The Light in Their Eyes: Creating Multicultural Learning Communities (Multicultural Education Series)

Wonderful treatise on the importance of educators having the courage to infuse creativity in the classroom in spite of the limitations of the so-called standards movement.

Excellent. Nieto has great insights into issues on diversity,
teaching and learning.

I read this book for a graduate level Multicultural Education course. We were given the option to choose between Sonia Nieto's book or another book. I blindly chose Nieto's, based on the reviews I read on Amazon.com. As it turns out, that was a HUGE mistake. It was one of the hardest books I have ever read! If I were writing my dissertation for my Ph.D. in education, perhaps I would have a better knowledge of the jargon Nieto uses. However, it was a struggle to get through how repetitive she tends to be, as well as deciphering much of her vocabulary. In the beginning I was having a lot of self-doubt about my ability to read. As it turns out, nine of the ten classmates who chose this book also suffered the same trouble I had.

On the other hand, Sonia Nieto delivers a great message that all educators should heed. She suggests that educators must continue to be fully dedicated toward accomplishing positive growth in the ongoing battle against educational inequity. Her bold implications are honest, which leaves the reader wanting to adopt her passion.

And yet, she should find a better editor to make the book more readable.

sonia nieto does an extraordinary job of conveying not only the notion of multiculturalism, but also the understanding of what it takes to teach in a multicultural arena. nieto accurately describes the learning process as a reciprocal process between students and teachers, and students as teachers. nieto discusses the notion of "culture" as a verb, which i think is quite appropriate. the use of personal narratives, as well as her own experience as an educator in poor, urban areas, was very insightful and uplifting. one thing that struck me as prophetic, while seemingly obvious, was her statement "in order to become a multicultural teacher you must first be a multicultural person." well said. and well written.

In this book, Sonia Nieto clearly makes known to the reader a thorough understanding of what it takes to teach in multicultural contexts. It is very rare for me to be so attached to a book that is embedded heavily in research and educational theories, without putting it down for a few days. Nieto was able to hold my attention with easy, readable language and personal narratives of other teachers, in addition to her own experiences as a Puerto Rican educator. In my opinion, Sonia Nieto demonstrates her ability as a leading theorist in the field of multicultural education and critical pedagogy in this text that is presented with wonderful clarity and expertise. If I were ever in a position to teach a college course on multicultural education, I would definitely select this book as required reading, an excellent choice for a textbook in multicultural education.