Themes for English B

Scrimgeour ponders the nature of meaningful learning, both in and beyond the classroom. He contrasts his Ivy League education to the experiences of his students at a small public college in a faded, gritty New England city. What little he knows of the burdens his students bring to class-family crises, dead-end jobs, overdue bills-leaves him humbled. Fighting disenchantment with the ideals of higher education, Scrimgeour writes, "How much I owe these students, how much I have learned. They know the score; they know they are losing by a lot before the game even begins, and they shrug, as if to say, 'What am I supposed to do, cry?'" Is there too great a student-teacher divide? Can Richard Wright, Langston Hughes, or any other writer Scrimgeour teaches have something to say to a single mother with a full course load, two jobs, a sick kid, and a broken car? Yes, it turns out, and it is magic when it happens. [from publisher description].