- ISBN13: 9780547247960
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
What would it take?
That was the question that Geoffrey Canada found himself asking. What would it take to change the lives of poor children—not one by one, through heroic interventions and occasional miracles, but in big numbers, and in a way that could be replicated nationwide? The question led him to create the Harlem Children’s Zone, a ninety-seven-block laboratory in central Harlem where he is testing new and sometimes controversial ideas about pover… More >>
Whatever It Takes: Geoffrey Canada’s Quest to Change Harlem and America
This book gives a very insightful look into the characteristics of the “Inner-City” population, the challenges and the approaches to overcoming some of the obstacles. On the down side, the fact that millions of dollars have to be spent in putting solutions in motion is discouraging to someone who would want to replicate the “Children’s Zone” approach. Still, the book offers some hopeful directions.
Rating: 2 / 5
Mr. Tough did an excellent story for This American Life on WBEZ in Chicago. It is on episode 364 titled Going Big. I just listened to the podcast and after hearing Tough’s story I wanted to get Whatever It Takes for my sister, who is pregnant. I wanted to get the book because I thought the book was actually a recounting of the curriculum taught to the parents going through Baby College. I now understand from the other reviews that the book, while worthwhile, is not the book I imagined. Where could I get a How-To-Do-HCZ-Baby-College-At-Your-Own-Church-Or-Community-Center book?
Rating: 3 / 5
As both an educator and administrator, I found this book to be truly inspirational. Geoffrey Canada’s dedication to change Harlem on so many levels is truly eye opening and amazing. I highly recommend the book.
Rating: 4 / 5
If you’re paying attention to the education agenda under the Obama administration, you’ll know about charter schools and you may have heard about Geoffrey Canada. If you are interested in charter schools or about how to successfully impact student performance outcomes working with high-poverty populations, this is a good case study of a successful school.
Rating: 4 / 5
Paul Tough’s account of Geoffrey Canada and The Harlem Children’s Zone should be read and studied by everyone in education. Feeling a bit hopeless about what it might take to close achievement gaps in public schools? Read this. If you are discouraged about the challenges of bringing children from America’s poorest communities up to grade level, and doing so on a sustained basis, read this. “Whatever It Takes,” as the title implies, is about commitment. It’s about top to bottom, front to back, never-give-up commitment. “Whatever It Takes” also is a terrific primer in simple, unadulterated problem analysis. Problems don’t linger in Canada’s world, they are attacked with energy and resolve.
Canada approaches the problem with a blank slate. He has benefactors (investors with plump bank accounts) who watch his work like the careful investors they are. The resources give Canada the opportunity to attempt “whatever it takes” but Tough’s careful reporting shows that dollars aren’t all that matters. It also takes school leadership, effective teaching, and the right attitude to reach students with so many obstacles already stacked against them.
Tough’s writing is clear, solid and unambiguous. (If you read authors such as Michael Pollan or Timothy Egan, you’ll enjoy Tough’s unflashy style.) You may have seen the “60 Minutes” segment on Geoffrey Canada, but “Whatever It Takes” probes much deeper into how the organization was built and the significant challenges Canada faced–and met–along the way. Tough’s recap of the organizational challenges is matched in reporting by the portraits of people we meet along the way. There’s Canada’s fascinating personal story first, of course, and then the parents, students and teachers who have built this remarkable model in the heart of Harlem. It’s no wonder President Obama wants to replicate this project nationwide. It works.
Rating: 5 / 5