Tough Fronts The Impact of Street Culture on Schooling [Paperback]

Tough Fronts takes the difficult issues in urban education head on by putting street-savvy students at the forefront of the discussion on how to best make successful changes for inner city schools. Individual chapters discuss scholarly depictions of black America, the social complexity of the teacher-student relationship, individual success stories of 'at-risk' programs, popular images of urban students, and implications for education policy. With close attention to the voices of individual students, this engaging book gives vitality and legitimacy to arguments for school changes that have been lacking in previous discussions.

&Dances qualitative lens enriches the literature regarding facilitation of resiliency of at-risk students. Portions of Tough Fronts, if not the entire book, would be a valuable resource for teacher training programs and current educators, whether just beginning or seasoned in the profession. --Pam Guess, Education Review, December 2009

L. Janelle Danceis Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Maryland, College Park. As part of the Education/Spencer Postdoctoral fellowship, she continued her research on urban education in Philadelphia.