Kozol decries unequal education

For nearly 40 years, author Jonathan Kozol has been painting vivid pictures of the human damage being done by the substandard education inflicted on many poor children in the United States. His keynote speech at the 1st General Session that officially opened the 51st Annual Convention of the International Reading Association continued that tradition. But it also showed that at the core of his criticism is Kozol's belief in education's power to inspire and uplift.

His speech included passionate denunciations of a variety of educational and social ills. Segregation "has returned to public education with a vengeance," Kozol said. "If you're as old as I am and you actually sat at the feet of Dr. King, it just breaks your heart." He also decried the "archaic" and "unjust" approach to school funding taken in the United States, an overemphasis on testing as schools bend their programs to meet No Child Left Behind benchmarks, and scripted programs that stifle good teachers' ability to inspire their students.

But Kozol's speech returned often to the inspiration and hope offered by education, and how the charm and magic to be found in the written word is the strongest source of motivation to read. He told a number of stories about the playful spirit, resilience, and insight he has found in the many children he has met. Kozol ended by saying teachers should resist the pressures to be distracted by pressures put on their field by politicians and media figures and stay excited about what he called their "beautiful profession."