Today I have a review of To Know as We Are Known: A Spirituality of Education by Parker Palmer, a book exploring how a teacher might understand him or herself better in order to understand his or her students better and thus more greatly impact his or her students’ education. You can also read, rate, and comment on my review at Amazon.
This is the first book I’ve read by Parker Palmer although I’ve read essays, chapter excerpts, and several authors who cite him several times over the years. I was excited to have a full work by Mr. Palmer to take in and I found it exceptional even if I perhaps found myself perplexed from time to time (I’m sure Mr. Palmer would say that’s a good thing).
Immediately, Mr. Palmer presents a central metaphor of learning to do life “whole” by opening both the mind’s eye which sees “a world of fact and reason” and the eye of the heart to see “a world warmed and transformed by the power of love.” (Intro) A teacher, then, uses both
build a life that builds the world.