Background
Gatto, John Taylor was born on December 15, 1935 in Monongahela, Pennsylvania, United States. Son of Andrew Michael Mario and Frances Virginia (Zimmer) Gatto.
(Weapons of Mass Instruction: A Schoolteacher's Journey Th...)
Weapons of Mass Instruction: A Schoolteacher's Journey Through the Dark World of Compulsory Schooling by John Taylor Gatto. New Society Pub,2009
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004C7214A/?tag=2022091-20
(An intimate investigation into the prison of modern schoo...)
An intimate investigation into the prison of modern schooling. This book will take you on a journey into the background, philosophy, psychology, politics, and purposes of compulsion schooling.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FRJRNHM/?tag=2022091-20
( With over 70,000 copies of the first edition in print, ...)
With over 70,000 copies of the first edition in print, this radical treatise on public education has been a New Society Publishers’ bestseller for 10 years! 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. This second edition describes the wide-spread impact of the book and Gatto’s "guerrilla teaching." John Gatto has been a teacher for 30 years and is a recipient of the New York State Teacher of the Year award. His other titles include A Different Kind of Teacher (Berkeley Hills Books, 2001) and The Underground History of American Education (Oxford Village Press, 2000).
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0865714487/?tag=2022091-20
(John Taylor Gatto analyzes the roots of the modern Americ...)
John Taylor Gatto analyzes the roots of the modern American education system, detailing how it was designed to foster economic interests and facilitate management of the labor force. He then outlines ways to revitalize the system, advocating greater emphasis on critical analysis, creativity, practicality, and real-world exposure in the curriculum. He also calls on educators and administrators to acknowledge young people's need for a spiritual and ethical framework upon which to build a good life.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1893163210/?tag=2022091-20
( John Taylor Gatto’s Weapons of Mass Instruction, now av...)
John Taylor Gatto’s Weapons of Mass Instruction, now available in paperback, focuses on mechanisms of traditional education that cripple imagination, discourage critical thinking, and create a false view of learning as a byproduct of rote-memorization drills. Gatto’s earlier book, Dumbing Us Down, introduced the now-famous expression of the title into the common vernacular. Weapons of Mass Instruction adds another chilling metaphor to the brief against conventional schooling. Gatto demonstrates that the harm school inflicts is rational and deliberate. The real function of pedagogy, he argues, is to render the common population manageable. To that end, young people must be conditioned to rely upon experts, to remain divided from natural alliances, and to accept disconnections from their own lived experiences. They must at all costs be discouraged from developing self-reliance and independence. Escaping this trap requires strategy Gatto calls “open source learning” which imposes no artificial divisions between learning and life. Through this alternative approach, our children can avoid being indoctrinated—only then that can they achieve self-knowledge, judgment, and courage. John Taylor Gatto is an internationally renowned speaker who lectures widely on school reform. He taught for thirty years in public schools before resigning on the op-ed pages of The Wall Street Journal during the year he was named New York’s official “Teacher of the Year.” On April 3, 2008, the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard credited Gatto with adding the expression “dumbing us down” to the school debate worldwide.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0865716692/?tag=2022091-20
(Strong words from the New York State Teacher of the Year!...)
Strong words from the New York State Teacher of the Year! Twenty-six years of award-winning teaching have led John Gatto to the sad conclusion that compulsory governmental school does little but teach young people to follow orders. Dumbing Us Down offers a radical critique of public schooling, and suggests a guerilla curriculum of daily involvement in our communities.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/086571231X/?tag=2022091-20
(John Taylor Gatto's Weapons of Mass Instruction, now avai...)
John Taylor Gatto's Weapons of Mass Instruction, now available in paperback, focuses on mechanisms of traditional education that cripple imagination, discourage critical thinking, and create a false view of learning as a byproduct of rote-memorization drills. Gatto's earlier book, Dumbing Us Down, introduced the now-famous expression of the title into the common vernacular. Weapons of Mass Instruction adds another chilling metaphor to the brief against conventional schooling. Gatto demonstrates that the harm school inflicts is rational and deliberate. The real function of pedagogy, he argues, is to render the common population manageable. To that end, young people must be conditioned to rely upon experts, to remain divided from natural alliances, and to accept disconnections from their own lived experiences. They must at all costs be discouraged from developing self-reliance and independence. Escaping this trap requires strategy Gatto calls "open source learning" which imposes no artificial divisions between learning and life. Through this alternative approach, our children can avoid being indoctrinated-only then that can they achieve self-knowledge, judgment, and courage. John Taylor Gatto is an internationally renowned speaker who lectures widely on school reform. He taught for thirty years in public schools before resigning on the op-ed pages of The Wall Street Journal during the year he was named New York's official "Teacher of the Year." On April 3, 2008, the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard credited Gatto with adding the expression "dumbing us down" to the school debate worldwide.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0092G8LDG/?tag=2022091-20
educational analyst public speaker
Gatto, John Taylor was born on December 15, 1935 in Monongahela, Pennsylvania, United States. Son of Andrew Michael Mario and Frances Virginia (Zimmer) Gatto.
Bachelor, Columbia University, 1959; Master of Arts, Hunter College, 1971; postgraduate, Cornell Univercity, 1954, 55, 86; postgraduate, U. Pittsburgh, 1956; postgraduate, Yeshiva U., 1963; postgraduate, California State University, 1984; postgraduate, Lehman College, 1987; postgraduate, Reed College, 1990.
Copywriter Ted Bates Advertising, New York City, 1960-1961. Screenwriter Lotus Productions, 1961-1962. Instructor in English New York City Board Education, 1962-1971.
Lecturer Queens College, New York City, 1971-1976. Director The Lab School, 1976-1991. President Oxford Educational Consultant, Oxford, New York, since 1991.
Songwriter (American Society of Composers listed), New York City, 1967-1972. Educational consultant Board Higher Education, New York City, 1971-1976. Script consultant Marvel Comics, District of Columbia Comics, New York City, 1972-1973.
Senior staff designer Huckleberry Designs, New York City, since 1976. President Lava MT Records. Advisory board, National Coalition Alternative Community Schools, since 1998, National television Turnoff Week, since 1999.
Keynote speaker National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Goddard Space Center, Kennedy School Government, Harvard, South Korea National Education Convention, Australian National Leadership Conference, Australian National Home School Conference, Netherlands National Home School Conference, 1992-2010.
( With over 70,000 copies of the first edition in print, ...)
( John Taylor Gatto’s Weapons of Mass Instruction, now av...)
(John Taylor Gatto's Weapons of Mass Instruction, now avai...)
(Strong words from the New York State Teacher of the Year!...)
(John Taylor Gatto analyzes the roots of the modern Americ...)
(Weapons of Mass Instruction: A Schoolteacher's Journey Th...)
(An intimate investigation into the prison of modern schoo...)
("Crisis in Education from problem to opportunity.")
(2nd)
Founder The I.S. 44 Market, school fundraiser, New York City. District leader New York Conservative Party, since 1973, state Committeeman, since 1978. Candidate New York State Senate, Albany, 1986, 88, 90.
Candidate for president Manhattan Borough, New York City, 1989. Member of advisory board Albany Free School, since 1992, Save OurSchs., since 1993, Martha's Vineyard Charter School, since 1995, television-Free American, since 1995. Secretary education Libertarian Party Shadow Cabinet, since 1993.
Speaker to numerous organizations, conversations, colleges, companies, since 1992. Fellow Scholars Circuit, New York Graphoanalysts Society, Society Monongahela (president since 1988). Member Chenango Upland Pistol Club (president 1975-1990), MarshallChess Club, Audubon Society, United States Mycological Society, Scottish Heritage Association, Working Press of the Nation.
Married Janet MacAdam, December 29, 1969. Children: Briseis Lucrezia, Raven Taylor.