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As the #WhyTheyCantWrite slow chat winds down I wanted to highlight some of the books that proved so useful to me as I worked on the book. These are in no particular order, but they're all recommended. 
I'm going to use Amazon links because they're easiest to access, but I urge people to use their local booksellers, libraries, etc to access these books if possible.
"Air and Light and Time and Space" by Helen Sword. This is good to help reflect on one's writing process, but it's also interesting to see the conditions under which academics work and contrast them with the circumstances under which students often work. amazon.com/Air-Light-Time…
"I Love Learning; I Hate School" by @SusanDebraBlum. An invaluable look at the attitudes that students bring into higher ed where they see school as something not necessarily related to learning. amazon.com/Love-Learning-…
"The Gift of Failure" by @jesslahey. Another book which looks closely at the lives of students and how we need to give them room to have learning experiences that include "failure" without undue consequences. amazon.com/Gift-Failure-P… #WhyTheyCantWrite
"The Testing Charade" by @DanKoretz This book demolishes any notion that our testing regime is leading to positive outcomes for students. amazon.com/Testing-Charad… #WhyTheyCantWrite
"After the Education Wars" by @aagabor. Another book that looks at what's happening in schools from a systemic perspective. amazon.com/After-Educatio… #WhyTheyCantWrite
"The School Reform Landscape: Fraud, Myth, and Lies" by @ChrisTienken & Donald Orlich. The title says it all. amazon.com/School-Reform-… #WhyTheyCantWrite
Punished by Rewards: The Trouble with Gold Stars, Incentive Plans, A's, Praise, and Other Bribes by @alfiekohn. An exploration of how grades are disincentives to learning and the importance of intrinsic motivation. amazon.com/Punished-Rewar… #WhyTheyCantWrite
"When Grit Isn't Enough: A High School Principal Examines How Poverty and Inequality Thwart the College-for-All Promise" by Linda Nathan. A big message of the book is that curriculum changes alone will not save us. This is why. amazon.com/When-Grit-Isnt… #WhyTheyCantWrite
More later. This will take awhile.
More books that influenced #WhyTheyCantWrite. "Education is not an App" by @jhrees and Jonathan Poritz. A highly readable text on why MOOCs were never going to disrupt education. amazon.com/Education-Not-…
"The Intersectional Internet: Race, Sex, Class, and Culture Online" by @safiyanoble and Brendesha M. Tynes. I used an essay in here from @tressiemcphd. This will help see what's going on underneath the net. amazon.com/Intersectional… #WhyTheyCantWrite
"Class Clowns: How the Smartest Investors Lost Billions in Education" by Jonathan Knee. This is a useful look at how and why so many people lose their shirts in education and edtech. They don't know what they're doing. amazon.com/Class-Clowns-I… #WhyTheyCantWrite
"What The Best College Teachers Do" by @KenBain1 . In #WhyTheyCantWrite, I use Bain's concept of "deep learning" as a contrast to much of what students are asked to do in school. This book was very important in the transformation of my teaching. amazon.com/What-Best-Coll…
More tomorrow. Not even halfway through the list.
Continuing the list of books that informed #WhyTheyCantWrite that I recommend others interested in similar issues check out.
"Paying the Price: College Costs, Financial Aid, and the Betrayal of the American Dream" by @saragoldrickrab Another of the books I went to to help me better understand the systemic barriers between students and education. amazon.com/Paying-Price-F… #WhyTheyCantWrite
"Errors and Expectations: A Guide for the Teacher of Basic Writing" by Mina P. Shaughnessy. A true classic. Some of it is dated, but it treats students as individuals and helps us see past the lens of "defect" and focus on potential. amazon.com/Errors-Expecta… #WhyTheyCantWrite
"The Meaningful Writing Project" by @meodice @aegeller & Neal Learner. Fantastic study exploring how we can help students connect to their writing and transfer learning from task to task. amazon.com/Meaningful-Wri… #WhyTheyCantWrite
"Cheating Lessons: Learning from Academic Dishonesty" by @LangOnCourse Not just about preventing plagiarism, but a deeper dive into student motivations and behaviors regarding school. amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss… #WhyTheyCantWrite
"The Hungry Mind" by Susan Engel. An exploration of curiosity and childhood. I'm a big believer in centering curiosity in writing instruction, school in general, even. amazon.com/Hungry-Mind-Su… #WhyTheyCantWrite
That's @lernerneal, not Neal Learner. Anyone who who teaches writing should look at The Meaningful Writing Project. It helps understand what kinds of experiences help prepare students for future writing demands. amazon.com/Meaningful-Wri…
Finally, some folks on Twitter whose work is directly cited in the book and who are well worth following to gain access to their work. @audreywatters @DanaGoldstein @plthomas @anya1anya @BenjaminBHerold @douglevin @rickhess99 @CathyNDavidson @SusanSchorn #WhyTheyCantWrite cont...
Can't believe I almost forgot "For White Folks Who Teach in the Hood... and the Rest of Y'all Too" by @chrisemdin I use Dr. Emdin's "reality pedagogy" as a framework for how we can engage all students. Amazing book. amazon.com/White-Folks-Te… #WhyTheyCantWrite
