New Memoir Seeks to Unite All Who Strive and Struggle for Opportunity in the Face of Social Inequity


Bloomington, Aug. 12, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Solution Tree announced today multiple additions to Dr. Andy Hargreaves’s worldwide virtual book tour in support of his June release, Moving. At a time when student inequity has been brought to the forefront due to remote learning, this candid and emotionally direct memoir deftly contributes to critical global conversations surrounding equity and social mobility.

The book opens in 1950s England, taking readers through some of the most pivotal moments of the author’s early life in a working-class community, while periodically fast-forwarding to the present day. Hargreaves reveals in intimate detail how his experiences of social class and class movement shaped him as a young child, as well as throughout adolescence and early adulthood. Offering humor and insights, Moving combines the author’s own underdog story of grit, resilience and even defiance with his acknowledgment of the importance of a strong public education and housing and welfare supports to his advancement. He connects all this to the larger literature and issues of inequity and social immobility affecting all disadvantaged groups in the world today. 

“It’s time for all of us to do our very best to reduce inequality, increase support and foster more inclusive and responsive cultures in our schools, our universities and our societies,” explained Hargreaves. “If we do all this, social mobility will become a stronger possibility for more young people and a less alienating experience once they achieve it.”

The memoir includes a foreword written by Nicola Sturgeon, first minister of Scotland, who explains that she also experienced the kind of social mobility described throughout the book. Sturgeon shared that the book’s message to her as a political leader is that “social mobility is too important to be left to individual effort, ingenuity, luck or chance. Systems and governments must play their part as well.”

Harvard University’s Howard Gardner, creator of the theory of multiple intelligences, described Moving as “nuanced” and “heartfelt.” He added, “One comes to appreciate the motivations for Andrew Hargreaves’s lifetime mission of improving educational opportunities for less-privileged persons, as well as the approaches that he has taken in pursuit of that essential undertaking.”

Hargreaves’s upcoming appearances include virtual speaking engagements and interviews that will be broadcast from organizations in the United States, Canada, England and Australia, among other global locations. Key presentations are scheduled at the Albert Shanker Institute in Washington, D.C. on September 14, the British Columbia Principal and Vice Principal's Association on October 29 and the Australia Council for Educational Leaders in late 2020. In addition, a weekly virtual book study with Hargreaves will be offered through Solution Tree at no cost, beginning August 12 and running through August 26. 

Moving is now available to order at SolutionTree.com. 

About the Author 
Andy Hargreaves is a research professor at Boston College, visiting professor at the University of Ottawa and holds visiting professorships at Hong Kong University, the University of Stavanger and Swansea University. He is past president of the International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement, adviser in education to the First Minister of Scotland and from 2016 to 2018 advised the premier of Ontario, Canada. He is ranked in the top 20 scholars with most influence on U.S. education policy debate and in the top 25 list of global education gurus.

About Solution Tree
Since 1998, Solution Tree has worked to transform education worldwide by empowering educators to raise student achievement. With more than 30,000 educators attending professional learning events and more than 4,260 professional development days in schools each year, Solution Tree helps teachers and administrators confront essential challenges. Solution Tree has a catalog of more than 515 titles, hundreds of videos and online courses and is the creator of Global PD, an online tool that facilitates the work of professional learning communities.

 

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