Cheap To know as we are known: A spirituality of education (Book) (Parker J Palmer) Price

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Customer Reviews of To know as we are known: A spirituality of education

Making a Connection
I really appreciate Palmer's insight on how to rescue education from the lifeless imprint of objectivism. It may seem that Palmer is writing off objectivism totally, but that is not the case. Palmer helped me to put objectivism in its proper place. The problem addressed in this work is not objectivism so much as it is the sanctification of it as the only way to know and educate. Objectivism has its place in our knowing, but it should not be the whole of our epistemology.

He quotes Michael Polanyi who I believe to be one of the most honest thinkers of our time. I would recomend reading any of his writings prior to this. Polanyi was putting forth ideas like this long before it became popular to criticize objectivism.

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A Guide to Help Education Recover Its Roots
This book helped me to deepen my understanding of education as learning rather than mere schooling. Palmer's voice needs to be heard by many now crusading for education reform if schools are to live up to their potential for spiritual transformation and cultural renewal. In my experience, authentic learning, and therefore education, is a kind of spiritual formation from a postmodern perspective. This essential aspect of schooling is in danger of being lost amidst the clamor from religious and professional educators and evangelists who are proponents of the merely conventional or sectarian.

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The single worst book I have ever read on any subject
I was forced to read this years ago in an undergrad psych class on learning and behavior, yet it still stands out in my mind. I should have demanded a refund of my tuition, as it had no relevance to the course or to anything else.

The title alone should warn you as to how esoteric this guy is. He soon tells you about "coming into Troth with Truth." This could almost be forgivable if it were used merely as a metaphor (albeit a weird one) and quickly brought down to earth by concrete definitions of his terms. But such definitions -- the burden of even the most amateurish philosopher, if he wishes to be taken seriously -- are nowhere to be found. The whole thing reads like a Zen koan. (Wait till he starts talking about quantum physics!)

The reason for this becomes increasingly apparent as he capitalizes and personifies abstractions such as "Truth," exposing his thinly-veiled born-again-Christian paradigm. He might as well have just said "God."

To the degree that this sermon is even remotely intelligible, its take-home message is anti-rational and reveals a fundamental spite for the human faculty of reason. It preaches that one can find truth not by reading, writing, building, testing, digging up artifacts, working in the lab -- but by introspection. I'm sorry, but introspection only deepens one's prejudices. To the author, this is somehow synonymous with education.

If this condemnation sounds too harsh, by all means, PLEASE read the 5-star reviews, as they only reinforce my point.