ESSENTIAL CONVERSATION, THE(ISBN=) 英文原版

　　With the insights she has gleaned from her close and subtle
observation of parent-teacher conferences, renowned Harvard
University professor Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot has written a wise,
useful book about the ways in which parents and teachers can make
the most of their essential conversation—the dialogue between the
most vital people in a child’s life.　　
　　“The essential conversation” is the crucial exchange that occurs
between parents and teachers—a dialogue that takes place more than
one hundred million times a year across our country and is both
mirror of and metaphor for the larger cultural forces that define
family-school relationships and shape the development of our
children. Participating in this twice-yearly ritual, so friendly
and benign in its apparent goals, parents and teachers are often
wracked with anxiety. In a meeting marked by decorum and
politeness, they frequently exhibit wariness and assume defensive
postures. Even though the conversation appears to be focused on the
student, adults may find themselves playing out their own childhood
histories, insecurities, and fears.　　
　　Through vivid portraits and parables, Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot
captures the dynamics of this complex, intense relationship from
the perspective of both parents and teachers. She also identifies
new principles and practices for improving family-school
relationships. In a voice that combines the passion of a mother,
the skepticism of a social scientist, and the keen understanding of
one of our nation’s most admired educators, Lawrence-Lightfoot
offers penetrating analysis and an urgent call to arms for all
those who want to act in the best interests of their
children.　
　　For parents and teachers who seek productive dialogues and
collaborative alliances in support of the learning and growth of
their children, this book will offer valuable insights, incisive
lessons, and deft guidance on how to communicate more effectively.
In The Essential Conversation, Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot brings
scholarship, warmth, and wisdom to an immensely important cultural
subject—the way we raise our children.　
　　
　　From the Hardcover edition.
　　　　

　　Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot, a sociologist, is a professor of
education at Harvard University, where, since 1972, she has studied
the culture of schools, families, and communities. She is the
author of eight books, including The Good High School, Respect,
I’ve Known Rivers, and Balm in Gilead, which won the 1988
Christopher Award for “literary merit and humanitarian
achievement.” In 1984, she was the recipient of the prestigious
MacArthur Prize Fellowship. In 1993, she was awarded Harvard’s
George Ledlie Prize for research that makes the “most valuable
contribution to science” and is to “the benefit of mankind.” She is
the first African-American woman in Harvard’s history to have an
endowed professorship named in her honor.