Quiet Desperation

The Effects of Competition in School on Abused and Neglected Children

By (author) Gerald W. Neal

Paperback - £38.00

Publication date:

22 April 2008

Length of book:

136 pages

Publisher

Hamilton Books

Dimensions:

230x154mm
6x9"

ISBN-13: 9780761839934

With standardized testing and predetermined subgroups garnering the attention of educational leaders, abused and neglected children have fallen deeper into the crevice of the system. For years these children have been ignored, save the obvious, visible bruises or child-initiated confessions. Because researching children is difficult without parental consent, it is nearly impossible to expose this problem with any level of legitimacy. By combining research from scientific research and the humanities, autobiographical flashbacks fuse with narratives that vividly detail the author's disturbing encounters with abused children as a school administrator. The effect is the realization that public schools unknowingly feed on weaker children beneath the awning of accountability.
I must admit, however, that I lost some sleep one night and felt extreme sadness feeling the pain of those Dr. Neal describe experiencing child abuse. But, it was a gift to have gone through this. My life has been altered in ways that I don't know at this point because of the experience of reading Quiet Desperation. I needed to be taken out of my comfort zone. Those who read this will probably undergo a similar experience, THANK GOD!