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Dumbing Us Down

The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling

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Dumbing Us Down

By: John Taylor Gatto
Narrated by: Michael Puttonen
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About this listen

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. With over 100,000 copies in print since its original publication in 2002, this book is collection of essays and speeches and contains a description of the wide-spread impact of the book and Gatto's "guerrilla teaching".

About the author: John Gatto was a teacher in New York City's public schools for over 30 years and is a recipient of the New York State Teacher of the Year award. A much sought after speaker on education throughout North America, his other books include Weapons of Mass Instruction: A Schoolteacher’s Journey through the Dark World of Compulsory Schooling, A Different Kind of Teacher, and The Underground History of American Education.

©2002 John Taylor Gatto (P)2012 Post Hypnotic Press, Inc 21st Century Americas Childhood Education Education Modern Social Sciences Sociology American Education
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A great book that exposes the reality of today's education curriculum. Written by someone with vocation and that knows the system. Recommended.

The reality of the education systems nowadays.

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Inciting. This is John Taylor Gatto's genius. I didn't understand schooling while I was there, even though I now love learning. Thanks to Gatto's book I have learnt about the true motives behind forced schooling and will continue to learn more about the world at large.

Inciting. This is John Taylor Gatto's genius

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Inspiring, illuminating and terrifying. Great read for home educators or those who can feel deep in their bones there is a better way for our children.

Thought provoking

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hard to believe this was written in 1990s. Way ahead of its time.
Goes a long way to explain so many problems in this world.

just brilliant

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This is my second of his books and it simply is one of the easiest books to listen to. It has also made some upcoming decision much clearer.
Thank you thank you thank you!!!

Mind blown

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A really great listen. I am very well versed in the failings of the healthcare systems and was shocked when my children entered the education system. I was able to see so many similarities between the two and not in a good way. This book was excellent at reaffirming that I’m not imagining things. An excellent read for those who are on the fence about homeschooling.

Thought provoking and affirming of the failings of systems

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I was mostly disappointed by this book.
While the author made some good points about how the schooling system can be detrimental, particularly in regards to children’s creativity and finding sense of self, I found that most of his examples were incredibly biased. “Children watch 55 hours of television per week” - where? What children?

The narrative was also repetitive. He reiterated the same points over and over, without giving new, or indeed any, evidence.

I found this to be the ramblings of an old, bitter man, nostalgic for the days of his youth and sure that he knows better than these young whipper snappers...
I found myself bored.

Biased, bitter & boring

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