White Teacher is really a nonfictional bildungsroman , a chronicle of both Paley's educational progress and that of the kindergartners under her charge...The stories, beyond even the lessons she draws from them, are very fine...White Teacher documents an admirable dedication...[It is an] eloquent little book.
New Republic - Julia M. Klein
A wonderful, useful book—short, warm, and to the point. Using entertaining, well-chosen incidents from her own teaching experience, Vivian Paley examines a question that concerns teachers on all levels: How do I use my own behavior as a teacher to help my students learn to deal constructively with racial and social differences? It would be hard for anyone to read this book without growing a little and smiling a lot.
Phi Delta Kappan - Kate Long
Paley's mistakes and blind spots are as vivid as the life-sized children in this portrayal of a journey toward valuing and talking about differences, and helping children to do the same. While this account does not boast of arrival...it should be of interest to anyone committed to nurturing children or to understanding human development in a pluralistic society.
Harvard Educational Review
Inspirational and motivating...It is a book commendable to teachers, parents, and anyone else who wishes to understand him/herself better and is willing to continue to grow.
In this humane and beautifully written account, Paley describes her progress in learning to deal more openly with her pupils'—and her own—perceptions of race. The reader, following Paley's progress with a succession of bright, charming, and sometimes exasperating children, sees how she became a better and more mature teacher.
This timely new edition of Vivian Gussin Paley's White Teacher is like a breath of fresh air. Originally published in 1979, it's a book that has important things to say about how teachers perceive and deal with race. In its rather anecdotal, unanalytical way, it sheds light on how all teachers, including those early-years education, negotiate their way through the complexities of living in a pluralistic society.
Times Higher Education Supplement - Reva Klein
A wonderful, useful book—short, warm, and to the point. Using entertaining, well-chosen incidents from her own teaching experience, Vivian Paley examines a question that concerns teachers on all levels: How do I use my own behavior as a teacher to help my students learn to deal constructively with racial and social differences? It would be hard for anyone to read this book without growing a little and smiling a lot.
— Kate Long
This timely new edition of Vivian Gussin Paley's White Teacher is like a breath of fresh air. Originally published in 1979, it's a book that has important things to say about how teachers perceive and deal with race. In its rather anecdotal, unanalytical way, it sheds light on how all teachers, including those early-years education, negotiate their way through the complexities of living in a pluralistic society.
Times Higher Education Supplement
White Teacher is really a nonfictional bildungsroman , a chronicle of both Paley's educational progress and that of the kindergartners under her charge...The stories, beyond even the lessons she draws from them, are very fine...White Teacher documents an admirable dedication...[It is an] eloquent little book.
— Julia M. Klein
