Passionate Teacher: A Practical Guide by Robert

Passionate Teacher: A Practical Guide by Robert Fried describes how one might go about the process of passionate teaching. Included in this informative guide is an explanation of passionate teaching, the context in which passionate teaching can occur, a description of the obstacles educators face, creating passion in students and an analysis of curriculum.

The author, Robert Fried, suggests that despite multiple barriers to passionate teaching all teachers can adopt practices that engage passion among themselves, other educators and learners. Passion according to the author, is not something that an educator must be born with, but rather is something that all educators can learn and pass on to their students and family members. These ideas are explored below.

There are several points that Fried attempts to make throughout The Passionate Teacher. Fried most concerns himself with inspiring teachers and getting out the message that all teachers can learn to become passionate, which will result in higher quality learning and relationships within the educational setting.

Fried suggests that many times teachers and educators have not yet "found a way to capture what we hear and see" and that educators instead attempt to synthesize the things that inspire them and to generalize a theory or technique from these stories (p. 15). These techniques however, according to the author won't survive if an educator attempted to apply them to another situation. Most of these instances only leave fleeting impressions according to the author, which is not essential for passionate teaching.

Fried goes on to suggest that passion often feels "too special, too intense, too outside the boundaries of professional consideration" for educators to talk about, identify or "hold onto intellectually" (p. 16). The point Fried attempts to make is that passion is something that educators can not only analyze but also put to work and translate in a positive manner, using examples, strategies and techniques that transform images into action (p. 16).

Passion according to Fried is essential because it is the one component that enables students to learn in the best environment possible; it is the one thing that ensures quality of student learning even more so than varying teaching techniques or well organized information (Fried, 16).

Fried also identifies multiple obstacles that teachers face when attempting to find and translate their passion which she refers to as the "game of school" (18). The game includes overcoming obstacles such as discipline, controlling disruption and other actions that are daily requirements, if somewhat tedious but necessary, within the realm of a teaching medium (Diamond, 2005). The reader comes to understand that any environment, whether educational or otherwise, presents barriers, whether to passionate teacher, passionate learning or passionate living. Fortunately with proper tools and inspiration these obstacles can be overcome and even respected within the realm of a passionate environment.

Teachers according to Fried, must create partnerships that enable learning among teachers and alongside students, they must limit the amount of material they teach to enable students to master the heart of the subjects being covered, and they must redesign the curriculum to enable students to maximize their experience (Fried, 18).

Fried offers many concrete suggestions to help teachers in their journey toward translating passion into learning. Her vision of a curriculum includes incorporation of networks of relationships and a classroom environment that supports passionate rather than technical or organized learning. The author suggests teachers adopt a variety of techniques including encouraging children to be passionate about learning, teaching children to open up and participate willingly and enthusiastically in the classroom and holding all teachers to a standard of passion that will take learning into the next several decades.

Robert Fried's intent throughout the work seems to inspire, enrapture and engage educators to change their outlook of education, and to enlist the help of students and parents as allies in the learning process. The author suggests that passion can be translated into successful learning and can help encourage students to become passionate learners.

Ultimately Fried seems to also attempt to remind educators that they are an incredible force and influence in the classroom, and suggests that teachers should all remember they have the ability to inspire as much as students have the ability to inspire them. The focus of Fried's work is clearly inspirational. Passion according to Fried, "is not just a personality trait that some people have and others lack, but rather something discoverable, teachable and reproducible" (p. 6). Fried suggests that even when teachers face insurmountable obstacles in the educational process they can overcome them and learn to develop passionate methods.

Fried also suggests that passionate teachers must care not only about the subjects they teach but also their relationships with children, student's knowledge and idea and their commitment as learners as well as the educator's commitment as a teacher (Diamond, 2005). Fried suggests that when necessary teachers should even consider adopting radical methods to ensure passionate teaching ensues.

Reflections/Conclusions

Robert Fried's work The Passionate Teacher: A Practical Guide can best be described as an uplifting and motivational work of art whose intent is to move teachers to higher levels of service and education. The work suggests admirably that any and all teachers can learn to create a passionate environment. This requires that teachers understand what obstacles they face in the classroom and what techniques they can use to overcome them.