"Ogren's exploration of what teachers did in the summer expands our understanding of teachers' lives and education in important, fascinating ways. Disparagement of time 'off' was part of deprofessionalization and a rationale for low pay and status, while teachers expanded their knowledge, perspective, and skills at their own expense. Charmed by Ogren's well-written accounts of teachers from diverse backgrounds, I remembered summer school classes, War and Peace, an enrichment program for urban kids, working on the census, swimming in Walden Pond, and more when I was teaching kindergarten in the Boston Public Schools. Summer's on, you'll learn a lot!"
"In this deeply researched, fascinating account, Ogren not only reveals rich new dimensions of how teachers a century ago chose to live during their precious summer months, but why their stories remain relevant for us today."
"Brings to life a rich history that challenges common assumptions about teachers' time 'off.' Ogren's careful research and attention to detail reveal how summertime pursuits shaped teachers' professional and personal lives."
Christine A. Ogren is a professor at the University of Iowa. She is the author of The American State Normal School: "An Instrument of Great Good" and the coeditor of Rethinking Campus Life: New Perspectives on the History of College Students in the United States.
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