far more relevant than many might imagine. And Goldstein is that rare scholar who can frame the insight for the average contemporary reader.

Humanities Majors are Valued

Despite the dis last year by President Obama, humanities majors have always been great assets in the American economy. Anyone who can read and understand complex materials and then write clear, concise, and, most importantly, correct is perhaps the most in-demand of skills. English majors are hot hire these days, according to Bruna Martinuzzi. Martinuzzi is a consultant on leadership skills for Clarion Enterprises, which she founded. So she should know about the value of strong communication skills. Martinuzzi's knowledge and insight about the value of the English degree is validated by so many successful people with humanities background, including Mitt Romney.

The reality is English majors are not hurting in the employment category, despite criticism from people like David Brooks of the New York Times. He, more than most, should appreciate just how valuable the study of the humanities is. English majors - at least the ones who graduate from pretty good schools - are in high demand because of their reading and writing skills, as well as their generally strong qualities of emotional intelligence. Clearly, the success of any society will depend on the skills of its citizenry.

Let's just not forget that the skills in the appreciation of the arts are foundational for any civilization.