Foreword: Academic Rigour Meets Writing From the Heart
Andy Curtis
Excerpts
Some books draw you in, in ways that you did not expect, and some books give you hope. This book does both, and a great deal more... this book has been – for me at least – something special. It got my attention on the first page, and held it, tight, until the last page.
...there appear to be relatively few works published in academic outlets that are about what is, in essence, a labour of love, far beyond the publish-or-perish hoops-of-fire with which universities have been oppressing professorial staff for nearly a century by now. Thankfully, this is one such work. I find myself, as a reader, caring about these people, the sons and daughters, the mothers and fathers, the teachers and learners who are striving to, if not remove, then at least to lower some of the myriad barriers to the basic human right of a life-changing and life-affirming education at all levels. So, to speak the unspeakable L-Word in the Academy, these challenges in this book are not only presented with moving empathy, but dare I say, with Love. However, to quote the old saying “therein lies the rub,” meaning something along the lines of, “but that’s the problem.” In this case, the problem facing almost everyone writing-for-publication in academic outlets today is: How to be taken seriously, when writing with passion? Typically, the two tend to be mutually exclusive within the hallowed halls of the Academy.
...I believe that most of the authors who have made this unique collection possible come as close to that ideal as I have yet to read in an “academic book” – by which I mean that almost all of the 20 or so contributors and editors are based in universities (including university-like institutes of technology). However, most of these contributors manage to pull-off the impressive feat of writing with what we now call “academic rigour” but whilst also showing how much they care about what it is that they are writing about... this book gives me hope. Hope that this collection can and will make a real and tangible difference to lowering – if not outright removing, as that may not be feasible in the current socio-political and economic climate – the many barriers to as good an education as everybody is entitled to, as a basic human right, at all levels, including those of us who are markedly and observably not neuro-typical deserve.
...given the current educational inequities of our world today, this book is a shining example of what can be done, what is being done, and what needs to be done.
About the Contributor
Dr. Andy Curtis is a Specially Appointed Professor at City University of Macau, SAR, China.
Citation
Curtis, A. (2024). Foreword: Academic rigour meets writing from the heart. In A. Burke, D., Young, & M. L. Cook (Eds.), Barrier-free instruction in Japan: Recommendations for teachers at all levels of schooling (pp. 11-17). Candlin & Mynard. https://doi.org/10.47908/30/f
Some books draw you in, in ways that you did not expect, and some books give you hope. This book does both, and a great deal more... this book has been – for me at least – something special. It got my attention on the first page, and held it, tight, until the last page.
...there appear to be relatively few works published in academic outlets that are about what is, in essence, a labour of love, far beyond the publish-or-perish hoops-of-fire with which universities have been oppressing professorial staff for nearly a century by now. Thankfully, this is one such work. I find myself, as a reader, caring about these people, the sons and daughters, the mothers and fathers, the teachers and learners who are striving to, if not remove, then at least to lower some of the myriad barriers to the basic human right of a life-changing and life-affirming education at all levels. So, to speak the unspeakable L-Word in the Academy, these challenges in this book are not only presented with moving empathy, but dare I say, with Love. However, to quote the old saying “therein lies the rub,” meaning something along the lines of, “but that’s the problem.” In this case, the problem facing almost everyone writing-for-publication in academic outlets today is: How to be taken seriously, when writing with passion? Typically, the two tend to be mutually exclusive within the hallowed halls of the Academy.
...I believe that most of the authors who have made this unique collection possible come as close to that ideal as I have yet to read in an “academic book” – by which I mean that almost all of the 20 or so contributors and editors are based in universities (including university-like institutes of technology). However, most of these contributors manage to pull-off the impressive feat of writing with what we now call “academic rigour” but whilst also showing how much they care about what it is that they are writing about... this book gives me hope. Hope that this collection can and will make a real and tangible difference to lowering – if not outright removing, as that may not be feasible in the current socio-political and economic climate – the many barriers to as good an education as everybody is entitled to, as a basic human right, at all levels, including those of us who are markedly and observably not neuro-typical deserve.
...given the current educational inequities of our world today, this book is a shining example of what can be done, what is being done, and what needs to be done.
About the Contributor
Dr. Andy Curtis is a Specially Appointed Professor at City University of Macau, SAR, China.
Citation
Curtis, A. (2024). Foreword: Academic rigour meets writing from the heart. In A. Burke, D., Young, & M. L. Cook (Eds.), Barrier-free instruction in Japan: Recommendations for teachers at all levels of schooling (pp. 11-17). Candlin & Mynard. https://doi.org/10.47908/30/f
Information About the Book
Title: Barrier-Free Instruction in Japan: Recommendations for Teachers at all Levels of Schooling
Editors: Alexandra Burke, Davey Young, and Melodie Lorie Cook
Read more...
Title: Barrier-Free Instruction in Japan: Recommendations for Teachers at all Levels of Schooling
Editors: Alexandra Burke, Davey Young, and Melodie Lorie Cook
Read more...