Mikey G

A good overview of Pre K but lacking

Reviewed: 01-01-23

Disclaimer: I am not an educator nor do I consider myself very knowledgeable about the problems facing public education.

I am however a concerned parent who listened to this trying to prepare my young children for school and find that this wasn’t very helpful in that regard. At the very least it stoked fear about the current state of affairs in our schools. Which I suppose can effect change to some degree. But I just didn’t think it outlined any real solutions. Seemed mostly anecdotal.

The writer obviously cares deeply about the quality of early education and laying a solid foundation. And at the root of this she seems to advocate for teachers. But I’m struggling to identify what exactly she’s advocating for. It could be that I missed it but maybe that’s not my fault? It seems if you’re going to write a book about systemic problems that affect early education, you would clearly and plainly lay out potential solutions. In some sense she helps the reader identify things to be mindful of when looking for a healthy and vibrant learning environment. But I think her intended audience is also educators? I think you miss the mark if you’re not saying step one: step two: kinda thing.

Look, I get that it’s a complicated problem and if it was easy we wouldn’t have to worry about it, nothing to fix. But I feel that if you invest the time in writing about it, there has to be a final chapter restating the problem(s), contributing factors, root cause. These are some recommended courses of action. Then I will feel more like my time and money vested in listening is worth it.

Hope this comes off in a constructive or helpful way and not in a way dissuading people from checking it out. Overall I did enjoy it, there is value in it. Just left me feeling more deflated than energized and prepared.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful