Ric Klass

"Ric Klass came to a troubled Bronx high school with the best of intentions - he wanted to teach math to inner city teens. What he discovered was a system that sucked out the best students in order to justify a questionable small school restructuring strategy that politicians had committed themselves to, teachers forced by educrats to use teaching techniques that defy logic, standardized tests rigged to inflate scores, and the unwillingness of his supervisors to discipline the small number of disruptive students who make it impossible for other students to learn.

Mr. Klass is unencumbered by pedagogical orthodoxy. He is an admirable fellow who simply tried to use the solid common sense he developed compiling a uniquely eclectic and impressive resume to help his students. This engaging book is one that Bill Gates would be well-advised to read before he commits more money to fund programs designed by the educational establishment that has failed too many for too long. Gates won't be bored. Ric Klass is more than just a great teacher, he is also a great storyteller."
-- Andrew Wolf, Education Columnist,
The New York Sun

"You have got me hooked, Ric. I cannot put down your diary. I cannot help but marvel at a guy who has been successful at a number of occupations and then decides to take on teaching in a tough, tough school. And you struggle. And the kids do not care about math. And the kids misbehave. And, and, and. Well, why would a teacher-librarian care about you when you only get teaching tips from the teacher’s lounge? Yes, I remember Up the Down Staircase and Stand and Deliver. You are not a polished gem, Sir Ric, but you have created a fascinating read for teacher-librarians who are trying to figure out how to lend a hand to those new teachers. By the way, Ric, did you have a teacher-librarian? Anyway, what would a math teacher in a tough school do in the library? Bottom line: Worth the read and a big think."
--David Loertsher, Book Reviewer
Teacher Librarian Magazine, December 2006.

"Ric Klass recounts his days as a math teacher in the Bronx with honesty and spunk. To watch him go from hoping to be a hero to just hoping to make it through the day is as humorous as it is heartbreaking. While irreverent at times, this page-turner of a memoir points to the pressing importance of finding solutions for our nation's struggling schools."
-- Lauren McCollum, TeachersCount.org

"You can’t seem to pick up a newspaper these days without reading about the alarming state of the educational system in our country. The No Child Left Behind Act, in particular, has sparked fierce debate about the causes of the problems in schools across America. It seems that everyone with access to a soapbox has offered their opinion on how to save our nation’s students. This book provides an in-depth look at the reality of public school teaching, and leaves the reader with the realization that there is no simple solution to the problems existing in our school system.

Man Overboard takes us through a year in the life of newly minted high school math teacher Ric Klass. A seasoned veteran of the business world, Klass decided to become a teacher after helping a struggling high school student succeed at algebra and gain admission to a top university. Inspired by this student’s success, Klass reasoned that he could similarly help students who were floundering in the chaos of inner city high schools. As he would find out soon after the school year began, he was wrong.

Although this book is about a math teacher, it is striking how little discussion there is about mathematics. There is good reason for this — between severely overcrowded classrooms and students who lack the ability to focus for even the briefest moment, Klass hardly has a chance to get to the math. The pressures he faces outside of the classroom are no less daunting — a school administration that dictates which teaching technique to use, little support from the school security force, and periodic reports of assaults on staff members. By the end of the book, I was exhausted and amazed that he finished out the year. In this I believe he is representative of the very dedicated teachers across the nation who each day face challenges for which they are ill-equipped to handle — challenges which often have nothing to do with the quality of their academic preparation.

Although Klass mentions several times throughout the book that smaller class sizes would be the ticket to solving the problems he has faced in his short tenure as teacher, the sheer magnitude of the chaos at his school makes it clear that much more than class size reduction is needed. And although an inner city high school is not necessarily representative of the high schools of mainstream America, many of the issues he raises are exactly the ones that need to be considered if we are to finally begin to repair our system of public education."
-- Reviewed by Rebecca Black for:
MAA Reviews, The Mathematical Association of America

"As another school year begins in central Ohio, let’s be glad that people such as Klass are willing to take on the challenge of teaching. And let’s hope that none of our schools is as dysfunctional as the one he describes."
-- Joe Blundo, Columnist
The Columbus Dispatch

"When Ric Klass closed his private equity firm in affluent Greenwich, Connecticut, to become a math teacher at an unnamed New York City school he refers to as Central Bronx High, he wanted to live the whole movie—the one in which an idealistic teacher triumphs over the odds to transform the dead-end lives of inner city kids. A week before he started teaching, he actually watched Blackboard Jungle; To Sir, With Love; and Stand and Deliver to pump himself up. And Klass did get his movie, but it wasn’t To Sir, With Love. It wasn’t even Goodbye, Mr. Chips. It was Armageddon."
-- Reviewed by Howard Good for:
Teacher Magazine

"Lessons Learned:
Ric Klass' Year as a Teacher in the Bronx

Millions of words are published every year about the state of education in our urban schools. Politicians, union leaders, educationalists, foundation leaders, conservatives and liberals have had their say about what's wrong with urban schools and what must be done to fix them. Do they really know what they are talking about it?

There's a resident of Rye, Ric Klass, who does. And once you read his book, “Man Overboard: Confessions of a Novice Math Teacher in the Bronx,” you will realize that most of our educational leaders - from Joel Klein to Bill Gates - have a lot to learn from him.

A former aerospace engineer, entrepreneur, university lecturer and investment banker, with degrees from MIT, USC and Harvard, three years ago, Mr. Klass decided he wanted to change careers and teach. He had been tutoring disadvantaged kids for years. As he said recently in an interview with The Rye Record, “I wanted to get out and make a bigger difference in children's lives. So, I worked over the summer to get an education degree and then purposefully chose to teach in one of the lowest performing high schools in the Bronx.”

What happened? As Mr. Klass explained: “I was pretty confident that I could do it right, and got my head handed to me.” The book is a diary of his efforts over one year. The book is hardly grim; Klass is a very funny writer, and the episodes he recounts are amusing and compelling, while at times tragic. The reader finds himself pulling for Mr. Klass while appalled at the reality that he's dealing with: classrooms where there is no discipline whatsoever, students who never do homework, a feckless principal, and a teacher's union which, bizarrely, fights to keep this dysfunctional high school open.

What can be done? Mr. Klass believes most school reform efforts are doomed to fail. “They don't deal with the elemental fact that these poor kids often have no support at home. No one's telling them they must succeed, and so most don't bother to try.” He sums up the typical poor, urban high school student body like this: “20% want to learn, 20% actively don't want to learn, and 60% are ambivalent - they go whichever the wind's blowing.”

He does hold out some hope for schools that spend their money on smaller class sizes. “Given the discipline issues, the teacher will only get their attention when there are about 15 students in the class. Small schools, such as those being promoted by the Gates Foundation, are not the answer; it's smaller class sizes.”"
-- Peter Jovanovich, The Rye Record