Many of our 6-12 grade students are struggling in public schools. Approximately 2 million students dropped out of high school last year-that’s one student every 26 seconds, or over 7,000 per day. 25% of high school freshmen will fail to graduate. Students without diplomas face unemployment, homelessness, the pipeline to prison, and more.

More than one-third of secondary teachers are leaving their occupation or transferring to other schools-about 270,000 teachers. Teachers also face serious concerns including difficulties with students, parents, and community members. Many administrators use their teacher evaluation tools to find fault in teacher performance with minimal emphasis on ways to improve and support teachers.

We need to stop using the military model of discipline and order to control our students and teachers. Using punishment through isolation, embarrassment, bullying, and other physical and emotionally negative treatment have to stop. Education Humanely Applied by Dr. Marie Phillips supports other ways to use time differently and to use humane methods of dealing with both students and teachers. Many schools are successfully applying these methods with excellent results. Change isn’t easy, but the possibilities are tremendous when schools use the time to assist teachers and students, staff development to support the addition of student-centred teaching and learning, and when attitudes change to a supportive, creative, and uplifting atmosphere in schools.

Dr. Phillips presents not only her views based on professional experience with this change process, but she also provides the research so readers can find many other educators and schools that have successfully moved from a negative system to a positive, supportive, actually thriving educational process.