Book excerpt: This beautifully written book highlights working teachers speaking on many key educational problems under debate as well as many of the controversial solutions put forth, including revamped teacher evaluations, curricular standardization, and increased testing and data collection. Anthropologist Catherine Lutz and high school teacher Anne Lutz Fernandez traveled the country to meet a wide range of educators on the frontlines of teaching across diverse contexts—from traditional public schools to charters to the home school; early in careers and near retirement; in city, town, suburb, and country. What they learned about teaching and learning provides critical insights not just for educators but for anyone interested in American education. Book Features:A focus on many of the key issues and problems in education today. In-depth interviews and observations of teachers at work with students, colleagues, and parents. Questions for discussion and suggestions for further readings in each chapter.A book website that includes a blog providing author commentary on education news and a forum for teachers’ voices (www.schooledbook.org). “A fascinating journey into the lives of nine American teachers—all different but tied together by the dedication, passion, and hope to change young people’s lives.... As they say, teaching is not rocket science, it’s more complicated than that.” —Pasi Sahlberg, author of Finnish Lessons 2.0: What can the world learn from educational change in Finland? “An electrifying and inspiring must read for teachers and everyone concerned with the fate of our schools.” —Lesley Bartlett, Associate Professor, Educational Policy Studies, University of Wisconsin–Madison “This book will rapidly become required reading not only among educators but also among education policy reformers. Clearly, lessons learned from these contextually rich case studies will inform our current policy debate on charting the steps in supporting the teaching profession.” —Kenneth K. Wong, Chair, education department, Brown University “This book makes an important case for defying the standardization that passes for school reform, while we learn first hand what it means to teach today in a changing social, cultural and political environment.” —Ann Lieberman, Senior Scholar at Stanford University