The Teachers: A Year Inside America's Most Vulnerable, Important Profession by Alexandra Robbins

The Teachers: A Year Inside America's Most Vulnerable, Important Profession Reviews

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  Alexandra Robbins

  THE TEACHERS is the most important book of my career. Written in my usual fiction style so that readers can lose themselves in the characters' stories, THE TEACHERS takes you behind the scenes (behind the desks, behind the staffroom door, behind the principal's door, behind the parent/teacher conference door...) in elementary, middle, and high schools. I followed three teachers - Rebecca, Penny, and Miguel - for a year and interviewed hundreds of other teachers across the country to present the full picture the public doesn't see: the realities, secrets, challenges, and joys. These are real teachers' voices - urgent, vital, and strong. Hear them roar.
  
  Preorders available at
  bit.ly/teachersbook
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  AndiReads

  Are you a teacher? Do you know a teacher or do you have children in school? Then this is a book for you.
  
  As a teacher (25 years) I believe this book is an accurate representation of what teachers across the country face. I personally am friendly with many teachers nationally via some awards programs and of course due to my own role, subscribed to multiple outlets for help and support during covid.
  
  The picture painted by NYTimes bestselling author Robbins is unflinchingly true. As teachers, our lives are completely entwined with our job, all day, every day, even in the summer. I like it best when it's referred to as a calling as it is certainly an underfunded job.
  
  I loved reading about the experiences of these diverse teachers and also appreciated the tips and tricks. Meeting with parents is never easy and I felt it in my own gut when a teacher mentioned her trepidation with opening her work email. I hope this book is well read and passed along to all parents and adults who are friends with or supporting teachers. I'd love that because Alexandra manages to explain the unexplainable - the obstacles, the fears and the hopes and the feats that we all face every day as teachers
  #PenguinGroup #Dutton #TheTeachers #AlexandraRobbins
• 
  Sandy Irwin

  “The Teachers” is a compelling look at one of society’s most trusted- yet most vilified - professions. We follow three teachers during the course of one school year. We learn about their professional and personal lives, as well as examine some systemic issues in schools, from administrations and boards to other teachers, parents, and students. I was drawn into their stories and the challenges and outcomes of their students - applauding their successes and empathizing with their issues. I thought I knew what it was like to be a teacher, but this book was enlightening. To learn about what teachers put up with was disheartening, especially knowing that they tolerate their treatment because they care so deeply for their students. An excellent read.
  
• 
  Julie

  Since 2006 I have enjoyed and gained insight from all of Alexandra Robbins’ books. As an educator for more than three decades and having served four distinct schools, in The Teachers I can identify my own experiences, as well as those of various diverse educators from across the country. While there are universal challenges among public schools nationwide, each state and each school district within a state represent a unique, highly complex organization that has stretched its limits in meeting the learning, social, and emotional needs of our children. Public school district resources continue to diminish as impossible challenges and unreasonable expectations rise. Robbins has taken on a tremendous task of depicting public schools, which are as disparate as their individual administrators, teachers, and students. She has captivated the demanding, exhausting, and heartbreaking roles of a core group of teachers, developing those threads throughout the text while interweaving mind-boggling testimonies of numerous additional teachers. I applaud her many years of research, excellent writing, and commitment to increasing awareness about the teaching profession in dire crisis. The Teachers is a must-read for all who seek to understand what is really happening in our schools. Whether or not families have children in public schools, the frightening decline in the teaching profession and the failure of public schools impact all children and our future.
• 
  Randal White

  A real "pull back the curtains" look into the teaching profession today. Coming out of the Covid crisis, and all of it's ramifications for children's education, it's important to understand what teachers are going through. The author does a good job of illustrating this, by taking a good look at several different teachers. After reading this, my heart goes out to all of those involved in the education process today. I really don't know what the answer is, but I hope someone can figure something out quickly. I would have rated this book higher, but it really did depress me.
• 
  Amy

  The Teachers: A Year Inside America's Most Vulnerable, Important Profession by Alexandra Robbins is a fascinating look into elementary, middle, and high school classrooms. Being a teacher is such an important labor of love, not a profession to go into looking to become wealthy. I found this book to be compelling and such an interesting peek into our educational system. I have read quite a few books by Alexandra Robbins and really appreciate her commitment to diving deep into the subject matter to put forth as much realness as possible. Thanks to Penguin Group Dutton and NetGalley for the eARC. All opinions shared are influenced by nothing other than my own reading experience.
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  Joseph Shapiro

  Got an early look at this book. I may be biased married to a teacher, but I really enjoyed this book. Quick read and highlights the challenges our teachers face as they do their critically important work. My favorite of her books so far!
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  Jan

  No doubt these are actual accountings from teachers in the field of education. It is a profession done out of love for working with children, not for the money. Very eye-opening.
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  Bethany Dickey

  I have loved some of this author's previous non-fiction works so I was excited to see this one on Netgalley! Unfortunately, I found the style of it very jumpy and odd. The chapters were half teachers' personal stories, half listed advice which I completely skimmed.
  
  I also found it was simultaneously really fatalistic and uplifting. I'm not exactly sure what message the book is trying to impart but it was pretty darn depressing.